The Counting Principle

The Counting Principle can be difficult if one doesn't understand what the particular problem is asking for. Once that's figured out, it's really simple. Sometimes the problem asks for order, other times it can be random. Those all affect how the solution will come out to be so that has to be checked.

Example 1: Ice cream can come in both a cup or a cone. The flavors available are vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry. How many possible outcomes are there? (Assume that each person is receiving only a scoop of ice cream)

To determine: all one needs to do is multiply the two containers of how the ice cream is served by the flavors of every ice cream to get the answer

#: 2x3= 6

Example 2: I have 3 shirts and 4 pants. How many different outfits can i have?

Multiply 3x4=12 different outfits.