10. Probability Tables

Sometimes we need to compute a probability, or evaluate the inverse CDF of a distribution, but we don’t have a computer handy. Or perhaps it’s easier to simply look up a value in a table rather than firing up a Python environment. Tables for useful distributions are provided in the Sections of this Chapter, along with some interactive code examples to help you understand what the table is telling you, as well as illustrate the methods that are implemented in commonly used Python packages like scipy.stats.

MUDE exam information

You will get one or more of the following tables on the exam, depending on the question. These pages are intended for you to understand how the value in the table is computed, and to have practice reading from them. Keep in mind that sometimes the table is formatted in a slightly different way. It might even be possible that the table on the exam gives you probability for a different part of the distribtuion (e.g., a different tail) than those illustrated here!