or
or
Melinda's lights went out. She has 3 pairs of red socks in her drawer, 2 pairs of black socks, and 5 pairs of white socks. What is the minimum number of pairs she must remove from the drawer to ensure that she has a pair of each color
To ensure that Melinda has a pair of each color (red, black, and white), we need to consider the worst-case scenario, where she initially removes socks that are the same color.
So, the minimum number of pairs she must remove from the drawer is 3 (red) + 2 (black) + 4 (white) = 9 pairs.
The correct answer is 9 pairs.
