This is the first in a series of short books on probability theory and random processes for biomedical engineers. This text is written as an introduction to probability theory. The goal was to prepare students, engineers and scientists at all levels of background and experience for the application of this theory to a wide variety of problems¿as well as pursue these topics at a more advanced level. The approach is to present a unified treatment of the subject. There are only a few key concepts involved in the basic theory of probability theory. These key concepts are all presented in the first chapter. The second chapter introduces the topic of random variables. Later chapters simply expand upon these key ideas and extend the range of application. A considerable effort has been made to develop the theory in a logical manner¿developing special mathematical skills as needed. The mathematical background required of the reader is basic knowledge of differential calculus. Every effort has been made to be consistent with commonly used notation and terminology¿both within the engineering community as well as the probability and statistics literature. Biomedical engineering examples are introduced throughout the text and a large number of self-study problems are available for the reader.

John D. Enderle, Biomedical Engineering Program Director and Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering at the University of Connecticut, received the B.S., M.E., and Ph.D. degrees in biomedical engineering, and M.E. degree in electrical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, in 1975, 1977, 1980, and 1978, respectively. Dr. Enderle is a Fellow of the IEEE, the past Editor-in-Chief of the EMB Magazine (2002- 2008), the 2004 EMBS Service Award Recipient, Past-President of the IEEE-EMBS, and EMBS Conference Chair for the 22nd Annual International Conference of the IEEE EMBS and World Congress on Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering in 2000. He is also a Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE), Fellow of the American Society for Engineering Education and a Fellow of the Biomedical Engineering Society. Enderle is a former member of the ABET Engineering Accreditation Commission (2004-2009). In 2007, Enderle received the ASEE National Fred Merryfield Design Award. He is also a Teaching Fellow at the University of Connecticut since 1998.

Introduction.- Random Variables.