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Mean-to-variance ratio for a nested uniform draw

Question

First XX is drawn uniformly from (0,1)(0,1). Given X=xX=x, a second number YY is drawn uniformly from (x,1)(x,1). Compute E[Y]/Var⁡(Y)\mathbb{E}[Y]/\operatorname{Var}(Y) as a fraction in lowest terms.

Short answer

1087\tfrac{108}{7}. Since E[Y∣X]=1+X2\mathbb{E}[Y\mid X]=\tfrac{1+X}{2}, we get E[Y]=34\mathbb{E}[Y]=\tfrac34. By the law of total variance, Var⁡(Y)=Var⁡(1+X2)+E[(1−X)212]=148+136=7144\operatorname{Var}(Y)=\operatorname{Var}\big(\tfrac{1+X}{2}\big)+\mathbb{E}\big[\tfrac{(1-X)^2}{12}\big]=\tfrac1{48}+\tfrac1{36}=\tfrac{7}{144}, so the ratio is 34⋅1447=1087\tfrac34\cdot\tfrac{144}{7}=\tfrac{108}{7}.

Adapted from QuantQuestions.io; question and answer rewritten by SelfMadeQuant.com.

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