Discrete Random Variables and Probability Distribution

DISCRETE RANDOM
VARIABLES AND
PROBABILITY
DISTRIBUTION
PROBABILITY DISTRIBUTIONS
AND PROBABILITY MASS
FUNCTIONS
 PROBABILITY DISTRIBUTION – indicates how
probabilities are distributed over possible values
of .
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FUNCTIONS
Example:
The time to recharge the flash
is tested in three cell-phone
cameras. The probability that
a camera meets the recharge
specification is 0.8, and the
cameras perform
independently.

FUNCTIONS
 PROBABILITY MASS FUNCTION – for a discrete
random variable with possible values , a PMF must
satisfy the following

FUNCTIONS
 Example:
The grades of n = 50 students in a statistics class are
summarized as follows:

FUNCTIONS
 Example:
Let the random variable X denote the number of
semiconductor wafers that need to be analyzed in order to
detect a large particle of contamination. Assume that the
probability that a wafer contains a large particle is 0.01 and
that the wafers are independent. Determine the probability
distribution of X. Let p denote a wafer in which a large
particle is present, and let a denote a wafer in which it is
absent.
CUMULATIVE DISTRIBUTION
FUNCTIONS
 The cumulative distribution function (cdf) of a
discrete random variable , denoted as , is

FUNCTIONS
 Properties:

FUNCTIONS
 Example:
Redo the examples earlier in the pmf and convert it
into cdf.

MEAN AND VARIANCE OF A
DISCRETE RANDOM VARIABLE
 Mean of - the mean of , denoted by or , means the
expected value of
 Variance of - the variance of indicates the

dispersion of about

 Example:
Suppose that, in an experiment of casting a single die,
six outcomes (X) are equally likely. Determine the
mean, variance, and standard deviation of X.

Example:
Two new product designs are to be compared on the basis of
revenue potential. Marketing feels that the revenue from
design A can be predicted quite accurately to be $3 million.
The revenue potential of design B is more difficult to assess.
Marketing concludes that there is a probability of 0.3 that the
revenue from design B will be $7 million, but there is a 0.7
probability that the revenue will be only $2 million. Which
design do you prefer?
 Example:
The number of messages sent per hour over a
computer network has the following distribution:

Exercises
Marketing estimates that a new instrument for the analysis
of soil samples will be very successful, moderately
successful, or unsuccessful, with probabilities 0.3, 0.6, and
0.1, respectively. The yearly revenue associated with a very
successful, moderately successful, or unsuccessful product
is $10 million, $5 million, and $1 million, respectively. Let
the random variable X denote the yearly revenue of the
product. Determine the probability mass function of X.

DISCRETE UNIFORM
DISTRIBUTION
 A random variable has a discrete uniform
distribution if each of the values in its range has
equal probability, that is,
Also,

DISCRETE UNIFORM
DISTRIBUTION

Suppose
that a range of a discrete RV is the
consecutive integers , for . The range contains values
with probability

DISCRETE UNIFORM
DISTRIBUTION
 Mean or Expected Value of
 Variance of

DISCRETE UNIFORM
DISTRIBUTION
 Example:
Let the random variable X denote the number of 48
voice lines that are used at a particular time. Assume
that X is a discrete uniform random variable with a
range of 0 to 48. Find the expected value and variance
of X.

DISCRETE UNIFORM
DISTRIBUTION
 Example:
Let the random variable Y denote the proportion of
the 48 voice lines that are in use at a particular time,
and X denotes the number of lines that are in use at a
particular time. Find and .

DISCRETE UNIFORM
DISTRIBUTION
 Bernoulli Trial – refers to a trial that has only two
possible outcomes
 Probability Mass function
 Mean and Variance

BINOMIAL DISTRIBUTION
 Binomial Experiment – refers to a random
experiment consisting of repeated trials which
satisfy:
 Trials are independent
 Each trial has only two outcomes, labelled as success or
failure (series of Bernoulli trials)
 Probability of success in each trial is constant.

 The random variable X that equals the number of
trials that result in a success is a binomial random
variable with parameters 0 < p < 1 and n = 1, 2,….
The probability mass function of X is

 Example:
A test has n = 50 multiple-choice questions; each
question has four choices but only one answer is right.
Suppose that a student gives his/her answers by
simple guess. Find the probability mass function. Find
the probability that the student answers at least 30
questions correctly. Calculate the mean and variance
of X.
 Example:
Each sample of water has a 10% chance of containing
a particular organic pollutant. Assume that the
samples are independent with regard to the presence
of the pollutant. Find the probability that in the next
18 samples, exactly 2 contain the pollutant.

