Q 3.86. - Elementary Statistics

Question

In each Exercises 3.82-3.90, use the technology of your choice to determine and interpret the range and sample standard deviation for those data sets to which those concepts apply. If those concepts don't apply, explain why. Note: If an exercise contains more than one data set, perform the aforementioned tasks for each data set.

The Great White Shark. In an article titled " Great White, Deep Trouble " ( National Geographic, Vol. 197 (4). pp. 2-29), Peter Benchley- the author of JAWS-discussed various aspects of the Great White Shark (Carcharodon carcharias). Data on the number of pups borne in a lifetime by each of 80 Great White Shark females are provided on the WeissStats site.

Step-by-Step Solution

Answer

Range 9.

Standard deviation 1.885.

Step 1. Given information.

The given statement is: 

The WeissStats website has information on how many pups each of 80 Great White Shark females has produced throughout her lifetime.

Step 2. Use MINITAB for the calculation of range and sample standard deviation.

MINITAB can be used to calculate the range and standard deviation. Procedure for MINITAB:

Step 1: Select Stat > Basic Statistics > Display Descriptive Statistics from the drop-down menu.

Step 2: In the Variables section, type PUPS.

Step 3: Select Range, minimum, maximum, and standard deviation from the statistics menu.

Step 4: Click the OK button.

MINITAB OUTPUT:

Descriptive Statistics: PUPS

$$\begin{gathered} \mathrm{Variable} \mathrm{St} \mathrm{Dev} \mathrm{Minimum} \mathrm{Maximum} \mathrm{Range} \\ \mathrm{PUPS} 1.885 3.000 12.000 9.000 \end{gathered}$$

The range and standard deviation for "PUPS" are 9 and 1.885, respectively, according to the MINITAB output.

Step 3. Interpretation of the range and sample standard deviation.

There is a 9-point variance between the maximum and least values.

The data value and the average are separated by 1.885. The difference between the total number of pups and the average number of pups is 1.885.