Simulate a Probability Distribution | Dataford Interview Questions

Write a function to simulate a specific probability distribution.

Implement simulate_normal(n, mean, stddev, uniforms) to generate n normally distributed samples using the Box-Muller transform. Use consecutive pairs from uniforms, round every result to 6 decimal places, and return the samples in order. For an odd n, discard the second value from the final generated pair.

Signature: def simulate_normal(n, mean, stddev, uniforms):

Each uniforms value is in (0, 1], and its length is at least 2 * ceil(n / 2). Return a list of n numbers.

Constraints

1 <= n <= 100000
stddev >= 0
0 < uniforms[i] <= 1
len(uniforms) >= 2 * ((n + 1) // 2)
Return values rounded to exactly 6 decimal places numerically

Function Signature

def simulate_normal(n, mean, stddev, uniforms):

Your question is Simulate a Probability Distribution. Start with the requirements in the Question tab.

Run and submit as often as you like. When you're ready, talk me through your approach or go straight to the code.

Problem