Page 12 - Statistics for Dummies

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Statistics For Dummies, 2nd Edition
Chapter 7: Going by the Numbers: Graphing Numerical Data . . . . . .103
Handling Histograms ...................................................................................103
Making a histogram ...........................................................................104
Interpreting a histogram ...................................................................106
Putting numbers with pictures ........................................................110
Detecting misleading histograms ....................................................112
Examining Boxplots .....................................................................................115
Making a boxplot................................................................................115
Interpreting a boxplot .......................................................................117
Tackling Time Charts ..................................................................................123
Interpreting time charts ....................................................................123
Understanding variability: Time charts versus histograms .........124
Spotting misleading time charts ......................................................124
Part III: Distributions and the Central Limit Theorem ...129
Chapter 8: Random Variables and the Binomial Distribution . . . . . .131

Defining a Random Variable .......................................................................131
Discrete versus continuous ..............................................................132
Probability distributions ...................................................................133
The mean and variance of a discrete random variable ................134
Identifying a Binomial .................................................................................135
Checking binomial conditions step by step ...................................135
No fixed number of trials ..................................................................136

More than success or failure ............................................................136
Trials are not independent ...............................................................137
Probability of success (p) changes .................................................137
Finding Binomial Probabilities Using a Formula .....................................137
Finding Probabilities Using the Binomial Table ......................................140
Finding probabilities for specific values of X .................................140

Finding probabilities for X greater-than,
less-than, or between two values .................................................141
Checking Out the Mean and Standard Deviation of the Binomial .........142
Chapter 9: The Normal Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .143
Exploring the Basics of the Normal Distribution .....................................143
Meeting the Standard Normal (Z-) Distribution .......................................146
Checking out Z ....................................................................................146
Standardizing from X to Z .................................................................147
Finding probabilities for Z with the Z-table ....................................148
Finding Probabilities for a Normal Distribution ......................................149
Finding X When You Know the Percent ....................................................152
Figuring out a percentile for a normal distribution .......................152
Translating tricky wording in percentile problems.......................154
Normal Approximation to the Binomial ...................................................155

3/25/11 8:18 PM
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02_9780470911082-ftoc.indd x 3/25/11 8:18 PM