Suppose you are interested in genealogy, and want to try to predict your potential longevity by using the ages at death of your ancestors. You find out the ages at death for the eight great-grandparents of your mother and your father. Suppose the ages (in numerical order) are as follows:
Mother’s great-grandparents: 78, 80, 80, 81, 81, 82, 82, 84
Father’s great-grandparents: 30, 50, 77, 80, 82, 90, 95, 98
a. Compare the medians for the two sets of ages. How do they compare?
b. Compare the means for the two sets of ages. How do they compare?
c. Find the standard deviation for each set of ages.
d. Which set do you think is more useful for predicting longevity in your family? Explain.