Introduction to Statistics Notes

I. Introduction

Statistics is the science of collecting, organizing, analyzing, and interpreting data.

It plays a crucial role in many fields, such as medicine, business, and politics.

II. Steps of Statistical Analysis

Define the question

Collect the data
Organize the data
Analyze the data
Draw a conclusion and make decisions

III. Types of Data

Nominal data: data that can be placed into categories (e.g. gender, eye color)
Ordinal data: data that can be ranked (e.g. grades, rankings)
Interval data: data that has a specific numerical difference between each value (e.g. temperature
measured in Celsius or Fahrenheit)
Ratio data: data that has a true zero point (e.g. height, weight)

IV. Measures of Central Tendency

Mean: the average of a set of numbers

Median: the middle value of a set of numbers
Mode: the value that appears most often in a set of numbers

V. Measures of Variability
Range: the difference between the largest and smallest values in a set of numbers
Variance: a measure of how much the values in a set of numbers vary from the mean
Standard deviation: the square root of the variance, used to describe the spread of the data

VI. Conclusion

Understanding basic statistical concepts and techniques is important for making informed decisions
based on data.
Statistics plays a crucial role in many fields and is used to help us better understand the world around us.