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Confidence Interval for Trip Costs

This document provides sample questions from Chapter 8 of a business statistics tutorial. The questions cover a range of topics including constructing confidence intervals to estimate population means based on sample data, interpreting the results, and determining if sample data conflicts with previously published estimates. Specifically, Question 1 asks about estimating the mean life of light bulbs and whether sample data supports manufacturer claims. Question 2 examines estimating mean household water usage and comparing years. Question 3 considers estimating paint fill levels in cans and whether results justify complaints. Question 4 looks at estimating mean value of inventory items. Question 5 examines estimating lollies per bag based on sample counts. Question 6 checks a published travel cost against a sample-based confidence interval.

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
14 views2 pages

Confidence Interval for Trip Costs

This document provides sample questions from Chapter 8 of a business statistics tutorial. The questions cover a range of topics including constructing confidence intervals to estimate population means based on sample data, interpreting the results, and determining if sample data conflicts with previously published estimates. Specifically, Question 1 asks about estimating the mean life of light bulbs and whether sample data supports manufacturer claims. Question 2 examines estimating mean household water usage and comparing years. Question 3 considers estimating paint fill levels in cans and whether results justify complaints. Question 4 looks at estimating mean value of inventory items. Question 5 examines estimating lollies per bag based on sample counts. Question 6 checks a published travel cost against a sample-based confidence interval.

Uploaded by

Ann Joy
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

COMM121 Business Statistics

Tutorial Questions Week 7 (Chapter 8)


1) The quality control manager at light globe factory needs to estimate the mean life of
a large shipment of energy-saving light-emitting diode (LED) light globes. The
standard deviation is 3,000 hours. A random sample of 64 light globes indicates a
sample mean life of 34,000 hours.
a. Construct a 95% confidence interval estimate of the population mean life of light globes in this
Shipment.
b. Do you think that the manufacturer has the right to state that the light globes last an average of
35,000 hours? Explain.
c. Must you assume that the population of light globe life is normally distributed? Explain.
d. Suppose that the standard deviation changes to 6,000 hours. What are your answers in (a) and
(b).

2) Water resources in many parts of Australia are being closely watched and restrictions
have been imposed on activities such as garden watering. Suppose that Sydney Water
monitors water usage in a suburb and finds that for one summer the average
household usage is 408 litres per day. A year later it examines records of a sample of
50 households and finds that there is a daily mean usage of 380 litres with a standard
deviation of 25 litres.
a. Construct a 95% confidence interval for the population mean daily water usage in the second
summer. Assume the population usage is normally distributed.
b. interpret the interval constructed in (a)
c. Do you think water usage has changed in the second summer? Explain.

3) The manager of a paint supply store wants to estimate the actual amount of paint
contained in 4-litre cans purchased from a nationally known manufacturer. It is
known from the manufacturer’s specifications that the standard deviation of the
amount of paint is equal to 0.08 litres. A random sample of 50 cans is selected and the
sample mean amount per 4 litre can is 3.98 litres.
a. Construct a 99% confidence interval estimate of the population mean amount of paint included
in a 4-litre can.
b. On the basis of your results, do you think that the manager has a right to complain to the
manufacturer?
c. Must you assume that the population amount of paint per can is normally distributed here?
Explain.
d. Construct a 95% confidence interval estimate. How does this change the answer to part (b)?

4) A stationery store wants to estimate the mean retail value of greeting cards that it has
in its inventory. A random sample of 20 greeting cards indicates a mean value of $4.95
and a standard deviation of $0.82.
a. Assuming a normal distribution, construct a 95% confidence interval estimate of the mean value
of all greeting cards in the store’s inventory.
b. How are the results in (a) useful in assisting the store owner to estimate the total value of his
inventory?

5) A confectionery company fills a bag with 500 grams of individually wrapped lollies.
The number of lollies per bag varies because the bag is sold by weight. The company
wants to estimate the number of pieces per bag. Inspectors randomly sample 120 bags
and count the number of lollies in each. They find that the sample mean number of
lollies is 18.72.
a. Assuming a population standard deviation of .8735, what is the point estimate of the
number of lollies per bag?
b. Construct a 99% confidence interval to estimate the mean number of lollies per bag for
the population.

6) According to Runzheimer International, the average cost of a domestic trip for


business travellers in the financial industry is $1250. Suppose another travel industry
research company takes a random sample of 22 business travellers in the financial
industry and determines that the sample average cost of a domestic trip is $1192, with
a sample standard deviation of $279.
a. Construct a 95% confidence interval for the population mean from these sample data.
Assume that the data are normally distributed in the population.
b. Now go back and examine the $1250 figure published by Runzheimer International.
Does it fall into the confidence interval computed from the sample data? What does it
tell you?

Common questions

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A larger sample size generally yields a more reliable confidence interval by reducing the margin of error, thus increasing the precision of the interval estimate. For paint cans, using 50 cans allows for a narrower confidence interval compared to a smaller sample size, thereby providing a more accurate estimate of the mean amount of paint per can .

A confidence interval provides a range of values in which the population mean is likely to fall. By constructing a 95% confidence interval for the mean life of LED globes, we can assess the validity of the manufacturer's claim. If 35,000 hours falls outside this interval, it suggests that the manufacturer's claimed mean is not supported by the sample data .

The width of a confidence interval is directly influenced by the standard deviation; increasing the standard deviation increases the interval's width, indicating greater uncertainty in the estimate of the population mean. For LED lifespans, a change from 3,000 to 6,000 hours widens the interval and reduces precision in estimating the mean lifespan .

To determine a change in water usage, a confidence interval for the mean daily usage in the second summer can be constructed. If the interval does not include the previous summer's mean of 408 liters, it statistically supports a significant change. Additionally, comparing the means using a hypothesis test could provide evidence in terms of p-values indicating statistical significance .

When constructing confidence intervals, the assumption of normality is essential if the sample size is small, to ensure the accuracy of the interval estimate. However, with a large sample size, the Central Limit Theorem justifies the use of normal approximation due to the sample mean tending towards normality, making the assumption less critical .

Population standard deviation is a critical component in calculating the confidence interval. A lower standard deviation results in a narrower interval, suggesting more precise estimates. For the lollies, knowing this parameter allows for a clearer assessment of expectation precision regarding the number of lollies per bag .

A confidence interval provides an estimated range for the mean value of greeting cards, aiding the store owner by offering a statistically backed valuation range for the inventory. This can guide financial planning and inventory decision-making by providing insight into expected inventory values within a 95% confidence level .

A larger sample size reduces sampling error and increases the reliability of the statistical results. It narrows the confidence interval, enhancing the accuracy of the population mean estimation for lollies per bag, which leads to more dependable conclusions for quality control purposes .

If the $1250 figure lies outside the 95% confidence interval built from the sample data, it implies that Runzheimer International's estimate may not accurately reflect current costs, suggesting potential discrepancies in data collection or contextual changes affecting travel costs .

Adjusting the confidence level, such as moving from 95% to 99%, widens the confidence interval, indicating greater uncertainty in estimating the true mean. This change affects the precision of statistical conclusions in the paint can study, possibly altering the decision of whether the manager should complain, as increased interval width may include specifications previously found defective .

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