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8 - Normal Distribution (Lecture)

The document discusses the normal distribution, which is a continuous probability distribution graphed as a bell curve. It has the following key characteristics: it is symmetrical around the mean, approaches the horizontal axis asymptotically on both sides, and has an area of 1 under the curve. The normal distribution is used to model many real-world phenomena and allows calculations of probabilities based on the mean and standard deviation. Examples provided demonstrate how to use the normal distribution to solve probability problems related to incomes, test scores, heights, and more. The document also discusses using the normal approximation to the binomial distribution for problems with large numbers of trials.

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Jawwad Saeed Khan
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63 views

8 - Normal Distribution (Lecture)

The document discusses the normal distribution, which is a continuous probability distribution graphed as a bell curve. It has the following key characteristics: it is symmetrical around the mean, approaches the horizontal axis asymptotically on both sides, and has an area of 1 under the curve. The normal distribution is used to model many real-world phenomena and allows calculations of probabilities based on the mean and standard deviation. Examples provided demonstrate how to use the normal distribution to solve probability problems related to incomes, test scores, heights, and more. The document also discusses using the normal approximation to the binomial distribution for problems with large numbers of trials.

Uploaded by

Jawwad Saeed Khan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Normal Distribution (lecture)

The Normal distribution is a continuous probability distribution.


It is graphed as a Gaussian curve also called a bell curve.

Characteristics of a bell curve

○ The curve is symmetrical about the vertical axis, centered


at the mean.
○ The curve approaches the horizontal axis asymptotically
on either sides of the vertical axis.
○ The area under the curve for a given interval is equal to the
probability of the normal random variable for that interval.
○ The total area under the curve is 1.
○ The probability density function for the normal random
variable is given by:

⚫ Description of a Normal random variable:

Standard normal random variable

⚫ Every normal random variable is to be converted to a


standard normal random variable in order to refer to the
standard table for probabilities.

Normal Distribution (lecture) Page 1


Q1. The incomes of factory workers in a certain area is normally distributed
with a mean of $100 per week and a standard deviation of $10. Find the
proportion of the workers with incomes,
a. less than $111 per week,
b. more than $92 per week,
c. less than $87 per week,
d. more than $118 per week,
e. between $110 and $120 per week,
f. between $75 and $85 per week.
g. between $93 and $115 per week.
h. exactly $108.

Q2. In a certain mathematics examination, the marks are normally


distributed with mean of 75 marks and a standard deviation of 11 marks.
a. Find the probability that the mark of a student selected at random will
lie between 45 and 65.
b. If all students with marks at least 60 will pass the examination, then
what is the probability that a student selected at random will pass the
examination.
c. If the minimum marks for an A is 90, how many students managed to
get an A out of 200 students?

Q3. The heights of female students at a particular college are normally


distributed with a mean of 169 cm and a standard deviation of 9 cm.
a. Given that 80% of these students have a height less than cm, find .
b. Given that 60% of these students have a height greater than cm, find .
c. Given that 35% of the students have a height more than cm, find .
d. Given that 28% of the students have a height less than or equal to cm,
find .
e. Estimate the interquartile range of the distribution.

Q4. The length of a certain type of cane is normally distributed with mean
m and standard deviation m. Given that 10% of the canes have their length
more than 2 m and 18% less than 1.75 m. Find the values of and .

Q5. A variable is distributed normally with mean 10 and standard


deviation 2. If five values of are taken at random, calculate the probability
that three of them are more than 12.

Q6.
a. If has a normal distribution with mean 3 and variance 4, find so that

b. If has a normal distribution with mean 0 and variance 1, find so that

c. Given that is a normal random variable, estimate the mean and the
variance of if and .

Normal Distribution (lecture) Page 2


Normal approximation to the Binomial random variable

⚫ In case of a Binomial process having large number of


trials, the binomial formula for computing
probabilities becomes ineffective or tedious and
therefore a Normal approximation can be used to
estimate the probabilities.
⚫ Conditions for Normal approximation:
and
⚫ The approximation gets better with higher number of
trials.
⚫ Whenever a continuous probability distribution
(Normal) is applied on a discrete probability
distribution (Binomial), a continuity correction of
must be made.

⚫ Examples:

Q7. In a sack of mixed grass seeds, the probability that a seed is ryegrass is
0.35. Find the probability that in a random sample of 400 seeds from the
sack,
a. less than 120 are ryegrass seeds,
b. between 120 and 150 (inclusive) are ryegrass,
c. more than 160 are ryegrass seeds.
d. Exactly 125 are ryegrass seeds.

Q8. An ordinary unbiased die is thrown 120 times. Using a suitable


approximation, find the probability of obtaining at least 24 sixes.

Q9. It is given that 40% of the population support the ABC party. One
hundred and fifty members of the population are selected at random. Use a
suitable approximation to find the probability that more than 55 out of the
150 support the ABC party.

Normal Distribution (lecture) Page 3

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