Statistical Independence
Events and are defined to be statistically independent if:
- .
That is, the occurrence of does not affect the probability of, and vice versa. Although the derived forms may seem more intuitive, they are not the preferred definition as the conditional probabilities may be undefined if or are 0, and the preferred definition is symmetrical in and .
Read more about this topic: Conditional Probability
Famous quotes containing the word independence:
“...there was the annual Fourth of July picketing at Independence Hall in Philadelphia. ...I thought it was ridiculous to have to go there in a skirt. But I did it anyway because it was something that might possibly have an effect. I remember walking around in my little white blouse and skirt and tourists standing there eating their ice cream cones and watching us like the zoo had opened.”
—Martha Shelley, U.S. author and social activist. As quoted in Making History, part 3, by Eric Marcus (1992)