Random Number Generators

32
Andrew B. Collier From Trinity to Table Games

description

An overview of the history of Random Numbers and Random Number Generators (RNGs), followed by a brief description of two specific generators (Linear Congruential and Mersenne Twister). Finally some speculations about how these generators might be improved by incorporating random seeds from physical processes.

Transcript of Random Number Generators

Page 1: Random Number Generators

Andrew B. Collier

From Trinity to Table Games

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A Random Walk through History

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Francis Galton, “Dice for Statistical Experiments,” Nature, 42(1070), pp. 13–14, 1890.

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3567

12723489

7234

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The RAND Corporation, A Million Random Digits with 100,000 Normal Deviates. 1955.

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What's Random?

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4

http://xkcd.com/221/

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RandomUn pr ed ic ta ble

Irregular

Haphazard

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“A completely satisfactory definition of random sequence is yet to be discovered.”

Mathematics Dictionary, James & James

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Independence Uniformity

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0 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 0

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0 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 0

1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 051 750 030

1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 14 205 585

1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 138 187 208

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Random Number Generators

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WhatDoYouWant?

Independence and Uniformity

Truly Random Numbers

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Linear Congruential Generator

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a = 2, c = 1, m = 7

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RANDU

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219937-1 Mersenne Twister

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Quo Vadis?

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