Chapter 1 and 2 Discussion
Chapter 1 and 2 Discussion
Please use the below discussion prompts to help facilitate a discussion. Otherwise, you can discuss topics of your choosing from Chapter 9 and Chapter 10 that are perhaps unclear or difficult to understand.
Prompt:
1. What does it mean to say that we are going to use a sample to draw an inference about a population? Why is a random sample so important for this process? If we wanted a random sample of students in the cafeteria, why couldn’t we just choose the students who order Diet Pepsi with their lunch? Comment on the statement, “A random sample is like a miniature population, whereas samples that are not random are likely to be biased.” Why would the students who order Diet Pepsi with lunch not be a random sample of students in the cafeteria?
2. In your own words, explain the differences among the following sampling techniques: simple random sample, stratified sample, systematic sample, clus-ter sample, multistage sample, and convenience sample. Describe situations in which each type might be useful.
(Brase 36)
3. What do we mean when we say a histogram is skewed to the left? to the right? What is a bimodal histogram? Discuss the following statement: “A bimodal histogram usually results if we draw a sample from two populations at once.” Suppose you took a sample of weights of college football players and with this sample you included weights of cheerleaders. Do you think a histogram made from the combined weights would be bimodal? Explain.
(Brase 84)
Brase, Charles H., Corrinne Brase. Understandable Statistics: Concepts and Methods, 12th Edition. Cengage Learning
