Probability and Statistics Questions with Solutions

Question 1:
Construct the confidence interval for the population mean μ given c = 0.95, x̄ = 15.5, σ = 3.0,
and n = 50.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify the given values.
Confidence level (c) = 0.95, x̄ = 15.5, σ = 3.0, n = 50.

Step 2: Calculate the standard error (SE):

SE = σ / √n = 3.0 / √50 ≈ 0.424264.

Step 3: Find the critical z-value for a 95% confidence level (z ≈ 1.96).

Step 4: Compute the margin of error (ME):

ME = z * SE ≈ 1.96 * 0.424264 ≈ 0.8316.

Step 5: Construct the confidence interval:

CI = (x̄ - ME, x̄ + ME) = (15.5 - 0.8316, 15.5 + 0.8316) ≈ (14.7, 16.3).

Final Answer: (14.7, 16.3)

Question 2:
A population has a mean μ = 131 and standard deviation σ = 26. Find the mean and
standard deviation of the sampling distribution of sample means with n = 48.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: The mean of the sampling distribution is the same as the population mean.
Mean = μ = 131.

Step 2: Calculate the standard error (SE):

SE = σ / √n = 26 / √48 ≈ 3.7549.

Final Answer: Mean = 131, Standard Deviation = 3.755 (rounded to three decimal
places).

Question 3:
Use the Standard Normal Table or technology to find the z-score that corresponds to the
cumulative area 0.1659.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify the cumulative area: 0.1659.
 Step 2: Use the Standard Normal Table or technology to find the z-score corresponding
to 0.1659.

Step 3: The z-score is approximately -0.97.

Final Answer: z = -0.97 (rounded to two decimal places).

Question 4:
Assume the random variable x is normally distributed with μ = 80 and σ = 5. Find P(64 < x <
75).

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Convert the x-values to z-scores:
z = (x - μ) / σ.
z for x = 64: z = (64 - 80) / 5 = -3.2.
z for x = 75: z = (75 - 80) / 5 = -1.0.

Step 2: Use the Standard Normal Table or technology to find P(-3.2 < z < -1.0).
P(-3.2 < z < -1.0) = P(z < -1.0) - P(z < -3.2).
P(z < -1.0) ≈ 0.1587, P(z < -3.2) ≈ 0.0007.
P(-3.2 < z < -1.0) ≈ 0.1587 - 0.0007 = 0.1580.

Final Answer: P(64 < x < 75) ≈ 0.1580 (rounded to four decimal places).

Question 5:
Find P(z > -2.51) using the standard normal distribution.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Use the Standard Normal Table or technology to find P(z > -2.51).
P(z > -2.51) = 1 - P(z < -2.51).
P(z < -2.51) ≈ 0.0059.
P(z > -2.51) ≈ 1 - 0.0059 = 0.9941.

Final Answer: P(z > -2.51) ≈ 0.9941 (rounded to four decimal places).

Question 6:
A coin is tossed, and an eight-sided die numbered 1 through 8 is rolled. Find the probability
of tossing a tail and rolling a number greater than 5.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Calculate the probability of tossing a tail: P(tail) = 1/2.

Step 2: Calculate the probability of rolling a number greater than 5:

Numbers greater than 5 are 6, 7, and 8, so P(rolling > 5) = 3/8.
 Step 3: Multiply the probabilities:
P(tail and rolling > 5) = P(tail) * P(rolling > 5) = (1/2) * (3/8) = 3/16 ≈ 0.1875.

Final Answer: 0.188 (rounded to three decimal places).

Question 7:
A probability experiment consists of rolling a fair 8-sided die, numbered 1 to 8. Find the
probability of rolling a number greater than 7.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify the favorable outcomes: Numbers greater than 7 are 8 (1 outcome).

Step 2: Total outcomes for an 8-sided die = 8.

Step 3: Use the probability formula:

P = Favorable outcomes / Total outcomes = 1 / 8 = 0.125.

Final Answer: 0.125 (rounded to three decimal places).

Question 8:
Use the value of the correlation coefficient r to calculate the coefficient of determination r².
What does this tell you about the explained and unexplained variation?

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: The given value of the correlation coefficient is r = 0.373.

Step 2: Calculate the coefficient of determination r² using the formula: r² = r × r.

Step 3: Substitute r = 0.373: r² = 0.373² = 0.139.

Step 4: Interpret the explained variation: r² = 0.139 means 13.9% of the variation in y is
explained by the relationship between x and y.

Step 5: Interpret the unexplained variation: The remaining 100% - 13.9% = 86.1% of the
variation in y is due to other factors.

Final Answer: The coefficient of determination is 0.139, or 13.9%.

Question 9:
Two variables have a positive linear correlation. Is the slope of the regression line for the
variables positive or negative?
Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Understand the relationship between linear correlation and the slope of the
regression line: A positive linear correlation indicates that as the independent variable
increases, the dependent variable also increases.

Step 2: Since the relationship is positive, the slope of the regression line is positive.

Final Answer: The slope is positive.

Question 10:
Which value of r indicates a stronger correlation: r = 0.806 or r = -0.877? Explain your
reasoning.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Compare the absolute values of the correlation coefficients: |0.806| = 0.806 and |-
0.877| = 0.877.

Step 2: The stronger correlation is determined by the larger absolute value: 0.877 > 0.806.

Final Answer: r = -0.877 represents the stronger correlation because |-0.877| > |0.806|.

Question 11:
Find the critical value(s) and rejection region(s) for a left-tailed t-test with α = 0.10 and n =
10.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Determine degrees of freedom (df): df = n - 1 = 10 - 1 = 9.

Step 2: Use the t-distribution table to find the critical value for df = 9 and α = 0.10 for a left-
tailed test: Critical value = -1.383.

Step 3: Define the rejection region: Reject H₀ if t < -1.383.

Final Answer: Critical value: -1.383, Rejection region: t < -1.383.

Question 12:
Find the P-value for a left-tailed hypothesis test with z = -1.62. Decide whether to reject H₀ if
α = 0.05.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Use a z-table or calculator to find the P-value corresponding to z = -1.62: P = 0.0526
(rounded to four decimal places).
Step 2: Compare P to α = 0.05: Since P = 0.0526 > 0.05, fail to reject H₀.

Final Answer: P = 0.0526, Fail to reject H₀.

Question 13:
Find the margin of error for c = 0.99, s = 2.7, and n = 19.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Determine degrees of freedom (df): df = n - 1 = 19 - 1 = 18.

Step 2: Use the t-distribution table to find the critical value t* for c = 0.99 and df = 18: t* =
2.878 (rounded to three decimal places).

Step 3: Use the formula for margin of error: Margin of Error = t* × (s / √n).

Step 4: Substitute the values: Margin of Error = 2.878 × (2.7 / √19) = 2.878 × 0.619 = 1.781.

Final Answer: The margin of error is 1.781 (rounded to three decimal places).