NOTES #1 in MATH 01

(BASIC STATISTICS)

Measures of Central Tendency

This is a measure that tells where the center of a data set is located. The most commonly used
measures of central tendency are the mean, median, and mode.

A. MEAN
The mean ( x ), also called as the “average” or “arithmetic average”, is the most commonly
used measure of central tendency. It is said to be the most reliable measure of central tendency and has the
least probable error but does not supply information about the homogeneity of the distribution.

UNGROUPED DATA
a. Simple Mean
Getting the simple mean means that we are giving equal weight to each value in the data set.

To compute the mean of ungrouped data, we use the formula:

n

x + x 2 + x3 + ... + x n x i
x= 1 = i =1

n n
Examples:
1. The scores of five contestants in a Statistics Quiz Bee are the following: 18, 17, 18, 19, and 18.
Find their average score.
Solution:
18 + 17 + 18 + 19 + 18
x= Add all the values (scores) then divide the sum by 5.
5
x = 18 Then the mean score of the contestants is 18 points.
2. Six IT graduates are working as programmers in a big computer company. Their salaries are as
follows: Ᵽ23,500, Ᵽ24,300, Ᵽ25,800, Ᵽ23,900, Ᵽ24,100, and Ᵽ24,950. What is the average salary
of the IT graduates?
Solution:
23500 + 24300 + 25800 + 23900 + 24100 + 24950
x=
6
x = 24425
Thus, the mean salary of the IT graduates is Ᵽ24,425. This implies that graduates who are
getting salaries below Ᵽ24,425 are not being paid enough while those who are getting salaries
above Ᵽ24,425 are receiving more than the average salary.

b. Weighted Mean
It is an average in which each quantity to be averaged is assigned a weight, and these
weightings determine the relative importance of each quantity on the average. Weightings are the
equivalent of having that many like items with the same value involved in the average.
n
 wi xi
The formula for weighted mean is WM = i =n1 , where wi is the weight of each value and xi is
 wi
i =1
the matching value.

Examples:
 1. Alondra bought different fruits for New Year. She bought 3 apples at Ᵽ10 each, 5 ponkans at Ᵽ5
each, 3 pears at Ᵽ15 each, 4 pieces of chico at Ᵽ25 each. What is the average price of each fruit
that Alondra bought?

Solution:
n

w x i i
3 • 10 + 5 • 5 + 3 • 15 + 4 • 25
WM = i =1
=
3+5+3+ 4
n

w
i =1
i

30 + 25 + 45 + 100
WM = = 13.33
15
Thus, the average price of each fruit bought by Xandra is Ᵽ13.33.

2. At MJR fitness and health society, 60% of the members are women and 40% are men. What is
the average age of all the members if the average age of the women is 35 and the average age
of the men is 30?
Solution:
Given: average age of women = 35
average age of men = 30
Condition: 60% of the members are women and 40% are men
• To solve the problem, we multiply the average ages by the corresponding weights.
35 • 0.60 = 21
30 • 0.40 = 12
• Then add the percentages that you’ve gotten, that is
21 + 12 = 33
• Hence, the average age of all the members of the society is 33.

GROUPED DATA (MEAN)

Class mark or Midpoint Method

In this method, the class mark of each interval has to be known and then it will be multiplied to
the corresponding frequency of every class interval. The formula for the mean using this method is

 fX
x= where f = ith frequency
n
X = ith class mark
n = total number of observations

Example:
1. Consider the frequency distribution below:
CI f
75 – 79 5
70 – 74 7
65 – 69 8
60 – 64 10
55 – 59 8
50 – 54 9
45 – 49 5
n = 50

Determine the mean of the distribution.

 Solution:
• First, get the midpoint or class mark of each class interval.
• Next, multiply the frequency of each class to the corresponding midpoint or class mark.
• Then, get the sum of the products.

The table is shown below:

CI f X fX
75 – 79 5 77 385
70 – 74 7 72 504
65 – 69 8 67 536
60 – 64 10 62 620
55 – 59 7 57 399
50 – 54 9 52 468
45 – 49 4 47 188
n = 50 ΣfX = 3100

From the values in the table above, we can now compute for the value of the mean by
substituting the computed n = 50 and ΣfX = 3100 in the formula.

 fX 3100
x= = = 62
n 50

Thus, the mean of the data is 62.

2. The heights of 40 grade 6 pupils in a certain grade school are presented in a frequency distribution
as shown below:

Height of a class of 40 Students

CI f
48 – 52 4
53 – 57 7
58 – 62 7
63 – 67 8
68 – 72 6
73 – 77 6
78 – 82 2
n = 40

Determine the average height of the students using the midpoint method.

