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Random variable

A random variable is a mathematical function that maps outcomes of random experiments to numbers.

It can be thought of as the numeric result of operating a non-deterministic mechanism or performing a non-deterministic experiment to generate a random result.

For example, a random variable can be used to describe the process of rolling a fair die and the possible outcomes { 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 }.

Another random variable might describe the possible outcomes of picking a random person and measuring his or her height.

Unlike the common practice with other mathematical variables, a random variable cannot be assigned a value; a random variable does not describe the actual outcome of a particular experiment, but rather describes the possible, as-yet-undetermined outcomes in terms of real numbers.

For more information about the topic Random variable, read the full article at Wikipedia.org, or see the following related articles:

Note: This page refers to an article that is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the article Random variable at Wikipedia.org. See the Wikipedia copyright page for more details.

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