Question 1

TABLE 2-1
The manager of the customer service division of a major consumer electronics company is interested in determining whether the customers who have purchased a DVD player made by the company over the past 12 months are satisfied with their products.
-Referring to Table 2-1, the possible responses to the question "How much time do you use the DVD player every week on the average?" are values from a
A) discrete numerical random variable.
B) continuous numerical random variable.
C) categorical random variable.
D) parameter.

Accepted Answer

The possible responses to the question "How much time do you use the DVD player every week on the average?" are values that can take on any numerical value within a certain range (for example, someone might use the DVD player for 1.5 hours per week). This makes it a continuous numerical random variable.

Question 2

TABLE 2-1
The manager of the customer service division of a major consumer electronics company is interested in determining whether the customers who have purchased a DVD player made by the company over the past 12 months are satisfied with their products.
-Referring to Table 2-1, the possible responses to the question "Are you happy, indifferent, or unhappy with the performance per dollar spent on the DVD player?" are values from a
A) discrete numerical random variable.
B) continuous numerical random variable.
C) categorical random variable.
D) parameter.

Accepted Answer

The possible responses are happy, indifferent, and unhappy, which are categories or labels, making this a categorical random variable.

Question 3

TABLE 2-1
The manager of the customer service division of a major consumer electronics company is interested in determining whether the customers who have purchased a DVD player made by the company over the past 12 months are satisfied with their products.
-Referring to Table 2-1, the possible responses to the question "How many DVD players made by other manufacturers have you used?" are values from a
A) discrete random variable.
B) continuous random variable.
C) categorical random variable.
D) parameter.

Accepted Answer

The possible responses to the question "How many DVD players made by other manufacturers have you used?" are countable and finite, such as 0, 1, 2, 3, etc. Therefore, they represent a discrete random variable.

Question 4

Jared was working on a project to look at global warming and accessed an Internet site where he captured average global surface temperatures from 1866. Which of the four methods of data collection was he using?
A) Published sources
B) Experimentation
C) Surveying
D) Observation

Accepted Answer

Jared was using published sources as his method of data collection by accessing an Internet site to gather historical temperature data.

Question 5

To monitor campus security, the campus police office is taking a survey of the number of students in a parking lot each 30 minutes of a 24-hour period with the goal of determining when patrols of the lot would serve the most students. If X is the number of students in the lot each period of time, then X is an example of
A) a categorical random variable.
B) a discrete random variable.
C) a continuous random variable.
D) a statistic.

Accepted Answer

X represents a count of students, which is a discrete variable since it can only take on whole, finite values (i.e. you can't have half a student in the lot). A and C are incorrect because X is not a categorical or continuous variable. D is incorrect because X is not a statistic, which is a summary statistic calculated from a sample or population.

Question 6

A study attempted to estimate the proportion of Florida residents who were willing to spend more tax dollars on protecting the beaches from environmental disasters. Twenty-five hundred Florida residents were surveyed. What type of data collection procedure was most likely used to collect the data for this study?
A) a designed experiment
B) a published source
C) a random sample
D) observational data

Accepted Answer

The most likely data collection procedure used in this study is a random sample. This is because the researchers surveyed 2,500 Florida residents, which indicates that they selected a sample of individuals at random from the population of Florida residents. A designed experiment involves manipulating one or more variables and observing the effects on another variable, which is not applicable in this scenario. A published source involves using data that has already been collected by someone else and made publicly available, which is also not applicable in this scenario. Observational data involves collecting data by observing individuals or events, without manipulating any variables, which is not clear from the given information whether it was used or not.

Question 7

Researchers are concerned that the weight of the average American school child is increasing implying, among other things, that children's clothing should be manufactured and marketed in larger sizes. If X is the weight of school children sampled in a nationwide study, then X is an example of
A) a categorical random variable.
B) a discrete random variable.
C) a continuous random variable.
D) a parameter.

Accepted Answer

Weight is a continuous variable as it can take on any real value in a range. A categorical variable would have fixed categories such as hair color or gender, while a discrete variable would have distinct values such as number of siblings. A parameter is a numerical value that describes a population, not an individual variable such as weight.

Question 8

A statistics student found a reference in the campus library that contained the median family incomes for all 50 states. She would report her data as being collected using
A) a designed experiment.
B) observational data.
C) a random sample.
D) a published source.

Accepted Answer

The data was obtained from a published source, so it is considered observational data.

Question 9

The personnel director at a large company studied the eating habits of the company's employees. The director noted whether employees brought their own lunches to work, ate at the company cafeteria, or went out to lunch. The goal of the study was to improve the food service at the company cafeteria. This type of data collection would best be considered as
A) an observational study.
B) a designed experiment.
C) a random sample.
D) a quota sample.

Accepted Answer

This is an observational study because the personnel director is simply observing and recording the eating habits of the employees, without manipulating any variables or assigning them to different groups.

Question 10

The British Airways Internet site provides a questionnaire instrument that can be answered electronically. Which of the 4 methods of data collection is involved when people complete the questionnaire?
A) Published sources
B) Experimentation
C) Surveying
D) Observation

Accepted Answer

Surveying involves collecting data through questionnaires, interviews, or other methods of gathering information from individuals or groups. The British Airways Internet site uses a questionnaire instrument for data collection, which is a form of surveying.

Question 11

The chancellor of a major university was concerned about alcohol abuse on her campus and wanted to find out the proportion of students at her university who visited campus bars on the weekend before the final exam week. Her assistant took a random sample of 250 students. The portion of students in the sample who visited campus bars on the weekend before the final exam week is an example of ________.
A) a categorical random variable
B) a discrete random variable
C) a continuous random variable
D) a parameter

Accepted Answer

The answer of The chancellor of a major university was...

