Statistics Interview Question: What is the difference between the binomial and hypergeometric variable

Statistics is such a broad subject that one never knows exactly what he will be asked during a data science or statistics interview. One question that may come up is:-

What is the difference between the binomial and hypergeometric variable.

Binomial variable

A binomial variable is a number of successes in a set of trials where each trial has exactly two possible outcomes. Some examples of binomial variables are:-

1. Coin tosses — the number of tails in 100 coin tosses.
2. Dice rolls — the number of sixes in 50 dice rolls.
3. True-False questions — the number of correct answers in 30 true-false questions.
4. Lottery tickets — the number of winning tickets in tickets purchased.
5. Left-handed people — the number of left handers in a group of 100 people.

A random variable follows a binomial distribution when the properties associated with the possible outcomes follow a particular pattern.

Binomial distribution

The binomial distribution represents the number of successes in a set number of tries. The binomial shape can be symmetric or…