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In a game of chance, a player rolls a standard six-sided die. The number rolled is the outcome of interest.
  • Calculate the expected value \(E(X)\) of the roll.
  • Interpret the result in terms of the player’s average outcome per roll.
\FieldText{1}{
  • Let \(X\) represent the number rolled on the die. The probability distribution of \(X\) is
    \(x\) 1 2 3 4 5 6
    \(P(X=x)\) \(\frac{1}{6}\) \(\frac{1}{6}\) \(\frac{1}{6}\) \(\frac{1}{6}\) \(\frac{1}{6}\) \(\frac{1}{6}\)
    .
    \(E(X) = 1 \cdot \frac{1}{6} + 2 \cdot \frac{1}{6} + 3 \cdot \frac{1}{6} + 4 \cdot \frac{1}{6} + 5 \cdot \frac{1}{6} + 6 \cdot \frac{1}{6} = 3.5\)
  • Since \(E(X) = 3.5\), we expect the player to roll an average of 3.5 per roll.
}