title: Random Number Generation in R
body: <p>I am looking to generate a set of five random numbers in R. The tricky part however is that I wish for the values to be in a sequence that is first decreasing, then increasing: that is, the first random number will be larger than the second, which will be larger than the third. The fourth will be larger than the third, and the fifth will be larger than the fourth. To explain this more clearly, 1=High, 2=Mid, 3=Low, 4=Mid, 5=High; while still maintaining a mean of (approximately) 2000 for the largest (first and last) values.</p>
  
  <p>I suppose the first and fifth values should be around 2000, the second and fourth values can be around 1500 but I imagine can fluctuate quite a bit, and the third value should be relatively lower. The SD can vary as well. </p>
  
  <p>So for example, a satisfactory string could be:</p>
  
  <pre><code>2300, 1843, 987, 1300, 1900
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>To bring in some biological background, I am attempting to describe a complex system in the patterns of abundance in oystercatchers based on the tides. I know from data that the mean value for oystercatchers while the tide is low is ~2000. The values for mid and high tide however are not known for this particular estuary. I imagine that high tide will have lower numbers than mid and low tide. </p>