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Line of Best Fit (Least Square Method)

The document discusses the line of best fit and the least squares method for determining the line of best fit for a set of data points. It provides the steps for using the least squares method, which include calculating means, sums of squares, slope using a specific formula, y-intercept using another formula, and using slope and y-intercept to determine the equation of the line of best fit. An example is also given to demonstrate finding the line of best fit equation for a set of data points.

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222 views5 pages

Line of Best Fit (Least Square Method)

The document discusses the line of best fit and the least squares method for determining the line of best fit for a set of data points. It provides the steps for using the least squares method, which include calculating means, sums of squares, slope using a specific formula, y-intercept using another formula, and using slope and y-intercept to determine the equation of the line of best fit. An example is also given to demonstrate finding the line of best fit equation for a set of data points.

Uploaded by

spreemouse
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© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Line of Best Fit (Least Square Method)

A line of best fit is a straight line that is the best approximation of the given set of data. It is used to study the nature of the relation between two variables. A line of best fit can be roughly determined using an eyeball method by drawing a straight line on a scatter plot so that the number of points above the line and below the line is about equal (and the line passes through as many points as possible). A more accurate way of finding the line of best fit is the Least Square Method. Use the following steps to find the equation of line of best fit for a set of ordered pairs.

Least Square Method Steps


Step 1: Calculate the mean of the x-values and the mean of the y-values. Step 2: Compute the sum of the squares of the x-values. Step 3: Compute the sum of each x-value multiplied by its corresponding y-value. Step 4: Calculate the slope of the line using the formula:

where n is the total number of data points. Step 5: Compute the y-intercept of the line by using the formula:

where are the mean (average) of the x- and y-coordinates of the data points respectively.

Step 6: Use the slope and the y -intercept to form the equation of the line. Example: Use the least square method to determine the equation of line of best fit for the data. Then plot the line.

Solution: Plot the points on a coordinate plane.

Calculate the means of the x-values and the y-values, the sum of squares of the xvalues, and the sum of each x-value multiplied by its corresponding y-value.

Calculate the slope.

Calculate the y-intercept. First, calculate the mean of the x-values and that of the y-values.

Use the formula to compute the y-intercept.

Use the slope and y-intercept to form the equation of the line of best fit. The slope of the line is 1.1 and the y -intercept is 14.0. Therefore, the equation is y = 1.1 x + 14.0. Draw the line on the scatter plot.

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