Measures of the Center of the Data Quiz

PDF page 108: The "center" of a data set is also a way of describing location. The two most widely used measures of the "center" of the data are the mean (average) and the median. To calculate the mean weight of 50 people, add the 50 weights together and divide by 50. To find the median weight of the 50 people, order the data and find the number that splits the data into two equal parts. The median is generally a better measure of the center when there are extreme values or outliers because it is not affected by the precise numerical values of the outliers. The mean is the most common measure of the center. NOTE The words “mean” and “average” are often used interchangeably. The substitution of one word for the other is common

PDF page 108: The "center" of a data set is also a way of describing location. The two most widely used measures of the "center" of the data are the mean (average) and the median. To calculate the mean weight of 50 people, add the 50 weights together and divide by 50. To find the median weight of the 50 people, order the data and find the number that splits the data into two equal parts. The median is generally a better measure of the center when there are extreme values or outliers because it is not affected by the precise numerical values of the outliers. The mean is the most common measure of the center. NOTE The words “mean” and “average” are often used interchangeably. The substitution of one word for the other is common

PDF page 108: The "center" of a data set is also a way of describing location. The two most widely used measures of the "center" of the data are the mean (average) and the median. To calculate the mean weight of 50 people, add the 50 weights together and divide by 50. To find the median weight of the 50 people, order the data and find the number that splits the data into two equal parts. The median is generally a better measure of the center when there are extreme values or outliers because it is not affected by the precise numerical values of the outliers. The mean is the most common measure of the center. NOTE The words “mean” and “average” are often used interchangeably. The substitution of one word for the other is common

PDF page 109: When each value in the data set is not unique, the mean can be calculated by multiplying each distinct value by its frequency and then dividing the sum by the total number of data values. The letter used to represent the sample mean is an x with a ̄ bar over it (pronounced “x bar”): x . The Greek letter μ (pronounced "mew") represents the population mean. One of the requirements for the sample mean to be a good estimate of the population mean is for the sample taken to be truly random. To see that both ways of calculating the mean are the same, consider the sample: 1; 1; 1; 2; 2; 3; 4; 4; 4; 4; 4 ̄

PDF page 109: When each value in the data set is not unique, the mean can be calculated by multiplying each distinct value by its frequency and then dividing the sum by the total number of data values. The letter used to represent the sample mean is an x with a ̄ bar over it (pronounced “x bar”): x . The Greek letter μ (pronounced "mew") represents the population mean. One of the requirements for the sample mean to be a good estimate of the population mean is for the sample taken to be truly random. To see that both ways of calculating the mean are the same, consider the sample: 1; 1; 1; 2; 2; 3; 4; 4; 4; 4; 4 ̄

PDF page 109: 1 + 1 + 1 + 2 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 x = = 2.7 11 ̄ 3(1) + 2(2) + 1(3) + 5(4) x = = 2.7 11 In the second calculation, the frequencies are 3, 2, 1, and 5. n + 1 You can quickly find the location of the median by using the expression . 2 The letter n is the total number of data values in the sample. If n is an odd number, the median is the middle value of the ordered data (ordered smallest to largest). If n is an even number, the median is equal to the two middle values added together and divided by two after the data has been ordered. For example, if the total number of data values is 97, then n + 1 97 + 1

PDF page 109: 1 + 1 + 1 + 2 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 x = = 2.7 11 ̄ 3(1) + 2(2) + 1(3) + 5(4) x = = 2.7 11 In the second calculation, the frequencies are 3, 2, 1, and 5. n + 1 You can quickly find the location of the median by using the expression . 2 The letter n is the total number of data values in the sample. If n is an odd number, the median is the middle value of the ordered data (ordered smallest to largest). If n is an even number, the median is equal to the two middle values added together and divided by two after the data has been ordered. For example, if the total number of data values is 97, then n + 1 97 + 1

PDF page 109: [3 + 4 + (8)(2) + 10 + 11 + 12 + 13 + 14 + (15)(2) + (16)(2) + ... + 35 + 37 + 40 + (44)(2) + 47] x = = 23.6 40

PDF page 110: Another measure of the center is the mode. The mode is the most frequent value. There can be more than one mode in a data set as long as those values have the same frequency and that frequency is the highest. A data set with two modes is called bimodal.

PDF page 110: Another measure of the center is the mode. The mode is the most frequent value. There can be more than one mode in a data set as long as those values have the same frequency and that frequency is the highest. A data set with two modes is called bimodal.

PDF page 111: Solution 2.28 The most frequent score is 72, which occurs five times. Mode = 72.

PDF page 110: Solution 2.27 ̄ 5, 000, 000 + 49(30, 000) x = = 129,400 50 M = 30,000 (There are 49 people who earn $30,000 and one person who earns $5,000,000.) The median is a better measure of the "center" than the mean because 49 of the values are 30,000 and one is 5,000,000. The 5,000,000 is an outlier. The 30,000 gives us a better sense of the middle of the data.