COMBINATIONS AND PERMUTATIONS

This chapter discusses combinations and permutations. Combinations are groupings of things without regard to their order. Permutations are arrangements of the same in the sequences of particular orders. For example, when a cricket captain picks 11 men out of a squad of 20 to form a team, mathematically he can be said to be making a combination of 20 things taken 11 at a time. When the captain assigns the members of such a team the sequence of a particular batting order, mathematically, he can be said to be making a permutation of the same 20 things 11 at a time.