3 ms·

That is an incredibly unfortunate term to use for the phenomenon.

• deleted 4mo ago
  [deleted]
• seanhunter 4mo ago
  I agree, although there is a long tradition of terrible naming in the sciences. One of the most boring and yet egregious examples imo is "Random Variable". So named because - they aren't random and - they aren't variables.[1] A "random variable" is actually a measurable deterministic function from the set of possible outcomes of some experiment to the real numbers. But you can see why the name "random variable" is confusing to people. [1] https://cyril9227.github.io/random-variables/ https://cyril9227.github.io/random-variables/ and elsewhere.
  • IsTom 4mo ago
    > A "random variable" is actually a measurable deterministic function from the set of possible outcomes of some experiment to the real numbers. I don't think that this was the formalization that was used when the term was coined, given how late set and measure theory were formalized.
  • ikrenji 4mo ago
    "your child has cancer because of a mutation in his sonic hedgehog gene"