PracHub
QuestionsPremiumLearningGuidesInterview PrepNEWCoaches
|Home/Statistics & Math/Upstart

Determine distribution of aX+b when X~N(0,1)

Last updated: Mar 29, 2026

Quick Overview

This question evaluates understanding of affine transformations of the normal distribution, moment calculation, and probability density manipulation, measuring core competency in probability theory and mathematical statistics.

  • easy
  • Upstart
  • Statistics & Math
  • Data Scientist

Determine distribution of aX+b when X~N(0,1)

Company: Upstart

Role: Data Scientist

Category: Statistics & Math

Difficulty: easy

Interview Round: HR Screen

Let X ~ N(0,1). For constants a,b ∈ ℝ, define Y = aX + b. a) What is the exact distribution of Y (name and parameters)? b) State its mean and variance. c) Does the sign of a affect the distribution parameters? d) What happens in the edge case a=0? e) Write the pdf of Y explicitly.

Quick Answer: This question evaluates understanding of affine transformations of the normal distribution, moment calculation, and probability density manipulation, measuring core competency in probability theory and mathematical statistics.

Related Interview Questions

  • Correct length-biased sampling from family-size survey - Upstart (easy)
  • Compute decay, OLS, and classic probability results - Upstart (easy)
  • Solve core probability/statistics mini-problems - Upstart (medium)
  • Combine noisy thermometers; compute random-walk correlations - Upstart (easy)
  • Analyze HT vs HH stopping-time probabilities - Upstart (medium)
Upstart logo
Upstart
Oct 13, 2025, 9:49 PM
Data Scientist
HR Screen
Statistics & Math
6
0
Loading...

Linear Transform of a Standard Normal

Setup

  • Let X ~ N(0, 1) (standard normal).
  • For constants a, b ∈ ℝ, define Y = aX + b.

Tasks

(a) What is the exact distribution of Y (name and parameters)?

(b) State its mean and variance.

(c) Does the sign of a affect the distribution parameters?

(d) What happens in the edge case a = 0?

(e) Write the pdf of Y explicitly.

Solution

Show

Comments (0)

Sign in to leave a comment

Loading comments...

Browse More Questions

More Statistics & Math•More Upstart•More Data Scientist•Upstart Data Scientist•Upstart Statistics & Math•Data Scientist Statistics & Math
PracHub

Master your tech interviews with 7,500+ real questions from top companies.

Product

  • Questions
  • Learning Tracks
  • Interview Guides
  • Resources
  • Premium
  • For Universities
  • Student Access

Browse

  • By Company
  • By Role
  • By Category
  • Topic Hubs
  • SQL Questions
  • Compare Platforms
  • Discord Community

Support

  • support@prachub.com
  • (916) 541-4762

Legal

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
  • About Us

© 2026 PracHub. All rights reserved.