Log of the limiting fraction of empty bins
Question
Throw balls independently and uniformly into bins, and let denote the fraction of bins left empty. Find ; if the limit does not exist, answer .
Short answer
. A given bin stays empty with probability , and by linearity this is also . It tends to , whose logarithm is .
Adapted from QuantQuestions.io; question and answer rewritten by SelfMadeQuant.com.
See the hint and the full worked solution in the question bank (free account).
Open the worked solutionLessons behind this question
- Expectation, Mean, and Variance
- Conditional Expectation and Variance Revisited
- Continuous Random Variables and Probability Density Functions
Start with a free lesson: Expectation, Variance and Covariance is part of a free topic. Create a free account, no card needed, to read it in full with worked solutions.
Read it free