Math Problem Statement

DIG DEEPER You ask 50 randomly chosen employees of a company how many books they read each month. The diagram shows the results. There are 600 people employed by the company. Estimate the number of employees who read at least one book each month.

A circle graph. The graph is titled, “Books per Month”. Each activity takes up a section of the circle and the size of the section corresponds to the numerical value of the activity. One book, 19; Two books, 7; Three or more books, 10; Zero books, 14.

An estimate of ? employees read at least one book each month.

Solution

To estimate the number of employees who read at least one book each month, we can approach the problem in the following steps:

  1. Determine the percentage of employees from the sample who read at least one book each month.

    • From the circle graph:
      • One book: 19 employees
      • Two books: 7 employees
      • Three or more books: 10 employees
    • Total employees who read at least one book = 19 + 7 + 10 = 36 employees (out of 50).
  2. Calculate the proportion of employees who read at least one book: Proportion of readers=3650=0.72\text{Proportion of readers} = \frac{36}{50} = 0.72

  3. Use this proportion to estimate how many of the 600 employees read at least one book each month: Estimated number of readers=0.72×600=432\text{Estimated number of readers} = 0.72 \times 600 = 432

So, an estimate of 432 employees read at least one book each month.

Would you like a more detailed breakdown of this calculation?

Here are 5 related questions:

  1. How would the estimate change if the sample size were larger?
  2. What if the proportion of readers increased to 80%? How would that affect the estimate?
  3. How could sampling bias affect the results of this survey?
  4. What statistical methods could improve the accuracy of this estimate?
  5. How can we calculate the margin of error for this estimate?

Tip: When estimating from a sample, always ensure that the sample is representative of the whole population to avoid biased results.

Ask a new question for Free

By Image

Drop file here or Click Here to upload

Math Problem Analysis

Mathematical Concepts

Proportions
Estimation
Percentage Calculation
Sampling

Formulas

Proportion of readers = (Number of readers / Total sample size)
Estimated number of readers = Proportion of readers × Total population

Theorems

Law of Large Numbers (related to sampling)
Proportional reasoning

Suitable Grade Level

Grades 7-10