AP Statistics : AP Statistics

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP Statistics

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Example Questions

Example Question #1 : How To Find Sampling Distribution Of A Sample Mean

A machine puts an average of  grams of jelly beans in bags, with a standard deviation of  grams.  bags are randomly chosen, what is the probability that the mean amount per bag in the sampled bags is less than  grams. 

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

A sample size of  bags means that the central limit theorem is applicable and the distribution can be assumed to be normal. The sample mean would be   and  

Therefore, 

Example Question #1 : How To Find Sampling Distribution Of A Sample Mean

Which of the following is a sampling distribution?

Possible Answers:

The height of a particular college student.

The average height of all college students.

The average height of a sample of college students.

The distribution of average height statistics that could happen from all possible samples of college students.

Correct answer:

The distribution of average height statistics that could happen from all possible samples of college students.

Explanation:

The correct answer is the distribution of average height statistics that could happen from all possible samples of college students. Remember that a sampling distribution isn't just a statistic you get form taking a sample, and isn't just a piece of data you get from doing sampling. Instead, a sampling distribution is a distribution of sample statistics you could get from all of the possible samples you might take from a given population.

Example Question #1 : How To Find Sampling Distribution Of A Sample Mean

If a sampling distribution for samples of college students measured for average height has a mean of 70 inches and a standard deviation of 5 inches, we can infer that:

Possible Answers:

College students are getting shorter.

Roughly 68% of random samples of college students will have a sample mean of between 65 and 75 inches.

Roughly 68% of college students are between 65 and 75 inches tall.

Any particular random sample of college students will have a mean of 70 inches and a standard deviation of 5 inches.

Correct answer:

Roughly 68% of random samples of college students will have a sample mean of between 65 and 75 inches.

Explanation:

We can infer that roughly 68% of random samples of college students will have a sample mean of between 65 and 75 inches. Anytime we try to make an inference from a sampling distribution, we have to keep in mind that the sampling distribution is a distribution of samples and not a distribution about the thing we're trying to measure itself (in this case the height of college students). Also, remember that the empirical rules tells us that roughly 68% of the distribution will fall within one standard deviation of the mean.

Example Question #4 : How To Find Sampling Distribution Of A Sample Mean

The standard deviation of a sampling distribution is called:

Possible Answers:

Sample variance

John McEnroe

Sampling deviation

Standard error

Correct answer:

Standard error

Explanation:

The standard error (SE) is the standard deviation of the sampling distribution.

Example Question #5 : How To Find Sampling Distribution Of A Sample Mean

Suppose that the mean height of college students is 70 inches with a standard deviation of 5 inches. If a random sample of 60 college students is taken, what is the probability that the sample average height for this sample will be more than 71 inches?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

First check to see if the Central Limit Theorem applies. Since n > 30, it does. Next we need to calculate the standard error. To do that we divide the population standard deviation by the square-root of n, which gives us a standard error of 0.646. Next, we calculate a z-score using our z-score formula:

Plugging in gives us:

Finally, we look up our z-score in our z-score table to get a p-value.

The table gives us a p-value of,

 

Example Question #11 : Sampling Distributions

A random variable has an average of  with a standard deviation of . What is the probability that out of the sample set the variable is less than  . The sample set is . Round your answer to three decimal places.

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

There are two keys here. One, we have a large sample size since , meaning we can use the Central Limit Theorem even if points per game is not normally distributed. 

Our -score thus becomes...

where  is the specified points or less needed this season,

 is the average points per game of the previous season,

 is the standard deivation of the previous season,

and  is the number of games.

 

Example Question #111 : Statistical Patterns And Random Phenomena

Let us suppose we have population data where the data are distributed Poisson

(see the figure for an example of a Poisson random variable). 360px-poisson_pmf.svg

 

Which distribution increasingly approximates the sample mean as the sample size increases to infinity? 

Possible Answers:

Poisson

Gamma

Exponential

Normal

Correct answer:

Normal

Explanation:

The Central Limit Theorem holds that for any distribution with finite mean and variance the sample mean will converge in distribution to the normal as sample size  .

Example Question #13 : Properties Of Single Sample Distributions

Cat owners spend an average of $40 per month on their pets, with a standard deviation of $5.

What is the probability that a randomly selected pet owner spends less than  a month on their pet?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

First, draw the distribution and the area you are interested in.

 

Left

Next, calculate the z-score for the person of interest. Because the population standard deviation is known, we will use the formula for z-score and not t-score.

We will find the z-score for the person of interest, and then calculate the area under the curve that falls below, or to the left of that z-score.

Now we will find the value for each variable given in the problem:

Third, solve for z using the information in the problem.

 

Now we must determine the area under the curve to the left of a z-score of 1.0. We will consult a z-table. 

Look up 1.0 in the row and 0.00 in the column.

 

If your z-table gives shaded area to the left, you will get

We are interested in area to the left, which is what we found, so this is our answer.

 

If your z-table gives shaded area to the right, you will get

Because we want the area to the left of z=1.0, we will subtract that area from 1:

 

Example Question #12 : Sampling Distributions

It is known that cat owners spend an average of  a month on their pets, with a standard deviation of .

What is the probability that a randomly selected cat owner spends between  to  a month on their pet?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

First, draw the distribution and the area you are interested in.

Between

Next, we will need to calculate z-scores for both values we are interested in, and find the area under the curve that falls between these two values.

Because the population standard deviation is known, we will use the formula for z-score and not t-score.

We will find the z-score for the lower bound and find the z-score for the upper bound.

For the lower bound:

 

Now we will do the same for the upper bound:

Now we must determine the area under the curve which falls between z-scores of -1.0 and 1.0. To do this we will look up both z-scores and then subtract their areas (subtract the smaller area from the bigger area, so that you don't get a negative value).

For the lower bound, look up 1.0 in the row and 0.00 in the column. Then, for the upper bound, look up -1.0 in the row and 0.00 in the column.

The area to the left of 1.0 is 0.8413.

The area to the left of -1.0 is 0.1587.

To find the area between the two z-scores just subtract:

 

The central limit theorem states that the area under the curve + or - 1 standard deviation from the mean is 68.3%, which we have confirmed.

Example Question #15 : Properties Of Single Sample Distributions

Cat owners spend an average of  per month on their pets, with a standard deviation of .

What is the probability that a randomly chosen cat owner spends more than  a month on their pet?

 

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

First, draw the appropriate curve to represent the problem:Cltupper2.bmp

Because we want greater than 45, shade the right hand portion of the graph.

We will be using the z-distribution and not the t-distribution because we know the population standard deviation.

We will find the z-score for this cat owner, and then find the area to the right of that z-score to find the probability of spending more than $45.

We begin with the z-score formula:

Now find each value from the information given:

Fill in the formula

Now look this z-score up in the z-table to find the area under the curve. Look up 1.0 in the row and 0.00 in the column.

 

If your z table gives area shaded to the left, you will find

You want the area to the right, so subtract the above from 1.

If your z table gives area shaded to the right, you will find

Because you want the area to the right of z=1.0, this is your answer.

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