3: Displaying And Summarizing Quantitative Data Flashcards
What is the primary purpose of a histogram?
To display the distribution of a quantitative variable by representing counts as bars against bin values.
How are bins used in the context of histograms?
Bins slice up all possible values of the quantitative variable and count the number of cases in each bin.
What does the height of each bar in a histogram represent?
The number of cases that fall within the corresponding bin.
What is the typical bin width range recommended for histograms?
Between 5 and 30 bins.
What might affect the features of a distribution in a histogram?
The choice of bin width.
True or False: The default bin width is always chosen by the user in modern technology.
False.
Fill in the blank: A histogram displays the _______ of earthquake magnitudes.
distribution.
What is a common characteristic of the earthquake magnitudes displayed in the histogram?
Most are between 5.5 and 8.5.
What are the values of the earthquakes associated with the Sumatra and Japan tsunamis?
9.1 and 9.0.
What is the significance of the earthquake magnitudes of 9.1 and 9.0?
They are among the largest on record.
What is the unit of measurement for the Richter scale?
Log dyne-cm.
True or False: The units of the Richter scale are often explicitly stated in modern contexts.
False.
What is a key consideration when choosing bin boundaries for a histogram?
They should be aesthetically pleasing.
What is the typical range of magnitudes shown in the histogram?
Typically around 7.
What can be a consequence of choosing an inappropriate bin width?
It can lead to misinterpretation of the data.
What might help a user avoid being misled by errors in data when creating a histogram?
Imagining what the distribution might look like before making the display.
Fill in the blank: A histogram is a common type of display for the _______ of a quantitative variable.
distribution.
What happens to features of the distribution as the bin width changes?
Some features appear or disappear
What does a histogram with a smaller bin width of 0.2 reveal about tsunami data?
It shows a spike around magnitude 7.0
What historical values are included in the tsunami earthquake magnitudes?
Values more than 2000 years old
Why might there be an overabundance of values of 7.0 in the tsunami data?
Experts may have rounded values to 7
What does a gap in a histogram indicate?
There are no values in that bin
What was the range of values with no earthquakes in the histogram?
Between 4.6 and 4.8
What is the purpose of a relative frequency histogram?
To replace counts with percentages of total cases