Questions: You need to arrange four of your favorite books along a small shelf. How many different ways can you arrange the books, assuming that the order of the books makes a difference to you?
ways
(Type a whole number.)
Transcript text: You need to arrange four of your favorite books along a small shelf. How many different ways can you arrange the books, assuming that the order of the books makes a difference to you? $\square$
ways
(Type a whole number.)
Solution
Solution Steps
Solution
To find the number of different ways to arrange n unique items along a shelf,
we use the factorial function, denoted as n!.
Step 1: Understanding the Problem
Given n=4 unique items, we seek the total number of unique arrangements possible.
Step 2: Applying the Factorial Function
The factorial of n, n!, is the product of all positive integers less than or equal to n.
Thus, n!=n×(n−1)×...×1.
Calculation
For n=4, n!=24.
Final Answer:
The number of different ways to arrange n=4 unique items along a shelf is n!=24.