Mai is arranging 12 cans of food in a row on a shelf. She has 5 cans of peas, 1 can of corn, and 6 cans of beets. In how many distinct orders can the cans be arranged if two cans of the same food are considered identical (not distinct)?
Question
Mai is arranging 12 cans of food in a row on a shelf. She has 5 cans of peas, 1 can of corn, and 6 cans of beets. In how many distinct orders can the cans be arranged if two cans of the same food are considered identical (not distinct)?
Solution
This problem can be solved using the formula for permutations of a multiset. The formula is:
n! / (n1! * n2! * ... * nk!)
where n is the total number of items, and n1, n2, ..., nk are the numbers of each type of item.
In this case, n = 12 (the total number of cans), n1 = 5 (the number of cans of peas), n2 = 1 (the number of cans of corn), and n3 = 6 (the number of cans of beets).
So the number of distinct orders is:
12! / (5! * 1! * 6!) = 95040
So there are 95040 distinct ways to arrange the cans.
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