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Ch. 6 - Normal Probability Distributions
Triola - Elementary Statistics 14th Edition
Triola14th EditionElementary StatisticsISBN: 9780137366446Not the one you use?Change textbook
Chapter 6, Problem 6.5.3a

Body Temperatures Listed below are body temperatures (°F) of adult males (based on Data Set 5 “Body Temperatures” in Appendix B).


97.6 98.2 99.6 98.7 99.4 98.2 98.0 98.6 98.6


a. Find the mean. Does the result seem reasonable?

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1
Step 1: Recall the formula for the mean, which is the sum of all data values divided by the number of data values. Mathematically, it is expressed as: Mean = xn, where x is the sum of all data values and n is the number of data values.
Step 2: Add up all the body temperature values provided in the dataset: 97.6, 98.2, 99.6, 98.7, 99.4, 98.2, 98.0, 98.6, and 98.6. This will give you the total sum of the data values.
Step 3: Count the number of data values in the dataset. In this case, there are 9 body temperature values.
Step 4: Divide the total sum of the data values (calculated in Step 2) by the number of data values (calculated in Step 3). This will give you the mean body temperature.
Step 5: Interpret the result. Compare the calculated mean to the typical average body temperature of 98.6°F to determine if the result seems reasonable.

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Key Concepts

Here are the essential concepts you must grasp in order to answer the question correctly.

Mean

The mean, or average, is a measure of central tendency calculated by summing all values in a dataset and dividing by the number of values. It provides a single value that represents the overall distribution of the data. In this case, to find the mean of body temperatures, you would add all the temperatures together and divide by the total number of temperatures listed.
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Reasonableness of Results

Evaluating the reasonableness of statistical results involves assessing whether the calculated mean accurately reflects the data's characteristics. This can include checking if the mean falls within the range of the data and considering the context of the data, such as typical body temperature ranges for adults. A reasonable result should align with expectations based on prior knowledge.
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Data Set

A data set is a collection of related values or observations, often organized in a structured format. In this question, the body temperatures of adult males form a data set that can be analyzed statistically. Understanding the composition and context of the data set is crucial for accurate calculations and interpretations, such as determining the mean.
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Related Practice
Textbook Question

Fatal Car Crashes There are about 15,000 car crashes each day in the United States, and the proportion of car crashes that are fatal is 0.00559 (based on data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration). Assume that each day, 1000 car crashes are randomly selected and the proportion of fatal car crashes is recorded.

a. What do you know about the mean of the sample proportions?

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Textbook Question

Using the Central Limit Theorem. In Exercises 5–8, assume that the amounts of weight that male college students gain during their freshman year are normally distributed with a mean of 1.2 kg and a standard deviation of 4.9 kg (based on Data Set 13 “Freshman 15” in Appendix B).


a. If 1 male college student is randomly selected, find the probability that he gains between 0.5 kg and 2.5 kg during freshman year.

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Textbook Question

Ergonomics. Exercises 9–16 involve applications to ergonomics, as described in the Chapter Problem.


Water Taxi Safety Passengers died when a water taxi sank in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. Men are typically heavier than women and children, so when loading a water taxi, assume a worst-case scenario in which all passengers are men. Assume that weights of men are normally distributed with a mean of 189 lb and a standard deviation of 39 lb (based on Data Set 1 “Body Data” in Appendix B). The water taxi that sank had a stated capacity of 25 passengers, and the boat was rated for a load limit of 3500 lb.


a. Given that the water taxi that sank was rated for a load limit of 3500 lb, what is the maximum mean weight of the passengers if the boat is filled to the stated capacity of 25 passengers?

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Textbook Question

Hershey Kisses Based on Data Set 38 “Candies” in Appendix B, weights of the chocolate in Hershey Kisses are normally distributed with a mean of 4.5338 g and a standard deviation of 0.1039 g.


a. What are the values of the mean and standard deviation after converting all weights of Hershey Kisses to z scores using z = (x - μ)/σ ?


b. The original weights are in grams. What are the units of the corresponding z scores?

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Textbook Question

Using the Central Limit Theorem. In Exercises 5–8, assume that the amounts of weight that male college students gain during their freshman year are normally distributed with a mean of 1.2 kg and a standard deviation of 4.9 kg (based on Data Set 13 “Freshman 15” in Appendix B).


a. If 1 male college student is randomly selected, find the probability that he has no weight gain during his freshman year. (That is, find the probability that during his freshman year, his weight gain is less than or equal to 0 kg.)

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Textbook Question

Mendelian Genetics When Mendel conducted his famous genetics experiments with peas, one sample of offspring consisted of 929 peas, with 705 of them having red flowers. If we assume, as Mendel did, that under these circumstances, there is a 3/4 probability that a pea will have a red flower, we would expect that 696.75 (or about 697) of the peas would have red flowers, so the result of 705 peas with red flowers is more than expected.


a. If Mendel’s assumed probability is correct, find the probability of getting 705 or more peas with red flowers.

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