Large data sets
At this point, students will be presented with two datasets. They will be able to choose which one they would like to use to answer example questions before using the Descriptive Statistics in the data analysis tool.
When computing these values with a large data set, it is not efficient to do so by hand. Instead, we will rely on technology to calculate these values. Let’s try that now.
Go to the Describing and Exploring Quantitative Variables tool at https://dcmathpathways.shinyapps.io/EDA_quantitative/.
Step 1) Select the Single Group tab.
Step 2) Locate the dropdown under Enter Data and select From Textbook.
Step 3) Locate the drop-down menu under Data Set and select Sleep Study: Average Sleep.
This data set contains the average number of hours of sleep per night for each of the [latex]253[/latex] students in the sleep study.
Note the Descriptive Statistics located above the graphical display. You’ll find the mean and median located in the list. Eventually, we will use all the values shown but for now we just want to record the mean and median. To use the tool to calculate descriptive statistics for any data set, load, copy and paste, or type the data values into the “Observations” box of the tool, and it will automatically list the values in the “Descriptive Statistics.”
