Beyond the defining formula nCr=r!(n−r)!n!, a handful of algebraic properties of combinations make many otherwise-heavy computations short and elegant, and this chapter uses them repeatedly. The complement property, nCr=nCn−r, reflects the fact that choosing which r objects to INCLUDE is equivalent to choosing which n−r objects to LEAVE OUT — so it is always worth switching to whichever of r or n−r is smaller before expanding a computation by hand, and it is also the tool behind solving equations of the form nCx=nCy, whose only two possibilities are x=y or x+y=n. Pascal's Rule, nCr+nCr−1=n+1Cr, expresses how a triangle of combinations builds upward, and is proved by combining the two combination-fractions over a common denominator; it is invaluable for telescoping a running SUM of adjacent combinations down to a single binomial coefficient, and — read in reverse — for collapsing a DIFFERENCE of combinations sharing the same lower index. The identity nCr=r!nPr directly ties combinations back to permutations, and is often the fastest route through a 'find n and r give …