Question 12

Which of the following is a continuous numerical variable?
A) The color of a student's eyes
B) The number of employees of an insurance company
C) The amount of milk produced by a cow in one 24-hour period
D) The number of gallons of milk sold at the local grocery store yesterday

Accepted Answer

A continuous numerical variable is a variable that can take on any value within a certain range. Options A, B, and D are not continuous numerical variables since eye color and the number of employees are discrete variables, and the number of gallons sold is a discrete numerical variable (it can only take on certain values). The amount of milk produced by a cow in one 24-hour period, however, can be any value within a certain range, and is therefore a continuous numerical variable.

Question 13

TABLE 2-1
The manager of the customer service division of a major consumer electronics company is interested in determining whether the customers who have purchased a DVD player made by the company over the past 12 months are satisfied with their products.
-Referring to Table 2-1, the possible responses to the question "What is your annual income rounded to the nearest thousands?" are values from a
A) discrete numerical random variable.
B) continuous numerical random variable.
C) categorical random variable.
D) parameter.

Accepted Answer

Annual income rounded to the nearest thousand is a discrete numerical random variable because it can take on distinct, separate values (e.g., $30,000, $31,000, etc.) rather than any value within a range.

Question 14

Which of the following is a discrete numerical variable?
A) The Dow Jones Industrial average
B) The volume of water released from a dam
C) The distance you drove yesterday
D) The number of employees of an insurance company

Accepted Answer

The number of employees of an insurance company is a discrete numerical variable because it can only take on whole number values and is a countable quantity.

Question 15

The classification of student class designation (freshman, sophomore, junior, senior) is an example of
A) a categorical random variable.
B) a discrete random variable.
C) a continuous random variable.
D) a parameter.

Accepted Answer

The classification of student class designation is a categorical random variable because it can only take on a finite number of discrete values (freshman, sophomore, junior, senior), rather than a continuous range of values.

Question 16

Which of the 4 methods of data collection is involved when a person counts the number of cars passing designated locations on the Los Angeles freeway system?
A) Published sources
B) Experimentation
C) Surveying
D) Observation

Accepted Answer

The method of observation is involved when a person counts the number of cars passing designated locations on the Los Angeles freeway system.

Question 17

The chancellor of a major university was concerned about alcohol abuse on her campus and wanted to find out the proportion of students at her university who visited campus bars on the weekend before the final exam week. Her assistant took a random sample of 250 students. The total number of students in the sample who visited campus bars on the weekend before the final exam week is an example of
A) a categorical random variable.
B) a discrete random variable.
C) a continuous random variable.
D) a parameter.

Accepted Answer

The total number of students who visited campus bars is a discrete random variable because it represents a countable number of students.

Question 18

The classification of student major (accounting, economics, management, marketing, other) is an example of
A) a categorical random variable.
B) a discrete random variable.
C) a continuous random variable.
D) a parameter.

Accepted Answer

The classification of student major is a categorical variable because it involves dividing students into distinct groups based on their major, rather than measuring a continuous quantity.

Question 19

Tim was planning for a meeting with his boss to discuss a raise in his annual salary. In preparation, he wanted to use the Consumer Price Index to determine the percentage increase in his real (inflation-adjusted) salary over the last three years. Which of the 4 methods of data collection was involved when he used the Consumer Price Index?
A) Published sources
B) Experimentation
C) Surveying
D) Observation

Accepted Answer

The Consumer Price Index is a published source that tracks changes in the price level of a market basket of consumer goods and services over time. Tim would use this index to adjust his salary for inflation, which is a form of data collection through published sources.

Question 20

A marketing research firm, in conducting a comparative taste test, provided three types of peanut butter to a sample of households randomly selected within the state. Which of the 4 methods of data collection is involved when people are asked to compare the three types of peanut butter?
A) Published sources
B) Experimentation
C) Surveying
D) Observation

Accepted Answer

Experimentation is the method of data collection involved when people are asked to compare the three types of peanut butter. This method involves manipulating an independent variable to observe its effect on a dependent variable. In this case, the independent variable is the type of peanut butter and the dependent variable is the taste preference of the households. By providing different types of peanut butter to the sample, the marketing research firm is manipulating the independent variable and observing the effect on the dependent variable through the taste test.

Quiz 2: Presenting Data in Tables and Charts

Jared was working on a project to look at global warming and accessed an Internet site where he captured average global surface temperatures from 1866. Which of the four methods of data collection was he using?

Researchers are concerned that the weight of the average American school child is increasing implying, among other things, that children's clothing should be manufactured and marketed in larger sizes. If X is the weight of school children sampled in a nationwide study, then X is an example of

A statistics student found a reference in the campus library that contained the median family incomes for all 50 states. She would report her data as being collected using

The British Airways Internet site provides a questionnaire instrument that can be answered electronically. Which of the 4 methods of data collection is involved when people complete the questionnaire?

Which of the following is a continuous numerical variable?

Which of the following is a discrete numerical variable?

The classification of student class designation (freshman, sophomore, junior, senior) is an example of

Which of the 4 methods of data collection is involved when a person counts the number of cars passing designated locations on the Los Angeles freeway system?

The classification of student major (accounting, economics, management, marketing, other) is an example of

A marketing research firm, in conducting a comparative taste test, provided three types of peanut butter to a sample of households randomly selected within the state. Which of the 4 methods of data collection is involved when people are asked to compare the three types of peanut butter?