Math Problem Statement

A random sample of 40 college professors is selected from all professors at a university. The following list gives their ages: 64, 47, 41, 46, 36, 51, 44, 42, 47, 28, 58, 60, 57, 48, 66, 66, 54, 45, 51, 21, 36, 66, 46, 48, 38, 39, 41, 36, 25, 46, 61, 35, 39, 43, 27, 36, 40, 34, 38, 58. Construct a stem-and-leaf plot for the data.

Solution

To construct the stem-and-leaf plot, the stems will be the tens digits of the ages, and the leaves will be the ones digits. Let’s organize the data systematically:

Data:

64, 47, 41, 46, 36, 51, 44, 42, 47, 28, 58, 60, 57, 48, 66, 66, 54, 45, 51, 21, 36, 66, 46, 48, 38, 39, 41, 36, 25, 46, 61, 35, 39, 43, 27, 36, 40, 34, 38, 58.

Steps:

  1. Sort the data in ascending order:
    21, 25, 27, 28, 34, 35, 36, 36, 36, 38, 38, 39, 39, 40, 41, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 46, 46, 47, 47, 48, 48, 51, 51, 54, 57, 58, 58, 60, 61, 64, 66, 66, 66, 66.

  2. Identify stems and leaves:

    • The stem is the tens digit (e.g., for 21, the stem is 2).
    • The leaf is the ones digit (e.g., for 21, the leaf is 1).
  3. Group the numbers by stems and list their leaves:

    • Stem 2: 1, 5, 7, 8
    • Stem 3: 4, 5, 6, 6, 6, 8, 8, 9, 9
    • Stem 4: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 6, 6, 7, 7, 8, 8
    • Stem 5: 1, 1, 4, 7, 8, 8
    • Stem 6: 0, 1, 4, 6, 6, 6, 6
  4. Construct the table: Here’s the completed stem-and-leaf table:

StemLeaves
21, 5, 7, 8
34, 5, 6, 6, 6, 8, 8, 9, 9
40, 1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 6, 6, 7, 7, 8, 8
51, 1, 4, 7, 8, 8
60, 1, 4, 6, 6, 6, 6

Would you like me to create a visualization or assist with the next question?

Here are 5 follow-up questions that might help expand your understanding:

  1. How does a stem-and-leaf plot help in visualizing data distribution?
  2. Can we use this plot to identify the mode(s) of the dataset?
  3. How would you modify this plot for a larger dataset?
  4. What are some alternative methods for summarizing this data?
  5. How would you determine the median directly from the stem-and-leaf plot?

Tip: When creating a stem-and-leaf plot, always sort the data first to ensure clarity and accuracy.

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Math Problem Analysis

Mathematical Concepts

Data organization
Stem-and-leaf plots
Data visualization

Formulas

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Theorems

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Suitable Grade Level

Grades 7-10