Home page for accesible maths 5 Models for discrete random variables

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5.1 Useful mathematical identities

The following identities are helpful in the subsequent developments.

Arithmetic progression:

i=1ni=n(n+1)/2.

Sum of squares:

i=1ni2=n(n+1)(2n+1)/6.

Exponential series:

exp(x) = 1+x+x22!+x33!+
= i=0xii!

Note also that:

e = exp(1)
exp(x) = ex
exp(x+y) = exp(x)exp(y)
exp(-x) = 1exp(x)