Question
If each element of a second order determinant is either zero or one, what is the probability that the value of the determinant is positive? (Assume that the individual entries of the determinant are chosen independently, each value being assumed with probability $\frac{1}{2}$).

Answer

There are four entries in a determinant of $2 \times 2$ order. Each entry may be filled up in two ways with 0 or 1.
$\therefore $ Number of determinants that can be formed = 24 = 16
The value of determinants is positive in the following cases:
$\left| {\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} 1&0 \\ 0&1 \end{array}} \right|,\left| {\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} 1&0 \\ 1&1 \end{array}} \right|,\left| {\begin{array}{*{20}{c}} 1&1 \\ 0&1 \end{array}} \right| = 3$
Therefore, the probability that the determinant is positive $ = \frac{3}{{16}}$

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