{"id":217,"date":"2022-06-16T17:20:56","date_gmt":"2022-06-16T17:20:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/?post_type=chapter&#038;p=217"},"modified":"2022-06-16T17:26:39","modified_gmt":"2022-06-16T17:26:39","slug":"datasets-and-statistical-questions-learn-it-1","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/chapter\/datasets-and-statistical-questions-learn-it-1\/","title":{"raw":"Datasets and Statistical Questions: Learn It 1","rendered":"Datasets and Statistical Questions: Learn It 1"},"content":{"raw":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\r\n<h3>Learning Goals<\/h3>\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li>Identify the observational units in data needed to answer a statistical question.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Identify qualities of a good statistical question.<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Identify variables used to answer a statistical question.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\nIn the next activity, you will need to understand the qualities exhibited by a good statistical question, and you will need to have an understanding of observational units and variables so that you can think about whether a given dataset is appropriate to answer a statistical question.\r\n\r\nAt its heart, statistics is an investigative process that can allow us to answer questions about our world. In the upcoming activity, we're going to be considering what makes a good statistical question and how we can match appropriate data with those statistical questions. Prepare for that activity by completing this page to build your understanding of\u00a0 the observational units and variables present in the data used to answer statistical questions.\r\n<h2>The Qualities of Statistical Questions<\/h2>\r\n<img class=\" wp-image-225 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5808\/2022\/06\/16172529\/traffic-jam-g84bdc83ad_1920.jpg\" alt=\"Cars lined up stopped with brake lights on in a traffic jam.\" width=\"699\" height=\"466\" \/>\r\n\r\nYou\u2019ve probably heard people complain about drivers from various areas of the country. In a moment, you'll consider the question, \u201cWhich U.S. state has the worst drivers?\u201d as a statistical question. Before you begin to tackle that question, first refresh what you learned\u00a0about statistical investigative questions in the <em>What to Know [1C]<\/em>\u00a0by reading the example below. Then, extend that knowledge by working through the questions on this page to prepare for the upcoming activity.\r\n<div class=\"textbox exercises\">\r\n<h3>example<\/h3>\r\nIn\u00a0<em>What to Know [1C]<\/em>, you learned that a statistical investigative question is one that can be used as the starting point for an investigation. To answer the question, data will need to be collected and analyzed using statistical tools and the results of that analysis interpreted. You understood that the first quality of a statistical question is that it doesn't have an exact answer.\r\n\r\nWhich of the following questions satisfies the definition of a statistical investigative question?\r\n<ol>\r\n \t<li>Which country (or countries) had the highest maximum speed limit for any of its roadways in 2020?<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Which country has the best drivers?<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n[reveal-answer q=\"676907\"]Show Answer[\/reveal-answer]\r\n[hidden-answer a=\"676907\"]2. Which country has the best drivers? This question requires analyzing different types of observations and data. The first question asks what country had the highest speed limit in 2020. The information must be looked up, but once found, the answer is a single, exact answer.[\/hidden-answer]\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\nYou learned previously that statistical questions always anticipate variability, and could lead to data collection and analysis. Let's extend that understanding now by looking at some further qualities a question will have if it is a good statistical question.\r\n<div class=\"textbox key-takeaways\">\r\n<h3>Question 1<\/h3>\r\nA good statistical question will exhibit many and possibly all of the following qualities:\r\n<ul>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The question is relevant and interesting.<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The question deals with some natural variation in the world; in other words, the question anticipates variability.<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The question asks us to generalize or find a general tendency among many individuals.<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The question is one that we need data in order to answer.<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The question does not have an exact and precise answer that is easy to find; there is some analysis that must be done to answer the question, or the question may be answered in multiple ways.<\/li>\r\n \t<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">There can be multiple factors that affect the answer to the question.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nWhich of the above qualities do you find present in the question, \u201cWhich U.S. state has the worst drivers?\u201d\r\n\r\n[reveal-answer q=\"187977\"]Hint[\/reveal-answer]\r\n[hidden-answer a=\"187977\"]Consider each carefully to determine if any of these can be eliminated.[\/hidden-answer]\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<h3><\/h3>","rendered":"<div class=\"textbox learning-objectives\">\n<h3>Learning Goals<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Identify the observational units in data needed to answer a statistical question.<\/li>\n<li>Identify qualities of a good statistical question.<\/li>\n<li>Identify variables used to answer a statistical question.