Which of the following random variables is not discrete?
A)the number of courses in which a college student is enrolled
B)the number of attempts needed in order to successfully complete a task
C)the distance traveled by a motorcycle on one gallon of gas
D)the number in a group of 20 people who have college degrees
E)the number of words on an 8.5 x 11 inch sheet of paper

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Discrete random variables are those that take on a countable number of values, while continuous random variables can take on any value within a range. The number of courses enrolled (A), the number of attempts needed to complete a task (B), the number of people with college degrees in a group (D), and the number of words on a sheet of paper (E) are all countable and take on discrete values. However, the distance traveled by a motorcycle on one gallon of gas (C) can take on any value within a range (e.g. 0.1 miles to 1000 miles), making it a continuous random variable.

Which of the Following Random Variables Is Not Discrete