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2 players A and B start with x & y dollars respectively, and they bet against each other 1 dollar each time by tossing a fair coin.

I let $X_n = x + \sum_{i=1}^{n}\xi_i$ where $\xi_i$ are i.i.d. with $P(\xi_i=\pm 1)=\frac{1}{2}$. Let $\tau_0 = \inf{\{n:X_n = 0}\}$, $\tau_{x+y} = \inf{\{n:X_n = x+y}\}$, and $\tau=\tau_0\wedge \tau_{x+y}$, which are all stopping times w.r.t. the martingale $(X_n)$.

I know that $E[\tau]=xy$, and $E[X_\tau]=x$.

Am i able to find $E[\tau^2]$ in this case? Any suggestion is welcome! Thanks!

meta_warrior
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  • You should be able to modify this to answer your question: http://math.stackexchange.com/questions/75969/expectation-of-ts-t-where-t-is-the-absorption-time-at-a-a-of-a-simple –  Mar 20 '13 at 02:28
  • Thanks for your reference. May I know how we can find $E[{T}{S_T^2}]$ for that suggestion? – meta_warrior Mar 20 '13 at 02:57
  • Nevermind, i think i know the answer, $E[{T}{S_T^2}] = (x+y)E[{T}{S_T}]$ in my case, as $S_T$ only takes values $x+y$ or $0$. – meta_warrior Mar 20 '13 at 05:48

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