概率统计(英文)chapter3 Discrete Random Variables and Probability Distributions教学教材.ppt

3 Discrete Random Variables and Probability Distributions;Introduction The concept of a random variable allows us to pass from the experimental outcomes themselves to a numerical function of the outcomes. There are two fundamentally different types of random variablesdiscrete random variables and continuous random variables. In this chapter, we examine the basic properties and discuss the most important examples of discrete variables, and we will study continuous variables in Chapter 4. ;3.1 Random Variables; We will often use the abbreviation rv in place of random variable. Random variables are denoted by uppercase letters, such as X and Y. in contrast to our previous use of a lowercase letter, such as x to represent some particular value of the corresponding random variable. The notation X(s)=x means that x is the value associated with the outcome s by the rv X.;Example 3.2 Consider the experiment in which a telephone number in a certain area code is dialed using a random number dialer , and define an rv Y by ;Example 3.5 Suppose that in some random fashion, a location (latitude and longitude ) in the continental United states is selected, define an rv Y by Y=the heigth above sea level at the selected location;Two type of random variables; Continuous random variables Experimental outcomes that are based on measurement scales such as time, weight, distance, and temperature can be described by continuous random variables.;Exercise P100 7 For each random variable defined here, describe the set of possible values for the variable and state whether the variable is discrete. X=the number of unbroken eggs in a randomly chosen standard carton Y=the number of students on a class list for a particular course who are absent on the first day of classes U=the number of times a duffer has to swing at a golf ball before hitting it X=the length of a randomly selected rattlesnake Z=the amount of royalties earned from the sale of a first edition of