If the difference between the expectation of the square of a random variable (E [X2 ] ) and the square of the expectation of the random variable (E[X] )2 is denoted by R, then
Topic-wise GATE CS PYQs with verified steps
GATE CSE 2011 · Q18
Time
Select one answerSingle correct
Solution
Official answer: C) R ≥ 0
Probability and StatisticsThe quantity is defined as:
By definition, this is the variance of the random variable , denoted by :
Since for all real values of , the expectation of a non-negative quantity must also be non-negative:
equals when is a constant almost surely, and otherwise. Thus, the general condition is .
Hence, option (C) is correct.
Try the question first, then check your work.
Examiner trap
Recall the definition and property of the variance of a real-valued random variable.
This Probability and Statistics previous year question is Q18 of the GATE CSE 2011 paper. Find more GATE CSE PYQs on Probability and Statistics in Engineering Mathematics, or browse all GATE CSE PYQs.
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Probability and Statistics has 46 GATE CSE PYQs across 23 papers from 2011 to 2026. 9 of them are 1-mark MCQs like this one, and GATE CSE 2011 has 4.
How GATE tests Probability and StatisticsIndependent practice explanation verified by the GateAI team. GATE is conducted by the IITs; question text follows the official paper.