HYPERGEOMETRIC
DISTRIBUTION
 HYPERGEOMETRIC RV
 A set of N objects contains
 K objects classified as successes
 N − K objects classified as failures
 A sample of size n objects is selected randomly (without
replacement) from the N objects where K ≤ N and n ≤ N.

HYPERGEOMETRIC
DISTRIBUTION
 HYPERGEOMETRIC RV PMF
 MEAN AND VARIANCE OF HYPERGEOMETRIC RV

HYPERGEOMETRIC
DISTRIBUTION
 Example
An instructor of a statistics class is planning to interview a
sample of n = 10 students who are randomly selected from
the class. The class has a total of 30 students, consisting of 20
traditional and 10 non-traditional students. Determine the
probability mass function of the number of non-traditional
students (X) in the sample. Find the probability that at least
one non-traditional student is in the sample. Calculate the
mean and variance of X.
HYPERGEOMETRIC
DISTRIBUTION
 Example:
A batch of parts contains 100 parts from a local
supplier of tubing and 200 parts from a supplier of
tubing in the next state. If four parts are selected
randomly and without replacement, what is the
probability they are all from the local supplier?

HYPERGEOMETRIC
DISTRIBUTION
 Example:
A listing of customer accounts at a large corporation contains
1000 customers. Of these, 700 have purchased at least one
of the corporation’s products in the last three months. To
evaluate a new product design, 50 customers are sampled at
random from the corporate listing. What is the probability
that more than 45 of the sampled customers have purchased
from the corporation in the last three months?

POISSON DISTRIBUTION

 Poisson
Process – Suppose that the occurrence of an event
over an interval (of time, length, area, space, etc.) is
countable and the interval can be partitioned into
subintervals. Then, a random experiment is defined as a
Poisson process if
 The probability of more than one event in a subinterval tends to
zero.
 The probability of one event in a subinterval tends to .
 The event in each subinterval is independent of other subintervals.

 Poisson Distribution PMF

 Example
The number of customers who come to the YUMMY
donut store follows a Poisson distribution with a mean
of 5 customers every 10 minutes. Determine the
probability mass function of the number of customers
(X) per hour coming to the donut store. Find the
probability that 40 customers come to the donut store
in an hour. Calculate the mean and variance of X.
 Example:
For the case of the thin copper wire, suppose that the
number of flaws follows a Poisson distribution with a
mean of 2.3 flaw per millimeter. Determine the
probability of 10 flaws in 5 millimeters of wire.

 Example:
Contamination is a problem in the manufacture of optical
storage disks. The number of particles of contamination
that occur on an optical disk has a Poisson distribution,
and the average number of particles per centimeter
squared of media surface is 0.1. The area of a disk under
study is 100 squared centimeters. Find the probability
that 12 particles occur in the area of a disk under study.
COMPARISONS

DISCRETE UNIFORM
DISTRIBUTION

Homework
 Suppose that product codes of 2, 3, or 4 letters are
equally likely. Determine the probability mass
function of the number of letters (X) in a product
code. Calculate the mean and variance of X.
Calculate the mean and variance of the number of
letters in 100 product codes (). Note that and

Homework
Because all airline passengers do not show up for their
reserved seat, an airline sells n = 125 tickets for a flight that
holds only 120 passengers. The probability that a passenger
does not show up is 0.10. Assume that the passengers
behave independently. Determine the probability mass
function of the number of passengers (X) who show up for
the flight. Find the probability that the flight departs with
empty seats. Calculate the mean and variance of X.

Homework
A lot of 75 washers contains 5 defectives whose
variability in thickness is unacceptably large. A sample
of 10 washers is selected at random without
replacement. Determine the probability mass function
of the number of defective washers (X) in the sample.
Find the probability that at least one unacceptable
washer is in the sample. Calculate the mean and
variance of X.
Homework
The number of cracks that need repair in a section of
interstate highway follows a Poisson distribution with
a mean of two cracks per mile. Determine the
probability mass function of the number of cracks (X)
in 5 miles of highway. Find the probability that there
are at least five cracks in 5 miles of highway that
require repair. Calculate the mean and variance of X.

Discrete Random Variables and Probability Distribution

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DISCRETE RANDOM

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 Variance of - the variance of indicates the

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 Mean and Variance

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 Mean and Variance

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 MEAN AND VARIANCE OF HYPERGEOMETRIC RV

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 Mean and Variance

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