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A random variable is the outcome of some random process or experiment and is such that the probability of observing any value or set of values can be known, at least in theory. The set of these probabilities is called the probability distribution of the random variable. Suppose that a person is selected at random from a population and his or her height is measured. The height of the person selected is a random variable, and the probabilities of selecting each possible height define the probability distribution of such a variable. Similarly, suppose we pick a random sample of n persons and average their heights. The average height in all possible samples of size n also defines a random variable and the probabilities of each possible average height define the probability distribution of the mean heights in such samples.
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Notes
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- 2.
385 U.S. 545 (1967).
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537 U.S. 322 (2003).
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22Â N.Y. 2d 594 (1968).
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Commissioner of Internal Revenue v. Indiana Broadcasting Corp., 350 F.2d 580 (7th Cir. 1965).
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Trustmark Corp. v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, T.C. Memo 1994-184 (1994).
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Finkelstein, M.O. (2009). Random Variables and Their Distributions. In: Basic Concepts of Probability and Statistics in the Law. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/b105519_5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/b105519_5
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