CHAPTER OUTLINE

4.1 Random Variable

4.2 Discrete Random Variable
4.3 Probability Distribution of a Discrete Random
Variable
4.3.1 Mean of a Discrete Random Variable
4.3.2 Standard Deviation of a Discrete Random
Variable

4.4 Cumulative Distribution Function for Discrete

Random Variable

4.5 Continuous Random Variable

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OBJECTIVES
After completing this chapter, you should be able to:

Interpret that a random variable is a numerical

quantity whose value depends on the conditions and
probabilities associated with an experiment.

Differentiate between a discrete and a continuous

random variable.

Construct a discrete probability distribution based on

an experiment or given function.

Determine the similarities and differences between

frequency distributions and probability distribution.

Compute, describe and interpret the mean and

standard deviation of a probability distribution.

4.1 Random Variable

Definition:
A random variable is a variable whose value is
determined by the outcome of a random
experiment

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 Supposed one family is randomly selected from the
population. The process of random selection is called
random or chance experiment.

Let X be the number of vehicles owned by the selected

family (0, 1, 2, , n). Therefore the first column
represents five possible values (0, 1, 2, 3 and 4) of
vehicles owned by the selected family.

This table shows that 30 families have 0 vehicle, 470

families have 1 vehicle, 850 families have 2 vehicles,
490 families have 3 vehicles and 160 families have 4
vehicles.

In general, a random variable is denoted by X or Y.

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4.2 Discrete Random Variable
Definition:
A random variable that assumes countable values
is called discrete random variable.

Examples of discrete random variables:

Number of houses sold by a developer in a given

month.

Number of cars rented at a rental shop during a

given month.

Number of report received at the police station on

a given day.

Number of fish caught on a fishing trip.

4.3 Probability Distribution of a Discrete Random

Variable
Definition:
The probability distribution of a discrete random
variable lists all the possible values that the
random variable can assume and their
corresponding probabilities.

It is used to represent populations.

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 The probability distribution can be presented in
the form of a mathematical formula, a table or a
graph.

Example 1
Consider the table below. Let X be the number of vehicles
owned by a randomly selected family. Write the probability
distribution of X and graph for the data.

Solution:

X 0 1 2 3 4
P(x) 0.015 0.235 0.425 0.245 0.080

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 P(x)
0.45
0.40
0.35
0.30
0.25
0.20
0.15
0.10
0.05
X
0 1 2 3 4

Example 2
During the summer months, a rental agency keeps track of
the number of chain saws it rents each day during a period
of 90 days and X denotes the number of saws rented per
day. Construct a probability distribution and graph for the
data.

X Number of days
0 45
1 30
2 15
Total 90

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Solution:

45
When P( X 0) 0.5 ,
90
30
P( X 1) 0.33
90
15
P( X 2) 0.17
90

Hence, the probability distribution for X:

X 0 1 2
P(x) 0.5 0.33 0.17

Whereas the graph is shown below:

P(x)
1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
X
X
0 1 2

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Example 3

One small farm has 10 cows where 6 of them are male and
the rest are female. A veterinary in country XY wants to
study on the foot and mouth disease that attacks the cows.
Therefore, she randomly selects without replacement two
cows as a sample from the farm. Based on the study,
construct a probability distribution which X is the random
sample representing the number of male cows that being
selected as a sample (Use tree diagram to illustrate the
above event).

Joint Probability

5/9 M P(MM)=1/3

6/10 M
4/9 F P(MF)=4/15
6/9 M P(FM)=4/15
4/10 F

3/9 F P(FF)=2/15

X 0 1 2
P(x) 2/15 8/15 1/3

Conditions for probabilities for discrete random

variable.

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i) The probability assigned to each value of a random
variable x must be between 0 and 1.

0 P(x) 1, for each value of x

ii) The sum of the probabilities assigned to all possible

values of x is equal to 1.

P(x) = 1

Example 4

The following table lists the probability distribution of car

sales per day in a used car shop based on passed data.

Car Sales per day, X 0 1 2 3

P(x) 0.10 0.25 0.30 0.35

Find the probability that the number of car sales per day is,

a) none
P( X 0) 0.10

b) exactly 1
P( X 1) 0.25

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c) 1 to 3
P(1 X 3)
P( X 1) P( X 2) P( X 3)
0.25 0.30 0.35
0.90

d) more than 1
P ( X 1)
P ( X 2)
P ( X 2) P ( X 3)
0.30 0.35
0.65

e) at most 2
P( X 2)
P( X 0) P( X 1) P( X 2)
0.10 0.25 0.30
0.65

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4.3.1 Mean of a Discrete Random Variables

Definition:
The mean of a discrete random variable X is the value
that is expected to occur repetition, on average, if an
experiment is repeated a large number of times. It is
denoted by and calculated as:

X .P( x)

The mean of a discrete random variable X is also

called as its expected value and is denoted by E(X),

X .P( x)

4.3.2 Standard Deviation of a Discrete Random

Variable

Definition:
The standard deviation of a discrete random variable X
measures the spread of its probability distribution and
is calculated as:

x 2
P (x ) 2

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 A higher value for the standard deviation of a discrete
random variable indicates that X can assume value over
a large range about the mean.

