Computers
Using Excel for Statistical Analysis - Terms You Should Understand Before You Start by Stephen Nelson
(Contd. from page 3...)
The probability, therefore, of a continuous random variable taking a particular value is zero. Note that statistics calculated from discrete variables are continuous variables. So you can say that the average number of children in a family is, for example, 2.3, although no family could have 2.3 children.
Events
An event is a collection of outcomes that share a condition. For example, you could call all outcomes in which a project goes over budget or in which a lot of goods is rejected an event.
An Excel-specific term: Logical Values
One final term that Excel uses in its statistical manipulations needed to be defined--the term "logical value."
In Excel, the term logical value refers to a value (usually textual) that Excel returns when you enter a conditional function in a cell. A conditional function is an equation that returns a result based on whether the cell meets the condition specified.
For example, you can ask Excel to display the word TRUE if a value in a cell is greater than 100 or FALSE if it is less than or equal to 100. The most common logical values are TRUE and FALSE, but you can create your own logical values as well. For example, you can tell Excel to display the word PASS if a value in a cell is greater than or equal to 50 or FAIL if it is less than 50.