Basic Mathematics for College Students

616 Chapter 7 Graphs and Statistics

Solution

a.To find the mean, we add the measurements and divide by the

number of values, which is 8.

In the numerator, do the addition.

Do the division.

The mean is 3.38 cm.

b.To find the median, we first arrange the eight measurements in increasing

order.

Smallest 3.23 3.24 3.25 3.48 3.48 3.54 Largest

Two middle measurements

Because there is an even number of measurements, the median is the average of

the two middle values.

c.Since the measurement 3.48 cm occurs most often (twice), it is the mode.

Median

3.393.43

2



6.82

2

3.41 cm



3.39 3.43

3.38



27.04

8

Mean

3.433.253.483.393.543.483.233.24

8

1.$1,540 2.120 miles per day 3.2 incorrect answers 4.2.75 5. 2 6.80.5

7. 4 8.mean: 5.11 oz; median: 5.00 oz; mode: 4.95 oz

(^12)
ANSWERS TO SELF CHECKS
“Additional education makes workers more productive and enables them to
increase their earnings.”
Virginia Governor, Mark R. Warner, 2004
As college costs increase, some people wonder if it is worth it to spend years
working toward a degree when that same time could be spent earning money. The
following median income data makes it clear that, over time, additional education
is well worth the investment. Use the given facts to complete the bar graph.
$10,000
$0
$20,000
$30,000
$40,000
$50,000
$60,000
$70,000
Less than a
high school
diploma
$8,603
more
$13,035
more
$2,815
more
$4,745
more
$12,618
more
Master’s
degree
High
school
graduate
Some
college
Associate
degree
Bachelor’s
degree
Median Annual Earnings of Full-Time Workers
(25 years and older) by Education
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey (2008)
$22,212

THINK IT THROUGH The Value of an Education

3.38

(^8) 27.04
 24
30
 24
64
 64
0
3
3
.4
4
3
3.25
3.48
3.39
3.54
3.48
3.23
 3.24
27.04