Q 13. - The Practice of Statistics for AP

Question

Hispanic origins Below is a pie chart prepared by the Census Bureau to show the origin of the more than $43$ million Hispanics in the United States in $2006$  About what percent of Hispanics are Mexican? Puerto Rican?

Comment: You see that it is hard to determine numbers from a pie chart. Bar graphs are much easier to use. (The Census Bureau did include the percent in its pie chart.)

Step-by-Step Solution

Answer

The approximate percentage of Hispanics who are Mexican is around $62.5$ percent (roughly $225$ degrees from the pie chart), and the approximate percentage of Hispanics who are Puerto Rican is around $10\%$ (approximately $35$ degrees from pie chart).

Step 1: Given Information

Here a Pie chart is given 

The origin of the more than $43$ million Hispanics in the United States in $2006$, according to the Census Bureau.

Step 2: Concept

The distribution of a category variable is displayed using pie charts and bar graphs. Any set of quantities measured in the same units can be compared using bar graphs. It's a good idea to ask yourself, "What do I see?" when looking at any graph.  

Step 3: Explanation

The pie chart is used to show the distribution of categorical variables as a "Pie" with slices scaled by the categories' counts or percent. All of the categories that make up a whole are included in a pie mush. The usefulness of any graph is determined by the information sought. Numbers are difficult to deduce from pie charts. In this scenario, the graph does not represent the essential percentage information. The approximate proportion of Hispanics who are Mexican is around $62.5\%$ (nearly $225$ degrees from the pie chart), and the approximate percent of Hispanics who are Puerto Rican is approximately $10\%$ (approximately $35$ degrees from the pie chart).