What is a discrete random variable? I'm really having a hard time understanding the whole concept.
2006-10-29 05:37:25 · 2 answers · asked by ๑The Goddess๑ 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Mathematics
It can only take on certain discrete values. Example: the number of heads in 100 coin tosses. This must be a whole number, you cannot have 1/2 of a head. Continuous might be something like: you randomly cut a board, the length of the short section can be a continuous number, right.
Basically if it's things that you count it's discrete. If it's things that you have a continuous measure then it's continous.
In calculating probabilities, you do sums with discrete and integrals with continuous.
2006-10-29 05:45:10 · answer #1 · answered by modulo_function 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
A discrete random variable is one in which only integers (or other regular interval numbers) can come up. For the number of coin flips out of ten that come up heads, you can only have 1, 2, 3, etc.
A continuous random variable is one where the answer can be any infinite decimal. The temperature, for example, is never exactly 65 degrees. At a given time, it can be 64.4859438567, or 65.1438490, etc ...
2006-10-29 05:40:33 · answer #2 · answered by topher8128 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