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Analysing and Evaluating Practical Results

Mathematical skills for analysing biological data

  • 3 things to know
  • Components 01, 02 and 03

Overview

Recall questions on the mean, median, mode and range, standard deviation and error bars, choosing and calculating the t-test, chi-squared test and Spearman's rank correlation coefficient, degrees of freedom and p = 0.05, Simpson's index, logarithmic scales, magnification, estimation, and surface area and volume.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

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Key term

Distinguish between the median and the mode of a set of data.

Key term

When is the median a better summary of a data set than the mean?

Key term

What does a small standard deviation tell you about a set of measurements?

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

  1. 1

    Define the term arithmetic mean.

    Model answer

    It is the sum of all the values divided by the number of values.

  2. 2

    Distinguish between the median and the mode of a set of data.

    Model answer

    The median is the middle value when the data are placed in order, while the mode is the value that occurs most often.

  3. 3

    When is the median a better summary of a data set than the mean?

    Model answer

    When the data are skewed or contain an extreme value, because the median is not distorted by it.

  4. 4

    What does the range of a data set measure?

    Model answer

    It is the difference between the largest and the smallest value, and shows the total spread of the data.

  5. 5

    Why is standard deviation often a more useful measure of spread than the range?

    Model answer

    It takes account of every value in the set, so a single unusually high or low reading does not distort it as it distorts the range.

  6. 6

    What does a small standard deviation tell you about a set of measurements?

    Model answer

    The values are clustered closely around the mean, so the data are consistent.

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