Question

a restaurant offers 5 appetizers and 12 main courses. in how many ways can a person order a two - course meal? there are \\(\square\\) ways a person can order a two - course meal.

Explanation:

Step1: Identify the principle

This is a problem of counting the number of ways to choose an appetizer and a main course, so we use the multiplication principle of counting. The multiplication principle states that if there are \(m\) ways to do one thing and \(n\) ways to do another thing, then there are \(m\times n\) ways to do both things.

Step2: Apply the principle

Here, the number of ways to choose an appetizer (\(m\)) is 5, and the number of ways to choose a main course (\(n\)) is 12. So the total number of ways to order a two - course meal is \(m\times n=5\times12\).

Step3: Calculate the result

\(5\times12 = 60\).

Answer:

60