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Calculus with Business Applications II Math 1690 8. Probability Distributions and Statistics and 10. Probability a
8.1 and 10.1 Probability Distributions and Random
Variables
Random Variable
A random variable is a rule that assigns a number to each outcome
of a chance experiment.
There are two kinds of random variables: Discrete and
Continuous:
A random variable X that assumes only discrete values(e.g
integers) is called a discrete random variable.
For Example, suppose an experiment consists of throwing a die and
observing the face that lands up. If we let X denote the outcome of
the experiment, then X assumes one of the values 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
A random variable X that can assume any value in an interval is
called a continuous random variable.
Examples of a continuous random variables are the life span of a
light bulb, the length of a telephone call, the length of an infant at
birth.
Calculus with Business Applications II Math 1690 8. Probability Distributions and Statistics and 10. Probability a
8.1 and 10.1 Probability Distributions and Random
Variables(Contd.)
Example 1: A pair of dice is rolled. Let X be the random variable
that gives the sum of the faces that fall uppermost.
a. List the outcomes of the experiment; that is, find the domain of
the function X.
b. Find the value assigned to each outcome of the experiment by
the random variable X.
c. Find the event that gives X=7.
Probability Distribution of a random Variable X is a table that
gives the distinct(numerical) values of the random variable X and
the probabilities associated with these values.
Example 2: Find the probability distribution of the random
variable X given in Example 1.
Histograms
A probability distribution of a random variable may be exhibited
graphically by means of a histogram.
Calculus with Business Applications II Math 1690 8. Probability Distributions and Statistics and 10. Probability a
8.1 and 10.1 Probability Distributions and Random
Variables(Contd.)
Example 3: Draw the histogram for the probability distribution in
Example 2.
Note: In histogram, the probability associated with more than one
value of the random variable X is given by the sum of the areas of
the rectangles associated with those values of X. For Example, in
Example 1, the probability of the event of getting sum 4 or 5(that
is, X=4 or X=5) is P(X=4)+P(X=5).
Example 4: The probability distribution of the random variable X
is shown in the accompanying table:
x -5 -3 -2 0 2 3
P(X=x) 0.17 0.13 0.33 0.16 0.11 0.10
Find
a. P(X ≤ 0) b. P(X ≤ −3) c. P(−2 ≤ X ≤ 2)
Calculus with Business Applications II Math 1690 8. Probability Distributions and Statistics and 10. Probability a
8.1 and 10.1 Probability Distributions and Random
Variables(Contd.)
Discrete Probability Function
A discrete probability function P with domain {x1 , x2 , . . . , xn }
satisfies these conditions:
1. 0 ≤ P(xi ) ≤ 1, for 1 ≤ i ≤ n
2. P(x1 ) + P(x2 ) + . . . P(xn ) = 1
Probability Density Function(Continuous Case)
A probability density function of a random variable X in an
interval I, where I may be bounded or unbounded, is a nonnegative
function f having the property that the total area of the region
under the graph of f is equal to 1.
The probability that an observed value of the random variable X
lies in the interval [a, b] is given by
Z b
P(a ≤ X ≤ b) = f (x)dx
a
Calculus with Business Applications II Math 1690 8. Probability Distributions and Statistics and 10. Probability a
8.1 and 10.1 Probability Distributions and Random
Variables(Contd.)
Example 5: a. Determine the value of the constant k such that
the function f (x) = k(5 − x) is a probability density function on
the interval [0, 5].
b. If X is a continuous random variable with the probability density
function given in part a, compute the probability that X will
assume a value between 2 and 3.
c. Find the probability that X will assume a value 2.
Home Work: Section 8.1 on Page 423 problems 5, 13, 15, 19.
Section 10.1 on Page 654 problems 17, 21, 31, 41, 43.
Calculus with Business Applications II Math 1690 8. Probability Distributions and Statistics and 10. Probability a
8.2, 8.3 and 10.2 Expected Value and Standard Deviation
Mean, Median and Mode
The average, or mean , of the n numbers x1 , x2 , . . . , xn is x̄ (read
”x bar”), where
x 1 + x2 + · · · + x n
x̄ =
n
Calculus with Business Applications II Math 1690 8. Probability Distributions and Statistics and 10. Probability a
8.2, 8.3 and 10.2 Expected Value and Standard
Deviation(Contd.)
Example 2: If a sample of three batteries is selected from a lot of
ten, of which two are defective, what is the expected number of
defective batteries?
(Hint: First find the probability distribution for the random
variable associated with the number of defective batteries)
Example 3: Find the expected value of a random variable X
3 2
associated with the probability density function f (x) = 125 x over
the interval [0, 5]
Odds
If P(E ) is the probability of an event E occurring, then
1. The odds in favor of E occurring are
P(E ) P(E )
= P(E ) 6= 1
1 − P(E ) P(E c )
Calculus with Business Applications II Math 1690 8. Probability Distributions and Statistics and 10. Probability a
8.2, 8.3 and 10.2 Expected Value and Standard
Deviation(Contd.)
2. The odds against E occurring are
1 − P(E ) P(E c )
= P(E ) 6= 0
P(E ) P(E )
1
P(µ − kσ ≤ X ≤ µ + kσ) ≥ 1 −
k2
Var (X ) = npq
√
σX = npq
Example 3: Find the mean, variance, and standard deviation for
the experiment in Example 2.
Home Work: Section 8.4 on page 459 problems 11, 19, 23, 33.
Calculus with Business Applications II Math 1690 8. Probability Distributions and Statistics and 10. Probability a