Poisson distribution

[ pwah-sohn; French pwa-sawn ]

noun

, Statistics.

1. a limiting form of the binomial probability distribution for small values of the probability of success and for large numbers of trials: particularly useful in industrial quality-control work and in radiation and bacteriological problems.

Poisson distribution

/ ˈpwɑːsən /

noun

1. statistics a distribution that represents the number of events occurring randomly in a fixed time at an average rate λ ; symbol P 0 ( λ ). For large n and small p with np = λ it approximates to the binomial distribution Bi ( n,p )

Poisson distribution

/ pwä-sôn′ /

1. A probability distribution which arises when counting the number of occurrences of a rare event in a long series of trials. It is named after its discoverer, French mathematician and physicist Siméon Denis Poisson (1781–1840).

Word History and Origins

Origin of Poisson distribution¹

1920–25; named after S. D. Poisson (1781–1840), French mathematician and physicist

Word History and Origins

Origin of Poisson distribution¹

C19: named after S. D. Poisson