An article in archaeometry involved an analysis of 26 samples of Romano-British pottery found at four different kiln sites in the United Kingdom. The samples were analyzed to determine their composition. The percentage of iron oxide in each of five samples collected at the island thorns site was : 1.28, 2.39, 1.50, 1.88, 1.51. Calculate the sample variance and the standard deviation using the computing formula.

1 answer

To calculate the sample variance and standard deviation, we need to follow these steps:

Step 1: Calculate the mean (average) of the data set.

Step 2: Subtract the mean from each data point.

Step 3: Square each result from step 2.

Step 4: Sum up all the squared values from step 3.

Step 5: Divide the sum from step 4 by (n - 1), where n is the number of data points. This gives you the sample variance.

Step 6: Take the square root of the sample variance to calculate the sample standard deviation.

Now let's calculate step by step:

Step 1: Calculate the mean (average)
(mean) x̄ = (1.28 + 2.39 + 1.50 + 1.88 + 1.51) / 5
(mean) x̄ = 8.56 / 5
(mean) x̄ = 1.712

Step 2: Subtract the mean from each data point.
1.28 - 1.712 = -0.432
2.39 - 1.712 = 0.678
1.50 - 1.712 = -0.212
1.88 - 1.712 = 0.168
1.51 - 1.712 = -0.202

Step 3: Square each result from step 2.
(-0.432)^2 = 0.186624
(0.678)^2 = 0.459684
(-0.212)^2 = 0.044944
(0.168)^2 = 0.028224
(-0.202)^2 = 0.040804

Step 4: Sum up all the squared values from step 3.
0.186624 + 0.459684 + 0.044944 + 0.028224 + 0.040804 = 0.760280

Step 5: Divide the sum from step 4 by (n - 1) to get the sample variance.
(sample variance) S^2 = 0.760280 / (5 - 1)
(sample variance) S^2 = 0.760280 / 4
(sample variance) S^2 = 0.190070

Step 6: Take the square root of the sample variance to get the sample standard deviation.
(sample standard deviation) S = √0.190070
(sample standard deviation) S ≈ 0.435961

Therefore, the sample variance is 0.190070 and the sample standard deviation is approximately 0.435961.