# Problem #1889

 1889 In a small pond there are eleven lily pads in a row labeled $0$ through $10$. A frog is sitting on pad $1$. When the frog is on pad $N$, $0, it will jump to pad $N-1$ with probability $\frac{N}{10}$ and to pad $N+1$ with probability $1-\frac{N}{10}$. Each jump is independent of the previous jumps. If the frog reaches pad $0$ it will be eaten by a patiently waiting snake. If the frog reaches pad $10$ it will exit the pond, never to return. What is the probability that the frog will escape being eaten by the snake? $\textbf {(A) } \frac{32}{79} \qquad \textbf {(B) } \frac{161}{384} \qquad \textbf {(C) } \frac{63}{146} \qquad \textbf {(D) } \frac{7}{16} \qquad \textbf {(E) } \frac{1}{2}$ This problem is copyrighted by the American Mathematics Competitions.
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• Reduce fractions to lowest terms and enter in the form 7/9.
• Numbers involving pi should be written as 7pi or 7pi/3 as appropriate.
• Square roots should be written as sqrt(3), 5sqrt(5), sqrt(3)/2, or 7sqrt(2)/3 as appropriate.
• Exponents should be entered in the form 10^10.
• If the problem is multiple choice, enter the appropriate (capital) letter.
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