[R] how to select an element from a vector based on a probability

[Simone Gabbriellini]

Hello List,

I have an array like:

c(4, 3, 5, 4, 2, 2, 2, 4, 2, 6, 6, 7, 5, 5, 5, 10, 10, 11, 10,
12, 10, 11, 9, 12, 10, 36, 35, 36, 36, 36, 35, 35, 36, 37, 35,
35, 38, 35, 38, 36, 37, 36, 36, 37, 36, 35, 35, 36, 36, 35, 35,
36, 35, 38, 35, 35, 35, 36, 35, 35, 35, 6, 5, 8, 6, 6, 7, 1,
7, 7, 8, 9, 7, 8, 7, 7, 13, 13, 13, 14, 13, 13, 13, 14, 14, 15,
15, 14, 13, 14, 39, 39, 39, 39, 39, 39, 41, 40, 39, 39, 39, 39,
40, 39, 39, 41, 41, 40, 39, 40, 41, 40, 41, 40, 40, 40, 39, 41,
39, 39, 39, 39, 40, 39, 39, 40, 40, 39, 39, 39, 1, 4, 3, 4)

I would like to pick up an element with a probability proportional to
the element value, thus higher values should be picked up more often
than small values (i.e., picking up 38 should be more probable than
picking up 3)

Do you have any idea on how to code such a rich-get-richer mechanism?

Best regards,
Simone

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Simone Gabbriellini, PhD

Post-doctoral Researcher
ANR founded research project "DIFFCERAM"
GEMASS, CNRS & Paris-Sorbonne.

mobile: +39 340 39 75 626
email: simone.gabbriellini at cnrs.fr