CHAPTER 5: Discrete Probability Distributions
Exercise 5.1:
Consider the following probability distribution function of items sold (x) per day. Compute the
mean and standard deviation of x.
x 0 10 20 30 40
P(x) 0.05 0.21 0.30 0.24 0.18
Exercise 5.2:
The following table lists the relative frequency distribution of the number of calls coming into a
call center each hour. If each call takes five minutes to process.
x 2 3 4 5 6 7
P(x) 0.07 0.11 0.23 0.31 0.18 0.1
1. what is the mean and standard deviation of the number of minutes the operators are
answering questions each hour?
2. What is P(X > 4)?
3. What is P(3 < X < 6)?
4. What is P(X ≥ 4)?
Exercise 5.3:
The demand for a product of Carolina Industries varies greatly from month
to month. The probability distribution in the following table, based on the
past two years of data, shows the company’s monthly demand.
Unit Demand Probability
300 0.2
400 0.3
500 0.35
600 0.15
a. If the company bases monthly orders on the expected value of the
monthly demand, what should Carolina’s monthly order quantity be for
this product?
b. Assume that each unit demanded generates $70 in revenue and that each
unit ordered costs $50. How much will the company gain or lose in a
month if it places an order based on your answer to part (a) and the actual
demand for the item is 300 units?
Exercise 5.4: MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS
1. A variable that can take on a finite and countable number of values is a:
A) qualitative variable
B) discrete variable
C) continuous variable
D) Poisson variable
2. Which of the following is an example of a continuous random variable?
A) Width of the windshield on an automobile
B) Time to answer the phone in a call center
C) Weight of material in a package
D) All of the above
3. Which of the following about the binomial distribution is not a true statement?
A. The probability of event of interest must be constant from trial to trial.
B. Each outcome is independent of the other.
C. Each outcome may be classified as either "event of interest" or "not event of
interest."
D. The random variable of interest is continuous.
4. If n = 10 and p = 0.70, then the mean of the binomial distribution is
A. 0.07
B. 1.45
C. 7.00
D. 14.29
5. If n = 10 and p = 0.70, then the standard deviation of the binomial distribution is
A. 0.07
B. 1.45
C. 7.00
D. 14.29
6. A lab orders 100 rats a week for each of the 52 weeks in the year for experiments that
the lab conducts. Prices for 100 rats follow the following distribution:
Price: $10.00 $12.50 $15.00
Probability: 0.35 0.40 0.25
How much should the lab budget for next year’s rat orders be, assuming this distribution
does not change?
a. $520
b. $637
c. $650
d. $780
