AP Statistics Unit 7

One reason for using a t distribution instead of the standard Normal curve to find critical values when calculating a level C confidence interval for a population mean is that

• z can be used only for large samples

• z requires that you can regard your data as an SRS from the population

• z requires that the sample size is at most

• a z critical value will lead to a wider interval than a t critical value.

You have an SRS of 23 observations from large population. The distribution of sample values is roughly symmetric with no outliers. What critical value would you use to obtain a 98% confidence interval for the mean of the population?

• 2.177

• 2.183

• 2.326

• 2.500

• 2.508

A quality control inspector will measure the salt content (in milligrams) in a random sample of bags of potato chips from an hour of production. Which of the following would result in the smallest margin of error in estimating the mean salt content σ ?

• 90% confidence; n = 25 

• 90% confidence; n = 50 

• 95% confidence; n =25 

• 95% confidence; n =50 

• n=100 at any confidence level 

Scientists collect data on the blood cholesterol levels (milligrams per deciliter of blood) of a random sample of 25 laboratory rats. A 95% confidence interval for the mean blood cholesterol level μ is 80.2 to 89.8. Which of the following would cause the most worry about the validity of this interval?

• There is a clear outlier in the data

• A stemplot of the data shows a mild right skew

• You do not know the population standard deviation σ

• The population distribution is not exactly Normal.

• None of these are a problem when using t-interval

• A

• B

• C

• D

• E

Is this a probability distribution?

• No, the sum of p(x) does not equal 1.

• Yes, all p(x) are between 0 and 1.

• No, all p(x) are not between 0 and 1.

• Yes, the sum p(x) is 1.

Is this a probability distribution?

• No

• Yes

The Gallup Poll interviews 1600 people. Of these, 18% say that they jog regularly. The news report adds: “The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points at a 95% confidence level.” You can safely conclude that

• 95% of all Gallup Poll samples like this one give answers within + 3% of the true population value.

• the percent of the population who jog is certain to be between 15% and 21%.

• 95% of the population jog between 15% and 21% of the time.

• we can be 95% confident that the sample proportion is captured by the confidence interval.

• if Gallup took many samples, 95% of them would find that 18% of the people in the sample jog.

The weights (in pounds) of three adult males are 160, 215, and 195. The standard error of the mean of these three weights is

• 190

• 27.84

• 22.73

• 16.07

• 13.13

In preparing to construct a one-sample t-interval for a population mean, suppose we are not sure if the population distribution is Normal. In which of the following circumstances would we NOT be safe constructing the interval based on an SRS of size 24 from the population?

• A stemplot of the data is roughly bell-shaped

• A histogram of the data shows slight skewness

• A stemplot of the data has a large outlier

• The sample standard deviation is large

• The t procedures are robust, so it is always safe