Topic 3 Exercises

• Introduction to Sampling Distributions

(mean and proportion)
Exercise 1
An orange juice producer buys oranges from a large orchard
nearby. Last year the average orange from the orchard contained
4.7 ounces of juice with a standard deviation of .4 ounces. This
year the oranges seem “drier.” The orchard manager claims that
there is no difference. To settle the matter, the juicer samples 64
oranges and finds the average is 4.5 ounces. While the sample
average is obviously less than 4.7 ounces, the orchard manager
claims this is typical sample variation and does not indicate a
problem. Is he right? Explain your answer
Exercise 1 - Solution

4.5 − 4.7 0.2

𝑃 𝑥 ≤ 4.5 = P z ≤ =𝑃 𝑧≤−
0.4 0.05
64
= 𝑃 𝑧 ≤ −4 ≈ 0

There is no chance that the average would be that

low if the population average was 4.7.
• This can’t be normal sample variation.
• I conclude that the fruit is drier.
Exercise 2
USA Today reported that 74% of business travelers prefer to stay
in a smoke-free hotel room. A sample of 200 business travelers is
selected.
a. What is the probability that the sample proportion will be
within ±0.04 of the population proportion?
b. Suppose the probability that a sample proportion will be
within ±0.02 of the population mean is 0.9. What is the
sample size n?
Exercise 2 - Solution
𝑝 = 0.74, 𝑛 = 200

𝑝 1−𝑝 0.74×0.26
𝜎𝑝ҧ = = = 0.031
𝑛 200

a. 𝑃 𝑝 − 0.04 ≤ 𝑝ҧ ≤ 𝑝 + 0.04 ?
𝑝−0.04 −𝑝 𝑝+0.04 −𝑝
𝑃 𝑝 − 0.04 ≤ 𝑝ҧ ≤ 𝑝 + 0.04 = 𝑃 ≤𝑧≤
𝜎𝑝ഥ 𝜎𝑝ഥ
0.04 0.04
=𝑃 − ≤𝑧≤ = 𝑃 −1.29 ≤ 𝑧 ≤ 1.29
0.031 0.031
= 2 × 𝑃 0 ≤ 𝑧 ≤ 1.29 = 2 × 0.4015 = 0.8030
Exercise 2 - Solution
b. 𝑃 𝑝 − 0.02 ≤ 𝑝ҧ ≤ 𝑝 + 0.02 = 0.9. n?
0.02 0.02
𝑃 − ≤𝑧≤ = 0.9
𝑝 1−𝑝 𝑝 1−𝑝
𝑛 𝑛
0.02
⇒2×𝑃 0≤𝑧 ≤ = 0.9
𝑝 1−𝑝
𝑛
0.02
⇒𝑃 0≤𝑧≤ = 0.45
0.74 × 0.26
𝑛
From normal distribution table: probability of 0.45  𝑧 = 1.645
0.02 0.022 1.6452
1.645 ≤ ⇒ 1.6452 ≤ 0.74×0.26 ⇒n≥ 0.74 × 0.26
0.74×0.26 0.022
𝑛
𝑛
𝑛 ≥ 1301.59 ≈ 1302 business travellers