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Department of Mathematical Sciences

Spring 2015 | STAT 30100: Elementary Statistical Methods I

Sample Midterm Exam | Total points: 200

Printed Name:_______________________________________________________________

Important Instructions:

The exam is worth 100 points and is in two parts. The first part (45 points) is multiple
choice and the second part (55 points) is free response questions. For the final grading,
the points will be converted to 200 points.

Show your work on all free response questions. Unsupported work may not receive full
credit.

Report decimal answers to three decimal places.

You are responsible for upholding IUPUIs standard for academic integrity.

You are allowed to use TI-30XA calculator only during the exam.

All tables and formulae are provided for use with this exam.

Turn off your cell phone and all electronic devices before the exam begins!

PART I
Thirty multiple choice questions. 1 points each. Total 45 points.
Circle the letter for the correct answer.

1.

A recent report stated Based on a sample of 90 truck drivers, there is evidence to indicate that,
on average, independent truck drivers earn more than company-hired truck drivers. Does this
statement describe descriptive or inferential statistics?
A) inferential statistics

2.

A survey of high school teenagers reported that 90% of those sampled are interested in pursuing a
college education. Does this statement describe descriptive or inferential statistics?
A) inferential statistics

3.

B) descriptive statistics

B) descriptive statistics

Parking at a university has become a problem. University administrators are interested in

determining the average time it takes a student to find a parking spot. An administrator
inconspicuously followed 150 students and recorded how long it took each of them to find a
parking spot. Identify the population of interest to the university administration.
A) the 150 students about whom the data were collected
B) the entire set of faculty, staff, and students who park at the university
C) the entire set of students who park at the university
D) the students who park at the university between 9 and 10 AM on Wednesdays

4.

Parking at a university has become a problem. University administrators are interested in

determining the average time it takes a student to find a parking spot. An administrator
inconspicuously followed 230 students and recorded how long it took each of them to find a
parking spot. Identify the variable of interest to the university administration.
A) time to find a parking spot
C) number of empty parking spots

5.

The amount of television viewed by todays youth is of primary concern to Parents Against
Watching Television (PAWT). 250 parents of elementary school-aged children were asked to
estimate the number of hours per week that their child watches television. Identify the type of
data collected by PAWT.
A) quantitative

6.

B) qualitative

A fan observes the numbers on the shirts of a girls soccer team. Identify the type of data
collected.
A) quantitative

7.

B) students who drive cars on campus

D) number of students who cannot find a spot

B) qualitative

Number of students in a class of 35 who turn in a term paper before the due date. Identify the
type of data collected.
A) Numerical; Discrete

B) Numerical; Continuous C) Categorical

8.

To conduct a pre-election opinion poll on a proposed amendment to the state constitution, a

random sample of 10 telephone prefixes (first three digits of phone number) was selected, and all
households from the phone prefixes selected were called. Identify the type of sampling method
used.
A) Cluster

9.

B) Systematic

D) Stratified

C) SRS

D) Stratified

A watchdog group is investigating how people are treated during the foreclosure process. Surveys
were mailed to a random sample of 300 people who had recently been threatened with
foreclosure. 75 of the surveys were returned by the postal service because the intended recipients
had moved and left no forwarding address. What type of problem has occurred?
A) nonresponse bias

11.

C) SRS

Subscribers to the magazine Sound Alive were assigned numbers. Then a sample of 30
subscribers was selected by using a random-number table. The subscribers in the sample were
invited to rate new compact disc players for a What the Subscribers Think column.
A) Cluster

10.

B) Systematic

B) selection bias

C) measurement error

The pie chart shows the classifications of students in a statistics class.

What percentage of the class consists of freshman, sophomores, and juniors?

A) 86%
12.

B) 14%

C) 44%

D) 54%

The scatterplot below shows a negative relationship between two variables.

A) True

B) False

13.

Which of the following statements below is correct with respect to the following graph?

