An ordinary fair coin is tossed 3 times Outcomes are thus tr
An ordinary (fair) coin is tossed 3 times. Outcomes are thus triples of \"heads\" (h) and \"tails) (t) which we write hth, ttt, etc.? For each outcome, let R be the readom variable counting the number of heads in each outcome. For example, if the outocme id tht, the R(tht)=1. Suppose that the reandom variable X is defined in terms of R as follows: X = 4R - 2R^2 - 1. The values of X are thus:
Calculate the probability distribution function of X, i.e. the function Px (x).
| Outcome | hth | htt | thh | ttt | hht | tht | tth | hhh |
| Value of x | -1 | 1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | 1 | 1 | -7 |
Solution
The probability distribution function of X is as follows:
PX(x=-1) = P(R=0) + P(R=2) = (0.5)^3 + 3(0.5^2)(0.5) = 0.5
PX(x=1) = P(R=1) = 3(0.5^2)(0.5) = 0.375
PX(x=-7) = P(R=3) = (0.5)^3 = 0.125
| Outcome | hth | htt | thh | ttt | hht | tht | tth | hhh |
| Value of x | -1 | 1 | -1 | -1 | -1 | 1 | 1 | -7 |
