Stochastic variable

fly on the wall
Fly on the wall
A stochastic variable (also called random variable) is a quantity that depends on random events. The name is derived from the Greek word stochos (στόχος), meaning "guess".

Examples of a random event are the upper side (head or tail) of a coin being flipped, the moment of nuclear decay, or the movement of a fly on the wall (see Figure).

Related concepts

  • error propagation
  • mean value
  • standard deviation
  • statistics

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