A) The five number summaries would be the same for Site A and Site B.
B) Site A and Site B both appear to be skewed to the left.
C) Site A has a higher mean than Site B.
D) Site B has a larger IQR than Site A.

14.

A radio station claims that the amount of advertising each hour has a mean of 16 minutes and a
standard deviation of 2.7 minutes. You listen to the radio station for 1 hour and observe that the
amount of advertising time is 20 minutes. Calculate the z-score for this amount of advertising
time.
A) z = 1.08

15.

B) z = -1.48

C) z = 10.8

D) z = 1.48

16.

If sample points A, B, C, and D are the only possible outcomes of an experiment, find the
probability of D using the table below.

A) 2/5
B) 1/5
C) 1/4
D) 3/5
17.

A(n) __________ is the most basic outcome of an experiment.

A) sample point
B) event
C) experiment
D) sample space

18.

An experiment consists of rolling two dice and summing the resulting values. Which of the
following is not a sample point for this experiment?
A) 1
B) 2
C) 6
D) 24

19.

The probability of a sample point is usually taken to be the relative frequency of the occurrence
of the sample point in a very long series of repetitions of the experiment.
A) True
B) False

20.

In a class of 40 students, 22 are women, 10 are earning an A, and 7 are women that are earning an
A. If a student is randomly selected from the class, find the probability that the student is earning
an A given that the student is a woman.
A) 7/22
B) 1/4
C) 5/11
D) 7/40

21. Consider the given discrete probability distribution. Find P(x > 2).

A) 0.7
B) 0.9
C) 1.0
D) 0.3

22.

A hospital reports that two patients have been admitted who have contracted Crohns disease.
Suppose our experiment consists of observing whether each patient survives or dies as a result of
the disease. The simple events and probabilities of their occurrences are shown in the table
(where S in the first position means that patient 1 survives, D in the first position means that
patient 1 dies, etc.).
Simple Events
SS
SD
DS
DD

Probabilities
0.52
0.15
0.11
0.22

Find the probability that at least one of the patients does not survive.
A) 0.48
B) 0.26
C) 0.15
D) 0.10
23.

The overnight shipping business has skyrocketed in the last ten years. The single greatest
predictor of a companys success is customer service. A study was conducted to determine the
customer satisfaction levels for one overnight shipping business. In addition to the customers
satisfaction level, the customers were asked how often they used overnight shipping. The results
are shown in the following table:

Suppose that one customer who participated in the study is chosen at random. What is the
probability that the customer had a high level of satisfaction and used the company more than five
times per month?
A) 1/10
B) 4/5
C) 7/10
D) 3/10
24.

In a class of 40 students, 22 are women, 10 are earning an A, and 7 are women that are earning an
A. If a student is randomly selected from the class, find the probability that the student is earning
an A given that the student is a woman.
A) 7/22
B) 1/4
C) 5/11
D) 7/40

25.

Suppose x is a uniform random variable with c = 40 and d = 70. Find the standard deviation of x.
A) = 8.66
B) = 31.75
C) = 1.58
D) = 3.03

26.

A local bakery has determined a probability distribution for the number of cheesecakes it sells in
a given day. The distribution is as follows:

Find the number of cheesecakes that this local bakery expects to sell in a day.
A) 12.6
B) 12.81
C) 20
D) 10
27.

High temperatures in a certain city for the month of August follow a uniform distribution over the
interval 63F to 90F. What is the probability that the high temperature on a day in August
exceeds 68F?
A) 0.8148
B) 0.1852
C) 0.4444
D) 0.037

28. Use the standard normal distribution to find P(-2.25 < z < 1.25).
A) .8821
B) .0122
C) .4878
D) .8944
29. Which shape is used to represent areas for a normal distribution?
A) Bell curve
B) Circle
C) Rectangle
D) Triangle
30.

