6. Normal Distribution and Continuous Random Variables

Finding a z-Score In Exercises 1–16, use the Standard Normal Table or technology to find the z-score that corresponds to the cumulative area or percentile.

P91

In Problems 5–12, find the indicated areas. For each problem, be sure to draw a standard normal curve and shade the area that is to be found.

Determine the area under the standard normal curve that lies to the right of

b. z = –0.55

Finding a z-Score In Exercises 1–16, use the Standard Normal Table or technology to find the z-score that corresponds to the cumulative area or percentile.

P1.5

In Exercises 1 and 2, use the following wait times (minutes) at 10:00 AM for the Tower of Terror ride at Disney World (from Data Set 33 “Disney World Wait Times” in Appendix B).

35 35 20 50 95 75 45 50 30 35 30 30

e. Convert the longest wait time to a z score.

f. Based on the result from part (e), is the longest wait time significantly high?

Finding z-Scores The distribution of the ages of the winners of the Tour de France from 1903 to 2020 is approximately bell-shaped. The mean age is 27.9 years, with a standard deviation of 3.4 years. In Exercises 43–48, use the corresponding z-score to determine whether the age is unusual. Explain your reasoning. (Source: Le Tour de France)

Finding Probabilities for Normal Distributions In Exercises 7–12, find the indicated probabilities. If convenient, use technology to find the probabilities.

MCAT Scores In a recent year, the MCAT total scores were normally distributed, with a mean of 500.9 and a standard deviation of 10.6. Find the probability that a randomly selected medical student who took the MCAT has a total score that is (c) more than 515. Identify any unusual events in parts (a)–(c). Explain your reasoning. (Source: Association of American Medical Colleges)

Finding a z-Score In Exercises 1–16, use the Standard Normal Table or technology to find the z-score that corresponds to the cumulative area or percentile.

0.6736

Finding Probabilities for Normal Distributions In Exercises 7–12, find the indicated probabilities. If convenient, use technology to find the probabilities.

Health Club Schedule The amounts of time per workout an athlete uses a stairclimber are normally distributed, with a mean of 20 minutes and a standard deviation of 5 minutes. Find the probability that a randomly selected athlete uses a stairclimber for (a) less than 17 minutes.

In Problems 5–12, find the indicated areas. For each problem, be sure to draw a standard normal curve and shade the area that is to be found.

Determine the area under the standard normal curve that lies to the left of

c. z = 1.35

Continuous Uniform Distribution. In Exercises 5–8, refer to the continuous uniform distribution depicted in Figure 6-2 and described in Example 1. Assume that a passenger is randomly selected, and find the probability that the waiting time is within the given range.

Between 2 minutes and 3 minutes

Life Spans of Fruit Flies The life spans of a species of fruit fly have a bell-shaped distribution, with a mean of 33 days and a standard deviation of 4 days.

b. The life spans of three randomly selected fruit flies are 29 days, 41 days, and 25 days. Using the Empirical Rule, find the percentile that corresponds to each life span.

Continuous Uniform Distribution. In Exercises 5–8, refer to the continuous uniform distribution depicted in Figure 6-2 and described in Example 1. Assume that a passenger is randomly selected, and find the probability that the waiting time is within the given range.

Less than 4.00 minutes

In Exercises 2–4, the random variable x is normally distributed with mean mu= 18 and standard deviation sigma 7.6

Find the value of x that has 88.3% of the distribution’s area to its left.

Graphical Analysis In Exercises 41 and 42, the midpoints A, B, and C are marked on the histograms at the left. Match them with the indicated z-scores. Which z-scores, if any, would be considered unusual?

z = 0, z = 2.14, z = −1.43

Finding a z-Score Given an Area In Exercises 23–30, find the indicated z-score.

Find the z-score that has 2.275% of the distribution’s area to its left.