Math Problem Statement

Solve question 9 ... Find mean

Find the median from the following distribution: Size: 18, 20, 21, 19, 23, 22, 24. Frequency: 12, 18, 16, 15, 6, 10, 2.

Solution

Let's solve the first part of the problem:

Finding the Median

The first part of the question asks to find the median from the following distribution:

Size18202119232224
Frequency121816156102

Step 1: Calculate Total Frequency (N)

To find the median, we need to first calculate the total frequency (NN):

N=12+18+16+15+6+10+2=79N = 12 + 18 + 16 + 15 + 6 + 10 + 2 = 79

Step 2: Find the Median Class

The median is located at the position:

N+12=79+12=40thobservation\frac{N+1}{2} = \frac{79+1}{2} = 40 \text{th} observation

Now, we need to find in which class the 40th observation lies by summing up the cumulative frequencies:

  • Cumulative frequency up to size 18: 1212
  • Cumulative frequency up to size 20: 12+18=3012 + 18 = 30
  • Cumulative frequency up to size 21: 30+16=4630 + 16 = 46

So, the 40th observation lies in the class where size = 21.

Step 3: Median

Since the 40th observation lies in the class size 21, the median is 21.

Would you like more details on the calculation process?

Here are 5 related questions to further explore the topic:

  1. How is the median different from the mean in grouped data?
  2. What steps would you take to calculate the mode for this distribution?
  3. How do we handle data that includes decimals in frequency or size values?
  4. What if two sizes share the same frequency—how would you determine the median?
  5. How does the median change if the highest size value (24) had a frequency of 10 instead of 2?

Tip: The median is less sensitive to outliers in a data set compared to the mean, making it a better measure of central tendency for skewed distributions.

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Math Problem Analysis

Mathematical Concepts

Statistics
Median
Cumulative Frequency

Formulas

Median position = (N + 1) / 2
Cumulative Frequency = sum of frequencies up to the given class

Theorems

Median theorem for discrete frequency distribution

Suitable Grade Level

Grades 10-12