What is the random.gauss() method in Python?

Overview

The gauss method is used to get a floating value chosen from a Gaussian or normal distribution with the given mean and standard deviation.

What is Gaussian or normal distribution?

The Gaussian distribution, also known as the normal distribution, is a symmetric probability distribution centered on the mean, indicating that data near the mean occur more frequently than data far from it. The normal distribution will appear as a bell curve on a graph. The following image shows what a bell curve looks like when plotted on a graph.

Syntax

random.gauss(mu, sigma)

Parameters

  • mu: The mean value.
  • sigma: The standard deviation value.

Return value

This method returns a floating-point value.

Code

Let's look at the code below:

import random
mu = 5
sigma = 3.4
val = random.gauss(mu, sigma=sigma)
print("random.gauss(%s, %s) = %s" % (mu, sigma, val))

Code explanation

  • Line 1: We import the random module.
  • Line 3: We define the mean value mu.
  • Line 4: We define the standard deviation value sigma.
  • Line 5: We store the value returned by gauss(mu,sigma) in the variable val.
  • Line 7: We print val to the console.

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