Day 08: Statistics for Business Applications

• Using the Z table of normal probabilities (p. 235)
• Writing areas as probabilities (e.g. P(0 < Z < 2.17) is the same as the value in the table on p. 235 for a Z value of 2.17)
• Using the Z table backwards - given an area, find the value (or values) of Z associated.

Note: please don't give me reams of paper with data listed on it. It's not necessary. Just give me the analysis, unless asked to do otherwise.

• Basic idea: the larger the sample size, the closer to the true mean is the sample mean (hence, the smaller the spread of the distribution of sample means).

• Applets for section 9.2 - that even skewed distributions can give rise to normally distributed sample means

  Recall the dice applet - normal curves arise in the strangest places! (Figure 9.3, p. 273, for example)

• The sampling distribution of the sample mean

• Some examples