Suppose the light bulbs in a factory burn out at a rate of 50 bulbs per month.Which of the following distributions would you use to determine the probability that the next two light bulbs will burn out 2 days apart?
A)Hypergeometric distribution.
B)Poisson distribution.
C)Uniform distribution.
D)Exponential distribution.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The Poisson distribution is appropriate for modeling events that occur randomly over time or space at a constant rate, which is the case for the burnout of light bulbs. The exponential distribution is the continuous analog of the Poisson distribution, and can be used to model the time between events in a Poisson process. In this case, we want to determine the probability that two light bulbs burn out 2 days apart, which means we are interested in the time between events. Therefore, the best choice is the exponential distribution.

Suppose the Light Bulbs in a Factory Burn Out at a Rate