Matching Adjacent Cards

In a well-shuffled deck of cards, what is the probability that somewhere in the deck there are adjacent cards of the same rank? What is the average number of adjacent matches? What is the probability distribution for the number of matches? We answer these and related questions for both the standard $52$-card deck with four suits and $13$ ranks and for generalized decks with $k$ suits and $n$ ranks. We also determine the limiting distribution as $n$ goes to infinity with $k$ fixed.

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Publication Details

Journal
Mathematics Magazine
Published
2024-10-08
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1080/0025570x.2024.2401744
Primary Topic
Algorithms and Data Compression
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
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article

Matching Adjacent Cards

Kent E. Morrison
Mathematics Magazine
Algorithms and Data Compression
article

Matching Adjacent Cards

Kent E. Morrison
article en

Abstract

In a well-shuffled deck of cards, what is the probability that somewhere in the deck there are adjacent cards of the same rank? What is the average number of adjacent matches? What is the probability distribution for the number of matches? We answer these and related questions for both the standard $52$-card deck with four suits and $13$ ranks and for generalized decks with $k$ suits and $n$ ranks. We also determine the limiting distribution as $n$ goes to infinity with $k$ fixed.

Mathematics MagazineVol. 97(5)
American Institute of Mathematics (US)
Openalex Percentile: Top 85%
Algorithms and Data Compression
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Matching Adjacent Cards — Kent E. Morrison · Mathematics Magazine (2024) | TGRS Research Map | TGRS