In contrast, a smaller value for the standard deviation

indicates the most of the value that X can assume
clustered closely about the mean.

Example 5

The following table lists the probability distribution of car

sales per day in a used car dealer based on passed data. P(x)
is the probability of the corresponding value of X = x.
Calculate the expected number of sales per day and
followed by standard deviation.

X P(x)
0 0.1
1 0.25
2 0.3
3 0.35
Total 1.00

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Solution:

E( X )
X .P( x)
(0 0.1) (1 0.25) (2 0.3) (3 0.35)
0 0.25 0.6 1.05
1.9
2

2
X 2 .P( x) 2
(0 0.1) (1 0.25) (4 0.30 ) (9 0.35) 1.9 2
(0 0.25 1.2 3.15) 3.61
0.99
so, 0.99 0.995

Example 6

During the summer months, a rental agency keeps track of

the number of chain saws it rents each day during a period
of 90 days and X denotes the number of saws rented per
day. What is the expected number of saws rented per day?
Then, find the standard deviation.

X 0 1 2
P(x) 0.5 0.33 0.17

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Solution:

Mean
E( X )
X .P( x)
(0 0.5) (1 0.33) (2 0.17)
0 0.33 0.34
0.67
1

Standard Deviation
2
X 2 .P ( x ) 2
(0 0.5) (1 0.33) (4 0.17 ) 0.67 2
(0 0.33 0.68) 0.4489
0.5611
so, 0.5611 0.7491

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4.4 Cumulative Distribution Function

Definition:

The cumulative distribution function (CDF) for a

random variable X is a rule or table that provides the
probabilities P( X x) for any real number x.

Generally the term cumulative probability refers to the

probability that X less than or equal to a particular
value.

For a discrete random variable, the cumulative

probability P( X x) is a function F ( x) ,
t
where F ( x) P( X x) P( X x)
x x0

and

P( X x) , where x x0 , x1 , x2 ... is the probability

distribution function for X.

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Example 7

A discrete random variable X has the following probability

distribution.

X 0 1 2 3
P( X x) 1 3 1 1
30 10 2 6
Construct the cumulative distribution of X.

Solution:

X 0 1 2 3
P(x) 1 3 1 1
30 10 2 6
F(x) 1 10 25 1
30 30 30

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Example 8

A discrete random variable X has the following cumulative

distribution.

1
21 , for 0 x 1

3 , for 1 x 2
21
6
, for 2 x 3
F ( x) 21
10
, for 3 x 4
21
15
21 , for 4 x 5

1 , for x 5

a) Construct the probability distribution of X.

X 0 1 2 3 4 5
P(x) 1 2 3 4 5 6
21 21 21 21 21 21
F(x) 1 3 6 10 15 1
21 21 21 21 21

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b) Construct the graph of the:

i. probability distribution of X

P(x)
16/21
14/21
12/21
10/21
8/21
6/21
4/21
2/21
X
0 1 2 3 4 5

ii. cumulative distribution of X

F(x)

6/21
5/21
4/21
3/21
2/21
1/21
X
0 1 2 3 4 5

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Example 9 (Overall Example)

During the school holiday, the manager of Victory Hotel

records the number of room bookings being cancelled each
day during a period of 50 days, the results are shown below
and X denotes the number of room bookings being
cancelled per day.

Number of room bookings being cancelled Number of

per day, X days
0 2
1 4
2 7
3 8
4 13
5 10
6 3
7 3

a) Construct the probability distribution of X.

X 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
P(x) 0.04 0.08 0.14 0.16 0.26 0.20 0.06 0.06

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b) Then, draw a bar chart for the probability distribution.

P(x)

0.28
0.24
0.20
0.16
0.12
0.08
0.04
X
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

c) The manager expects that five room bookings were

cancelled for a day. Is the manager expectation true?
Explain.

E( X )
X .P( x)
(0 0.04) (1 0.08) (2 0.14) (3 0.16)
(4 0.26) (5 0.20) (6 0.06) (7 0.06)
0 0.08 0.28 0.48 1.04 1.00 0.36 0.42
3.66
4

The manager expectation is not true since only four

expected room bookings being cancelled for a day.

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d) Find the probability that at most three room
bookings were cancelled.

P( X 3)
P( X 0) P( X 1) P( X 2) P( X 3)
0.04 0.08 0.14 0.16
0.42

e) Find the standard deviation for the number of room

bookings being cancelled.