A physical fitness association is including the mile run in its secondary-school fitness test. The
time for this event for boys in secondary school is known to possess a normal distribution with a
mean of 440 seconds and a standard deviation of 60 seconds. Find the probability that a randomly
selected boy in secondary school can run the mile in less than 302 seconds.
A) .0107
B) .4893
C) .9893
D) .5107

Sample STAT 30100 Midterm Exam

Name:_____________________________

Multiple Choice Answer Sheet

(Each problem is worth 1 points, total 45 points)
1. _____

16. _____

2. _____

17. _____

3. _____

18. _____

4. _____

19. _____

5. _____

20. _____

6. _____

21. _____

7. _____

22. _____

8. _____

23. _____

9. _____

24. _____

10. _____

25. _____

11. _____

26. _____

12. _____

27. _____

13. _____

28. _____

14. _____

29. _____

15. _____

30. _____

Part II
Free Response Questions. Answer all the six questions. Total 55 points.
Q1. Each observation in the following data set is the number of housing units (homes or condominiums)
sold during November 1992 in a region corresponding to a particular Orange County, California, ZIP
code. Use class guidelines to describe the distribution.
Stem-and-leaf of Number s N = 68
Leaf Unit = 1.0

0
0
1
1
2
2
3
3
4
4
5
5
6
6
7

000
556789
001111222334
5666777788888
0011
5666778999
00001
55557
023
5678

1
7
0

a) Determine the center of the data.

b) Describe the shape.

c) Describe the spread.

Q2. The ages of ten kids randomly sampled at a local mall are
15, 18, 5, 10, 9, 12, 13, 12, 16, 10
Calculate the following:
a) Mean and interpret:

b) Range:

c) IQR and interpret:

d) Five-Number summary:

_______

_______

_______

_______

________

e) 90th percentile and interpret:

f) Based on the values of the mean and median, is the distribution of the variable to be likely to be
approximately symmetric, positively (right) skewed, or negatively (left) skewed? Explain.

Q3. Representative data on x = carbonation depth (in millimeters) and y = strength (in megapascals) for a
sample of concrete core specimens taken from a particular building were read from a plot in the article
The Carbonation of Concrete Structures in the Tropical Environment of Singapore (Magazine of
Concrete Research [1996]: 293300):

Using Statcrunch, the equation of the least-squares line is given below:

The regression equation is:

Strength = 24.4 - 0.275 Depth

a) What are the explanatory and response variables?

b) What is the value of the slope of the least-squares line? Interpret the slope in the context of this
problem.

c) What would you predict for strength when carbonation depth is 25 mm?

d) Suppose r=.92. Calculate the coefficient of determination and interpret the results in context.

Q4.

Each manager of a Fortune 500 company was rated as being either a good, fair, or poor manager
by his/her boss. The managers educational background was also noted. The data appear below:

a) What is the probability that a randomly chosen manager has earned at least one college
degree?

b) What is the probability that a randomly chosen manager has poor rating?

c) What is the probability that a randomly chosen manager has earned some college degree
given that manager rating is Fair?

Q5.

Suppose a uniform random variable can be used to describe the outcome of an experiment with
outcomes ranging from 40 to 80.
a)

What is the probability that this experiment results in an outcome less than 50?

b)

What is the mean and standard deviation of the variable?

Q6.

The volume of soda a dispensing machine pours into a 12-ounce can of soda follows a normal
distribution with a mean of 12.06 ounces and a standard deviation of 0.04 ounce. The company
receives complaints from consumers who actually measure the amount of soda in the cans and
claim that the volume is less than the advertised 12 ounces. What proportion of the soda cans
contain less than the advertised 12 ounces of soda?
Complete the following steps for your answer.
i)

Label the variable.

ii)

Formulate the problem.

iii)

Shade the appropriate area of the curve based on part (ii).

iv)

Calculate the z-score.

v)

Show your z-score value using z-scale on the above graph.

vi)

Use z-table to find the final answer.