Solution:
• First, get the midpoint or class mark of each class interval.
• Next, multiply the frequency of each class to the corresponding midpoint or class mark.
• Then, get the sum of the products.
 The table is shown below:

Height of a class of 40 Students

CI f X fX
48 – 52 4 50 200
53 – 57 7 55 385
58 – 62 7 60 420
63 – 67 8 65 520
68 – 72 6 70 420
73 – 77 6 75 450
78 – 82 2 80 160
n = 40 ΣfX = 2555

From the values above, we now compute for the value of the mean by substituting the
computed n = 40 and ΣfX = 2555 in the formula.
 fX 2555
x= = = 63.88
n 40

Therefore, the mean height of students is 63.88 cm.

MEDIAN
A median is defined as the middle value/observation in an organized list of numbers and falls in
the middle-most position of the whole data.

UNGROUPED DATA
The median value in an ungrouped data is determined by first arranging the numbers in value
order from lowest to highest or vice versa.
• If there is an odd amount of numbers, the median value is the middle most number, with the
same amount of numbers below and above.
• If there is an even amount of numbers in the list, the middle pair must be determined, added
together and divided by two to find the median value.

The median can be used to determine an approximate average.

Examples:
1. An IT professor at a certain college assigns Statistics practice problems to be worked via the net.
Students must use a secret code to access the problems and the time of log-in and log-out are
automatically recorded for the professor. At the end of the week, the professor examines the amount
of time each student spent solving the assigned problems. What is the median of the students.
15 28 25 48 22 43 39 44 43 49 34 22 33 27 25 22 30

Solution:
a. First, arrange the data in ascending or descending order.
15 22 22 22 25 25 27 28 30 33 34 39 43 43 44 48 49

b. Next, divide the data set into two equal parts.

15 22 22 22 25 25 27 28 30 33 34 39 43 43 44 48 49
❖ Since there is an odd number of values in the data, we take the middle most number/value
which is 30 as the median of the data set.
Therefore, the median of the given data in the problem is 30.
 2. The speed of ten stenographers in typing per minute are as follows:
Stenographer 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Speed 121 110 120 119 112 121 118 115 107 115

Determine the median of the speed of the stenographers.

Solution:
a. First, arrange the data in ascending or descending order.

107 110 112 115 115 118 119 120 121 121

b. Next, divide the data set into two equal parts.

107 110 112 115 115 118 119 120 121 121

❖ Since there is an even number of values in the data, we take the two middle most
numbers/values which are 115 and 118.

c. Get the average of the two values.

115 + 118 = 233

233 ÷ 2 = 116.5

Therefore, the median of the speed of the stenographers is 116.5 per minute. This
implies that the stenographers whose speed is above the median are fast while those whose
speed lie below the median are a little slower than the others.

GROUPED DATA

The formula for the median for grouped data is as follows:

~  N −  CF 
X = LBMC +  2 b i
 f MC 
 
where: LBMC = exact lower class boundary of the median class
 CFb = less than cumulative frequency below the median
class
i = class size
f MC = frequency of the median class

Steps:
a. Compute for the <CF of the data.
b. Determine the median class by computing for the value of N .
2
c. Locate the computed value for N at the <CF column (must be within one of the <CF). The interval
2
corresponding to this <CF value is the median class.
d. Look at the <CF corresponding to the median class. Then get the <CF before the median class.
e. Subtract the <CFb from N .
2
f. Divide the answer in step e by the frequency of the median class.
 g. Multiply the answer in step f by the value of i. To determine the value of i, subtract the lower limit
from the upper limit in any of the class intervals then add 1.
h. Add the answer in step g to the exact lower limit (LBMC) of the median class. The answer in this step
is the median value of the data set.

Example:
The record of 21 people in an apple eating contest is summarized in the given frequency table:
Time
Frequency
(in seconds)
51 – 55 2
56 – 60 7
61 – 65 8
66 – 70 4
21
Determine the median of the given data.

Solution:
a. Compute for the <CF of the data.
Time
Frequency <CF
(in seconds)
51 – 55 2 2
56 – 60 7 9
61 – 65 8 17
66 – 70 4 21
21

b. Determine the median class by computing for the value of N .

2
N = 21 = 10.5
2 2
c. Locate the computed value for N at the <CF column (must be within one of the <CF). The
2
interval corresponding to this <CF value is the median class.

