By inspection, determine which of the following sets of numbers has the smallest standard deviation.
A) 2, 3, 4, 5
B) 4, 4, 4, 5
C) 0, 0, 5, 5
D) 5, 5, 5, 5

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The standard deviation measures the amount of variation or dispersion of a set of values. A lower standard deviation means that the values are closer to the mean of the set. In option D, all the numbers are the same (5, 5, 5, 5), which means there is no variation at all. Therefore, the standard deviation is 0, which is the smallest possible standard deviation.

By Inspection, Determine Which of the Following Sets of Numbers