<OT> unix math function: norm

[Kurt Wall]

Scribbling feverishly on May 25, Joel Hammer managed to emit:
> I am using gnuplot. I want to have bar graphs of data with a superimposed
> Gaussian distribution, based on the usual mean and standard deviation
> that the typical spreadsheet calculates from the data.  There is a
> function called norm in the gnuplot program which sounds like this is
> what I need. However, here is all the manual has to say:
> 
>   The norm function returns the normal distribution function (or Gaussian)
>   of the real part of its argument.
> 
> and
> 
>   The functions in GNUPLOT are the same as the corresponding functions
>   in the Unix math library, except that all functions accept integer,
>   real, and complex arguments, unless otherwise noted.
> 
> 
> I have looked for the unix math manual on line, and can't find one. Could someone
> please explain how to use the norm function in unix, or better yet, in
> gnuplot?

I didn't find a norm() in the C library or in the header
(/usr/include/math.h). There are some normalization routines, but these
are used for working with complex numbers, which aren't pertinent here.

Kurt
-- 
A psychiatrist is a person who will give you expensive answers that
your wife will give you for free.