According to the website of the American Association for Justice,11 Stella Liebeck of Albuquerque, New Mexico, was severely burned by McDonald’s coffee in February 1992. Liebeck, who re-ceived third- degree burns over 6 percent of her body, was awarded $ 160,000 in compensatory damages and $ 480,000 in punitive damages. A postverdict investigation revealed that the coffee temperature at the local Albuquerque McDonald’s had dropped from about 185° F before the trial to about 158° after the trial.
This case concerns coffee temperatures at a fast- food restaurant. Because of the possibility of future litigation and to possibly improve the coffee’s taste, the restaurant wishes to study the temperature of the coffee it serves. To do this, the restaurant personnel measure the temperature of the coffee being dispensed ( in degrees Fahrenheit) at a randomly selected time during each of the 24 half- hour periods from 8 A. M. to 7: 30 P. M. on a given day. This is then repeated on a second day, giving the 48 coffee temperatures in Table 1.10. Make a time series plot of the coffee temperatures, and assuming process consistency, estimate limits between which most of the coffee temperatures at the restaurant would fall.