❖ Looking at the <CF column, we can see that 10.5 lies within 17. The interval that
corresponds to 17 is the interval 61 – 65. Therefore, the median class is the interval 61
– 65.

d. Look at the <CF corresponding to the median class. Then get the <CF before the median
class.
❖ The <CFb (<CF before the median class) is 9.

e. Subtract the <CFb from N.

2
N – <CFb = 10.5 – 9 = 1.5
2
f. Divide the answer in step e by the frequency of the median class.
❖ The frequency of the median class is 8.
 1.5 = 0.1875
8
g. Multiply the answer in step f by the value of i. To determine the value of i, subtract the lower
limit from the upper limit in any of the class intervals then add 1.
i = 65 – 61 = 4 + 1 = 5
i=5
0.1875 • 5 = 0.9375
h. Add the answer in step g to the exact lower limit (LBMC) of the median class. The answer in
this step is the median value of the data set.
The exact lower limit (LBMC) of the median class is 60.5.
60.5 + 0.9375 = 61.4375 ≈ 61.44

❖ Using the formula we will have

Time
Frequency <CF
(in seconds)
51 – 55 2 2
56 – 60 7 9
61 – 65 MC 8 17
66 – 70 4 21
21

~  N −  CF 
X = LBMC +  2 b i
 f MC 
 
 21 − 9 
~
X = 60.5 +  2 5
 8 
 
~ 10.5 − 9 
X = 60.5 +  5
 8 
~
X = 60 .5 + 0.9375 = 61 .4375  61 .44

Hence, the median of the data set in the problem is 61.44 seconds. This implies that the
contestants whose time is above the median ate fast while those whose time lie below the
median ate a little slower than the others.

MODE
The number/value/observation in a data set which appears the most number of times. If no number
in the list is repeated, then there is no mode for the list. However, it is also possible to have more than one
mode for the same distribution of data, (uni – modal, bi-modal, tri-modal, or multi-modal).

UNGROUPED DATA
To find the mode of an ungrouped data, find the frequency of each number/value/observation in the
given data set. Then, choose the number/value/observation having the highest frequency as the mode.

MODE = number/value/observation with the highest frequency

 Example:
Find the mode of the given data set: 15 28 25 48 22 43 39 44 43 49 34 22 33 27 25 22 30.
Solution:
▪ First, arrange the data set in ascending or descending order.
15 22 22 22 25 25 27 28 30 33 34 39 43 43 44 48 49

▪ Next, determine the number that appeared the most number of times.
In the given data, the number that appeared the most number of times is 22.

❖ Thus, the mode of the data set is 22. The data set is said to be uni-modal.

GROUPED DATA
To find the mode of grouped data, we use the formula
 1 
Xˆ = LBMoC +  i
 1 +  2 

where: LB MoC = modal class or the class with the highest frequency
1 = difference between the frequency of the modal class and the frequency
above/before/lower than it
 2 = difference between the frequency of the modal class and the frequency
below/after/higher than it
i = class size
Steps:
a. Identify the modal class by determining the interval with the highest frequency.
b. Determine the exact lower limit (LBMoC) of the modal class.
c. Calculate ∆1 and ∆2.
d. Determine the value of i by subtracting the lower limit from the upper limit in any of the class intervals
then add 1.
e. Substitute the values in the formula.

❖ To ensure accuracy in the computations and to avoid rounding off of values (especially
for non-terminating decimals) along the computation process, it is best to compute for
the final value simultaneously using your calculator.

Example:
The record of 21 people in an apple eating contest is summarized in the frequency table below:
Time
Frequency
(in seconds)
51 - 55 2
56 - 60 7
61 - 65 8
66 - 70 4
21
Find the mode of the given data.

Solution:
a. Identify the modal class by determining the interval with the highest frequency.
The highest frequency is 8 and the corresponding interval is 61 – 65. This means that
the modal class is the interval 61 – 65.
b. Determine the exact lower limit (LBMoC) of the modal class.
LBMoC = 60.5

c. Calculate ∆1 and ∆2.

∆1 = 8 – 7 = 1
∆2 = 8 – 4 = 4

d. Determine the value of i by subtracting the lower limit from the upper limit in any of the class
intervals then add 1.
i = 65 – 61 = 4 + 1 = 5
i=5

e. Substitute the values in the formula.

 1   1  1 
Xˆ = LBMoC +  i = 60.5 +   5 = 60.5 +  5 = 60.5 + 1 = 61 .5
 1 +  2  1 + 4  5

❖ Therefore, the mode of the data set is 61.5.