Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
Bean machine
The bean machine, also known as the quincunx, is a device invented by Sir Francis Galton to demonstrate the law of error and the normal distribution.
The machine consists of a vertical board with interleaved rows of pins. Balls are dropped from the top, and bounce randomly left and right as they hit the pins. Eventually, they are collected into one-ball-wide bins at the bottom. The height of ball columns in the bins approximates a bell curve.
See also
External links
- Simulation of the bean machine at RAND
- A longer article on Sir Francis Galton and the bean machine
- Another simulation, with explanations http://www.ms.uky.edu/~mai/java/stat/GaltonMachine.html
- Yet another simulation, from John Carroll University http://www.jcu.edu/math/isep/Quincunx/Quincunx.html
Last updated: 07-31-2005 02:53:48
10-26-2009 08:16:03
The contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details
The contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details