Central Moment
In probability theory and statistics, central moments form one set of values by which the properties of a probability distribution can be usefully characterised. Central moments are used in preference to ordinary moments because then the values' higher-order quantities relate only to the spread and shape of the distribution, rather than to its location.
Sets of central moments can be defined for both univariate and multivariate distributions.
Read more about Central Moment: Univariate Moments, Multivariate Moments
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