X 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
P(x) 0.04 0.08 0.14 0.16 0.26 0.20 0.06 0.06
2
X .P(x) 0 0.08 0.56 1.44 4.16 5 2.16 2.94

2
X 2 .P( x) 2
(0 0.08 0.56 1.44 4.16 5 2.16 2.94) 3.66 2
16.34 13.3956
2.9444
so, 2.9444 1.716

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4.3 Continuous Random Variable

Definition:

A random variable that can assume any value

contained in one or more intervals is called a
continuous random variable.

Examples of continuous random variables,

The weight of a person.

The time taken to complete a 100 meter dash.

The duration of a battery.

The height of a building.

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EXERCISES

1. The following table gives the probability distribution

of a discrete random variable X.
x 0 1 2 3 4 5
P(x) 0.3 0.17 0.22 0.31 0.15 0.12
Find the following probability:
a) exactly 1.
b) at most 1.
c) at least 3.
d) 2 to 5.
e) more than 3.

2. The following table lists the frequency distribution of

the data collected by a local research agency.
Number of TV 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
sets own
Number of 110 891 329 340 151 76 103
families

a) Construct the probability distribution table.

b) Let X denote the number of television sets owned

by a randomly selected family from this town.
Find the following probabilities:

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 i. exactly 3.
ii. more than 2.
iii. at most 2.
iv. 1 to 3.
v. at least 4.

3. According to a survey 65% university students

smokes. Three students are randomly selected from
this university. Let X denote the number of students in
this sample who does not smokes. Develop the
probability distribution of X.

a) Draw a tree diagram for this problem.

b) Construct the probability distribution table.

c) Let X denote the number of students who does.

not smoking is selected randomly. Find the
following probability:
i. at most 1.
ii. 1 to 2.
iii. at least 2.
iv. more than 1.

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4. The following table gives the probability distribution
of the number of camcorders sold on a given day at an
electronic store.

Camcorder 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
sold
Probability 0.05 0.12 0.19 0.30 0.18 0.10 0.06

Calculate the mean and standard deviation for this

probability distribution.

5. According to a survey, 30% of adults are against using

animals for research. Assume that this result holds true
for the current population of all adults. Let x be the
number of adults who agrees using animals for
research in a random sample of three adults. Obtain:

a) the probability distribution of X.

b) mean.
b) standard deviation.

6. In a genetics investigation, cat litters with ten kittens

are studied which of three are male. The scientist
selects three kittens randomly. Let X as the number of
female kittens that being selected and construct
probability distribution for X (you may use tree
diagram to represent the above event). Based on the
probability distribution obtained, find the:

a) mean.
b) standard deviation.

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7. An urn holds 5 whites and 3 black marbles. If two
marbles are drawn randomly without replacement and
X denoted the number of white marbles,

a) Find the probability distribution of X.

b) Plot the cumulative frequency distribution (CFD)
of X.

8. The following table is the probability distribution for

the number of traffic accidents occur daily in a small
city.

Number of 0 1 2 3 4 5
accidents (X)
P(x) 0.10 0.20 9a 3a a a

a) Find the probability of:

i. exactly three accidents occur daily.
ii. between one and four accidents occur daily.
iii. at least three accidents occur daily.
iv. more than five accidents occur daily and
explain your answer.

b) Traffic Department of that small city expects that

5 accidents occur daily. Do you agree? Justify
your opinion.

c) Compute the standard deviation.

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9. The manager of large computer network has
developed the following probability distribution of the
number of interruptions per day:

Interruptions(X) 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
P(x) 0.32 0.35 0.18 0.08 0.04 0.02 0.01

a) Find the probability of:

i. more than three interruptions per day.
ii. from one to five interruptions per day.
iii. at least an interruption per day.

b) Compute the expected value.

c) Compute the standard deviation.

10. You are trying to develop a strategy for investing in

two different stocks. The anticipated annual return for
a RM1,000 investment in each stock has the following
probability distribution.

Returns (RM), X
Stock A Stock B P(x)
-100 50 0.1
0 150 0.3
80 -20 0.3
150 -100 a

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 a) Find the value of a.

b) Compute,
i. expected return for Stock A and Stock B.
ii. standard deviation for both stocks.

c) Would you invest in Stock A or Stock B?

Explain.

11. Classify each of the following random variables as

discrete or continuous.

a) The time left on a parking meter.

b) The number of goals scored by a football player.
c) The total pounds of fish caught on a fishing trip.
d) The number of cans in a vending machine.
e) The time spent by a doctor examining a patient.
f) The amount of petrol filled in the car.
g) The price of a concert ticket.

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SOLUTION

Q11.
a) Continuous e) Continuous
b) Discrete f) Continuous
c) Continuous g) Continuous
d) Discrete

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