Name: _________________________ Date: ___________ Period: ____

Discovery & Exploration: Spaghetti Models

By the end of this activity, you will determine if there is a relationship between fat grams and the
total calories in fast food. Work with your group.
1) Given the following data set, create a scatterplot using graph paper and pencil. Include a title
for the graph and label the axes.
Sandwich
BK Hamburger
BK Whopper
BK Chicken Sandwich
McD Hamburger
McD Quarter Pounder
McD Chicken Sandwich
5 Guys Little Burger
5 Guys Burger
Wendy's Jr. Hamburger
Wendy's lb Burger
Wendy's Chicken
Sandwich
Chick-fila Chicken
Sandwich

Fat Grams
(x)
12
37
36
9
26
33
26
43
8
31

Calories
(y)
290
650
640
250
520
510
480
700
230
580

19

350

18

440

2) Position a piece of spaghetti so that it is a line that best represents the set of plotted points.
How might you position the spaghetti to achieve this? You may want to examine the follow up
questions on the back to think about where you should place your line. Tape your spaghetti
down once you have decided.

3) What equation represents your line of best fit? Explain the process you used to find it.

Follow Up Questions

1. Is there a relationship between fat grams and number of calories? If so, describe it.

2. Based on your previous answer, is there a correlation between fat grams and number of
calories? Is it positive or negative? Explain.

3. What does the slope of your line represent in your equation?

4. Is your y-intercept zero? Why or why not?

5. What does the y-intercept represent in your equation?

6. Is there a constant rate of change between each point in the scatterplot? Is there a
constant rate of change for the line of best fit?

7. What do you think is the purpose of creating a line of best fit?

8. If I had a sandwich that I knew had 50 grams of fat, would I be able to predict the
number of calories? How would I do this and how many calories do you think the
sandwich would have?

9. Do you think there are other possible lines of best fit? Why or why not?