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>In the next activity, you will need to understand the qualities exhibited by a good statistical question, and you will need to have an understanding of observational units and variables so that you can think about whether a given dataset is appropriate to answer a statistical question.<\/p>\n<p>At its heart, statistics is an investigative process that can allow us to answer questions about our world. In the upcoming activity, we&#8217;re going to be considering what makes a good statistical question and how we can match appropriate data with those statistical questions. Prepare for that activity by completing this page to build your understanding of\u00a0 the observational units and variables present in the data used to answer statistical questions.<\/p>\n<h2>The Qualities of Statistical Questions<\/h2>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-225 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com\/courses-images\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5808\/2022\/06\/16172529\/traffic-jam-g84bdc83ad_1920.jpg\" alt=\"Cars lined up stopped with brake lights on in a traffic jam.\" width=\"699\" height=\"466\" \/><\/p>\n<p>You\u2019ve probably heard people complain about drivers from various areas of the country. In a moment, you&#8217;ll consider the question, \u201cWhich U.S. state has the worst drivers?\u201d as a statistical question. Before you begin to tackle that question, first refresh what you learned\u00a0about statistical investigative questions in the <em>What to Know [1C]<\/em>\u00a0by reading the example below. Then, extend that knowledge by working through the questions on this page to prepare for the upcoming activity.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox exercises\">\n<h3>example<\/h3>\n<p>In\u00a0<em>What to Know [1C]<\/em>, you learned that a statistical investigative question is one that can be used as the starting point for an investigation. To answer the question, data will need to be collected and analyzed using statistical tools and the results of that analysis interpreted. You understood that the first quality of a statistical question is that it doesn&#8217;t have an exact answer.<\/p>\n<p>Which of the following questions satisfies the definition of a statistical investigative question?<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Which country (or countries) had the highest maximum speed limit for any of its roadways in 2020?<\/li>\n<li>Which country has the best drivers?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<div class=\"qa-wrapper\" style=\"display: block\"><span class=\"show-answer collapsed\" style=\"cursor: pointer\" data-target=\"q676907\">Show Answer<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"q676907\" class=\"hidden-answer\" style=\"display: none\">2. Which country has the best drivers? This question requires analyzing different types of observations and data. The first question asks what country had the highest speed limit in 2020. The information must be looked up, but once found, the answer is a single, exact answer.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>You learned previously that statistical questions always anticipate variability, and could lead to data collection and analysis. Let&#8217;s extend that understanding now by looking at some further qualities a question will have if it is a good statistical question.<\/p>\n<div class=\"textbox key-takeaways\">\n<h3>Question 1<\/h3>\n<p>A good statistical question will exhibit many and possibly all of the following qualities:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The question is relevant and interesting.<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The question deals with some natural variation in the world; in other words, the question anticipates variability.<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The question asks us to generalize or find a general tendency among many individuals.<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The question is one that we need data in order to answer.<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">The question does not have an exact and precise answer that is easy to find; there is some analysis that must be done to answer the question, or the question may be answered in multiple ways.<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\">There can be multiple factors that affect the answer to the question.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Which of the above qualities do you find present in the question, \u201cWhich U.S. state has the worst drivers?\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"qa-wrapper\" style=\"display: block\"><span class=\"show-answer collapsed\" style=\"cursor: pointer\" data-target=\"q187977\">Hint<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"q187977\" class=\"hidden-answer\" style=\"display: none\">Consider each carefully to determine if any of these can be eliminated.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h3><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"author":17533,"menu_order":15,"template":"","meta":{"_candela_citation":"[]","CANDELA_OUTCOMES_GUID":"","pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-217","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry"],"part":156,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/217","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17533"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/217\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":226,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/217\/revisions\/226"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/156"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/217\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=217"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=217"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=217"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/alphamodule\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=217"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}