Chapter 6 Project

A statistical experiment or observation is any process by which measurements are

obtained. For example, counting the number of eggs in a Robins nest or measuring daily rainfall
are two good examples of experiment and observation. We call x the variable. A quantitative
variable x is a random variable if the value that x takes on in a given experiment or observation
is a chance or random outcome. The most common types of random variables are discrete and
continuous. A discrete random variable can take on only a finite number of values or a
countable number of values. An example would be counting ducks as they swim by. There cant
be half a duck. A continuous random variable can take on any of the countless number of
values in a line interval. An example would be air pressure of a tire. Values such as 20.126 psi,
20.12678 psi, and so forth are possible. A probability distribution is an assignment of
probabilities to each distinct value of a discrete random variable or to each interval of values of a
continuous random variable. A random variable has a probability distribution whether it is
discrete or continuous. Key components of the probability distribution of a discrete random
variable include: The probability distribution has a probability assigned to each distinct value of
the random variable. Also the sum of all assigned probabilities must be 1. (100%) A probability
distribution can be thought of as a relative-frequency distribution based on a very large n.
Meaning it has a mean and a standard deviation. If we are referring to the probability
distribution of a population, we use the greek letters and for the standard deviation. If we
have a sample probability distribution we use x-bar and s for the mean and standard deviation.
The types of problems that have only two outcomes are called binomial experiments. In
a binomial experiment, there is a fixed number of trials. We use the letter n to symbolize the
number of trials. The n trials are independent. Each trial has only two outcomes. Success is
symbolized as s, and failure is symbolized as f. For each individual trial, the probability of
success is the same. The probability of success is symbolized as , and failure is symbolized as
q. The central problem of a binomial experiment is to find the probability of r successes out of n
trials. There are three main methods we use for computing binomial probabilities. The first is

using the formula.

Another method for computing binomial probabilities is by using a calculator. When using a
calculator, we first press the DISTR key and scroll to binompdf(n,p,r) Enter the number of trials
n, the probability of success on a single trial p, and the number of successes r. This gives P(r).
For the cumulative probability that there are r or fewer successes, use binomcdf(n,p,r) The last
method for computing binomial probabilities is by using a table. When using a table, we first
identify the sample space. We separate the data into three categories. The first is outcomes. Here
we put all possible outcomes. The next column we put the probability of the outcome happening.
The third column is r, which is the number of successes. After all that data is in the table, we then
compute the probability of r successes. When adding all of the probabilities in the last column
up, it should always equal 1.(or be very close)
The balance point is the mean of the distribution, and the measure of spread that is
most commonly used is the standard deviation . The mean is the expected value of the
number of successes.(the mean represents a central point or a cluster point) To compute
and for a binomial distribution, =np.(The expected number of successes for the random
variable r) OR
= (the standard deviation for the random variable r) To find the probability of a failure
on a single trial, we use q=1-p. The last important concept in this chapter is unusual values. For a
binomial distribution, it is unusual for the number of successes r to be higher than
+2.5 lower than 2.5 .

Pg. 260 Questions

1a) Probability of not winning any prize - 0.9715 = 97% chance that you wont win anything.

Expected winnings if you play one ticket? 60 x .0285 = 1.71 - 1 = 0.71 (expected winning)

How much do you contribute to the state in which you purchased the ticket? You subtract your
expected winning from 1 and you get 29 cents

1b) Expected winning if you buy one ticket (prize raised to 25 million) ? Put table from book in
calulator, in L1, and L2. Go to 1-Vars stats L1,L2. Then you find that your expected winning is
30 cents.

If the prize was raised to 25 million, the probability of winning doesnt change, just the
amount that you would win.

1c) Using the number table we found that we won 0,0,0,0,0,0,0,3,0,0

1d) If you bought 5 tickets, Compute the probability of winning (any prize) at least once. Use the
formula
After using the Binomial Distribution we have found that the answer that you will win once out
of the 5 tickets is .135, or 13.5%