Microsoft® Office Excel® 2007: Data Analysis and Business Modeling, Second Edition

Chapter 57. The Poisson and Exponential Random Variable

• What is the Poisson random variable?

• How do I compute probabilities for the Poisson random variable?

• If the number of customers arriving at a bank is governed by a Poisson random variable, what random variable governs the time between arrivals?

What is the Poisson random variable?

• The Poisson random variable is a discrete random variable that is useful for describing probabilities for situations in which events (such as customer arrivals at a bank or orders placed for a product) have a small probability of occurring during a small time interval. More specifically, during a small time interval, denoted as t, either zero or one event will occur, and the probability of one event occurring during ...