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What do we mean by 'Random' in the science's context. Especially in the statistics and signals processing field. I looked to the dictionary definition of Random and this is what I found:

  • Made, done, happening, or chosen without method or conscious decision.
  • Unfamiliar or unspecified. Odd, unusual, or unexpected.

For the first one, I do not think that there are signals or phenomena happens in an arbitrary way. Furthermore, we cannot understand the complex structure that come up with this signal or phenomena. So, we use statistics to express/define our uncertainty. So, I think the second one is the correct definition in the science's context. Is that correct?

hbak
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    Neither of those could possibly be a scientific or mathematical definition, because they are both personal and subjective: the first refers to "conscious decision" while the second refers to the observer's expectations and state of mind. Dictionaries rarely provide accurate technical definitions of terms. Use textbooks instead. – whuber Apr 01 '17 at 16:06
  • To clarify the comment of whuber the text said "without conscious decision" but the idea is that it discusses personal decision. – Michael R. Chernick Apr 01 '17 at 16:11
  • Language evolves and these are relatively recent uses of "random," neither of which is related to how "random" is used in statistics or science. – David Lane Apr 01 '17 at 17:30

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Not my area, but in signal processing I'd guess it is well defined (although perhaps circularly) as white noise. E.g. (current Wikipedia)  "having equal intensity at different frequencies, giving it a constant power spectral density". In statistics that is just one type of random distribution though (uniform).

More generally though, it might just be a folly to try to define random for all of science, especially given how much many like to attach adjectives to it.

russellpierce
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