Random number function that factors into account Cumulative Frequency

问题

The census dataset for last name and first name occurrences provides cumulative frequency and frequency. How do I go about getting a random name with the likelyhood of it being chosen that of the occurrence in the real world?

回答1:

Just generate a random real number in the 0-100 range and look for the corresponding entry in the cumulative frequency dataset.

Example, say your random number gives x = 19.41. Look into the table (sorted by cumulative frequencies) and locate the first one that has a value greater or equal than x

WALLACE        0.081 19.315    106
WOODS          0.080 19.395    107
COLE           0.080 19.476    108
WEST           0.080 19.555    109
JORDAN         0.078 19.634    110

in this example, you obtain 'COLE'

来源：https://stackoverflow.com/questions/8977156/random-number-function-that-factors-into-account-cumulative-frequency