ECE 353: Introduction to Probability and Random Signals - Spring 2016

Homework 4
Solution
1. Assume the resistance of R is a random variable, uniformly distributed on the interval [900,
1100].
(a) Find the PDF.
(b) Calculate P (950 R 1050).
Solution:
(a) Hint: According to Uniform Distribution, if X~U (a, b),
1
f X u , for a u b. .
ba
Because R~U (900, 1100), we can easily write down the PDF as following:

1 1
, 900 r 1100,
f R r 1100 900 200
0 o, w.

(b) Hint: Property of PDF: P a X b f X u du

b
a

From the PDF, we could calculate P (950 R 1050).

1050 1
P (950 R 1050)= dr 0.5
950 200
2. In a restaurant known for its unusual service, the time, in minutes, that a customer has to wait
before he capture the attention of a waiter is specified by the following CDF:
x 2
, 0 x 1,
2
x
, 1 x 2,
4
FX x 1 (1)
, 2 x 10,
2
x
20 , 10 x 20,

1, x 20.

(a) Compute and sketch the PDF f X x .

(b) Verify that the area under the pdf is indeed unity.
(c) What is the probability that the customer will have to wait at least 15 minutes.
Solution:
(a) Hint: Property of PDF:

P a X b P a X b P a X b P a X b f X x dx .
b

Taking the derivative, we get the probability density function (PDF) as

 x
2, 0 x 1,

1, 1 x 2,
4
fX x
0, 2 x 10,

1
20 , 10 x 20,

0, 20 x.
With sketch given as:

(b) Hint: Property of PDF: f X u du 1. Its area must be equal to 1.

x 21 20 1 1 1 10
f X x dx
1
0 2
dx dx
1 4 10 20
dx
4 4 20
1

20
1 1
(c) P X 15 f X x dx dx
15 15
20 4
3. Suppose B is a random number chosen uniformly from the interval (-1, 5), what is the
probability that the quadratic equation

2 x 2 Bx 1 0 (2)

has no real root?

Solution:

Hint: b 4ac 0 no real root!

2

Let 2 x Bx 1 0 has no real root.

2

According to the formula b 4ac 0 , we can know

2
 B2 4 2 1 0 2 2 B 2 2 .

1
, 1 b 5,
Because B~U (-1, 5), the PDF is f B (b) 6
0, o, w.

2 2
1 1 2
P 2 2 B 2 2 P(1 B 2 2)=
-1
6
db
6 3

4. Suppose you have a six-sided die. You toss the die repeatedly until you observe number 4 for
the first time. Let Y be the total number of die tosses. Find the PMF of Y.
Solution:
First, we note that the random variable Y can potentially take five positive integers except 4,
so we have sample space SY={1, 2, 3, 5, 6}. To find the distribution of Y, we need to find

PY (k ) P(Y k ) for k (times) =1, 2, 3.

1
We can easily know that probability of the number is 4: p .
6
1
PY (1) P Y =1 =
6
5 1
PY (2) P Y 2
6 6
.
k 1
5 1
PY (k ) P Y k (1 p)k 1 p .
6 6
In fact, it is Geometric Distribution.