Articles

Longest runs in coin tossing. Teaching recursive formulae, asymptotic theorems and computer simulations

Published:
2011-12-01
Authors
View
Keywords
License

Copyright (c) 2011 Zsolt Karácsony and Józsefné Libor

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How To Cite
Selected Style: APA
Karácsony, Z., & Libor, J. (2011). Longest runs in coin tossing. Teaching recursive formulae, asymptotic theorems and computer simulations. Teaching Mathematics and Computer Science, 9(2), 261-274. https://doi.org/10.5485/TMCS.2011.0290
Abstract
The coin tossing experiment is studied, focusing on higher education. The length of the longest head run can be studied by asymptotic theorems ([3]), by recursive formulae ([10]) or by computer simulations . In this work we make a comparative analysis of recursive formulas, asymptotic results and Monte Carlo simulation for education. We compare the distribution of the longest head run and that of the longest run (i.e. the longest pure heads or pure tails) studying fair coin events. We present a method that helps to understand the concepts and techniques mentioned in the title, which can be a useful didactic tool for colleagues teaching in higher education.