Mean and Variance of Discrete

Probability Distribution

Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT

Caloocan High School

November 13, 2019

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 1 / 12
 Number of Patients
The probabilities that a surgeon operates on 3, 4, 5, 6,
or 7 patients in any one day are 0.15, 0.20, 0.25, 0.20,
and 0.20, respectively. Let X be a random variable
representing the number of patients a surgeon a can
operate in a day.

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 2 / 12
 Number of Patients
The probabilities that a surgeon operates on 3, 4, 5, 6,
or 7 patients in any one day are 0.15, 0.20, 0.25, 0.20,
and 0.20, respectively. Let X be a random variable
representing the number of patients a surgeon a can
operate in a day.
Construct a probability distribution for random
variable X.

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 2 / 12
 Number of Patients
The probabilities that a surgeon operates on 3, 4, 5, 6,
or 7 patients in any one day are 0.15, 0.20, 0.25, 0.20,
and 0.20, respectively. Let X be a random variable
representing the number of patients a surgeon a can
operate in a day.
Construct a probability distribution for random
variable X.
What is the expected number of patients a surgeon
can operate on a day based on the given data?

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 2 / 12
 Number of Patients
The probabilities that a surgeon operates on 3, 4, 5, 6,
or 7 patients in any one day are 0.15, 0.20, 0.25, 0.20,
and 0.20, respectively. Let X be a random variable
representing the number of patients a surgeon a can
operate in a day.
Construct a probability distribution for random
variable X.
What is the expected number of patients a surgeon
can operate on a day based on the given data?

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 2 / 12
 Mean of Probability Distribution

Definition
The mean of a random variable with a discrete
probability distribution is

µ = Σ[X · P(X)]

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 3 / 12
 Mean of Probability Distribution

Definition
The mean of a random variable with a discrete
probability distribution is

µ = Σ[X · P(X)]

Remarks
The mean of a probability distribution is also known as
the expected value, denoted by E(X).
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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 3 / 12
 Example 2
A bakeshop owner determines the number of boxes of
pandesal that are delivered each day.
Number of Boxes Y 35 36 37 38 39
Probability P(Y) 0.10 0.20 0.30 0.30 0.10

1 Find the mean of the probability distribution shown.

2 If the manager stated that 35 boxes of pandesal
were delivered in one day, do you think that this is a
believable claim?

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 4 / 12
 Example 3
In a lottery there are 100 prizes of Php 250, 50 prizes of
Php 400, and 5 prizes of Php 600. Assuming that 5,000
tickets are to be issued and sold, what is a fair price to
pay for a ticket?

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 5 / 12
 Variance σ 2
The variance σ 2 of a discrete probability distribution is
given by the formula

σ 2 = Σ[(X − µ)2 · P(X)].

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 6 / 12
 Variance σ 2
The variance σ 2 of a discrete probability distribution is
given by the formula

σ 2 = Σ[(X − µ)2 · P(X)].

Standard Deviation σ
The standard deviation σ of a discrete probability
distribution is given by the formula
√
σ = variance.
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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 6 / 12
 Example 1: The number of cars sold per day at a local
dealership, along with its corresponding probabilities, is
shown in the succeeding table.

Number of Cars Sold X 0 1 2 3 4

Probability P(X) 1/10 2/10 3/10 2/10 2/10

1 What is the expected number of cars sold at the

local dealership?
2 Compute the variance and standard deviation of the
probability distribution.

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 7 / 12
 Steps in finding the variance and Standard
Deviation

Step 1: Find the mean of the probability distribution.

Step 2: Subtract the mean from each value of the
random variable X.
Step 3: Square the results obtained in Step 2.
Step 4: Multiply the results obtained in Step 3 by the
corresponding probability.
Step 5: Get the sum of the results obtained in Step 4.

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 8 / 12
 Example 2: The number of items sold per day at a
retail store, with its corresponding probabilities, is shown
in the table.

Number of Items Sold Z 19 20 21 22 23

Probability P(Z) 0.20 0.20 0.30 0.20 0.10

1 What is the expected number of items sold in a

retail store per day?
2 Compute the variance and standard deviation of the
probability distribution.

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 9 / 12
 Alternative Formula for the Variance
The variance σ 2 of a discrete probability distribution is
given by the formula

σ 2 = Σ[X2 · P(X)] − µ2 .

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 10 / 12
 Summary of Formulas: Discrete
Probability Distribution

n(E)
Probability: P(X) =
n(S)
Mean: µ = Σ[X · P(X)]
Variance: σ 2 = Σ[(X − µ)2 · P(X)]; or
σ 2 = Σ[X2 · P(X)] − µ2
√
Standard Deviation: σ = variance

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 11 / 12
 Assignment

The number of inquiries per day by the Office of

Admissions in a certain university is shown below.

No. of Inquiries X 22 23 24 25 26 27
Probability P(X) 0.08 0.19 0.36 0.25 0.07 0.05

1 How many inquiries are expected in a day based on

the given table?
2 Find the variance and standard deviation.

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Wilson L. De Guzman, LPT (Caloocan High School)
Mean and Variance of Discrete Probability Distribution November 13, 2019 12 / 12