Math 1040 Skittles Project

Diamond Le

For our Math 1040 class we had to do a Skittles Project. This project will include the concepts we
had learned in class. Some concepts include analyzing data, looking at proportions, drawing conclusions,
finding confidence intervals, and more. We had first analyzed data from our own individual bags of
skittles to analyzing date from the sample of the class. The concepts we learned in this class will help us
apply statistic skills to real life problems.

For the first part of our Skittles project, each student was required to buy one 2.17 oz. bag of
Original Skittles. We had to separate each color and then count how many of each color there were. In
my bag there was 16 Red Skittles, 9 Orange Skittles, 14 Yellow Skittles, 7 Green Skittles, and 14 Purple
Skittles. This was a total of 60.

For part two of our Skittles Project, we had to organize and show our qualitative data. We
predicted a proportion for how much of each color we think is in a bag of Original Skittles.

Next, we created a table that tells how the counts and proportions of skittles in a bag comparing our
own individual bags and then the entire class sample.
After putting the data on a table, we had to create two types of graphs: Pie chart and a Pareto chart (bar
graph). These charts will show the data in a more visual way.

Bar Graph

Pie Graph

After we created the graphs, I did some observations on the data we had. I was surprised that
red didn’t get the most I assumed it would be the most popular color, but it turned out to be yellow. I
thought yellow would be the least because I didn’t think people like that flavor very much. With my bag
and other individual’s bags, I found that yellow and green are usually the top colors. Red and orange are
the second most and then it ends with purple. If you compare this to the larger class sample, yellow and
green is the top two colors. Red, orange, and purple are the next top colors. In conclusion if you
compare the smaller and the larger portions it is still similar.

After making a conclusion to my observations we got together in a group and had a discussion.
The question was, “Does the class data represent a random sample? Why or why not? What population
are we sampling from?” Our group answer was that it was a random sample. A sample is trying to
describe the population. We looked at the bags as all bags in Salt Lake City. This makes it a random
sample because the students in our lecture class or online class could live all over Salt Lake City. So, each
bag has a chance of being purchased.
 For part three of our Skittles project, we found the summary statistics of the data above. We
found that the mean numbers of candies per bag was 58.5. The standard deviation for the number of
candies per bag was 1.9. The 5-number summary was 53, 57, 59, 60, and 64. We created a frequency
histogram and boxplot that showed the “Total Candies in Each Bag”

After observing our findings, I had found that the shape of distribution for “Total candies in each
bag” is left-skewed. I assumed it would be more bell-shaped because it was the most common
distribution. I was wrong because the two variables at the beginning of the graph threw it off. I think 35
might be the outlier by looking at my box plot and my histogram. It is the number that made the
distribution more skewed left. When calculating the average, I feel like low numbers like 35 compared to
59 is a big difference so it causes it to skew left or right instead of being a normal distribution.

For our group discussion for part three: Qualitative VS Quantitative data we discussed the
following questions:

 What is the difference between qualitative and quantitative data?

 What types of graphs make sense and what types of graphs do not make sense for
qualitative data? For quantitative data?
 What types of calculations (eg. summary statistics) make sense and what types do not
make sense for qualitative data? For quantitative data? Explain why.
 We had said that Qualitative data are responses based on attributes or characteristics
like eye color. Quantitative data are numerical measures like weight or average. The graphs
that make sense for qualitative data is frequency bar graphs, pareto charts, and pie charts.
Pareto charts or bar graphs help visually represent qualitative data. It makes it easy to compare
between characteristics, time, or categories. For quantitative data, graphs like histograms, dot
plots, and stem-and-leaf plots are better for numerical data. Histograms help with finding
proportions to the frequency of a variable. Calculations for qualitative data help with finding
frequency or relative frequency distribution. Finding shapes of distributions, class widths, or
percentages are calculations for quantitative data.

For the final part of our Skittles Project we explained the purpose and meaning of a
confidence interval. The meaning of a confidence interval is an interval of numbers based on a
point estimate that gives a range of likely values for an unknown parameter. The purpose of a
confidence interval is to find a range of values from an unknown parameter rather than a single
point. We explained which factors affected the width of a confidence interval. The margin of
error determines the width of the interval. The size of the sample will determine an estimate of
the population parameter. If the sample is bigger, it will create a better estimate. The confidence
level affects the width. If it is higher it will produce a wider confidence interval. We constructed
a 99% confidence estimate for the population proportion of yellow candies. Below is my
calculator input:
*Calculator Input: 1-propZint
-X: 1428 (Number of yellow candies)
-N: 6871 (Total number of candies)
-C-Level: .99
-Answer: (.19522, .22044)
-Interpretation: We are 99% confident that the proportion of yellow skittles in any bag
falls between .19522 and .22044.
Next, we calculate a 95% confidence interval estimate for the population mean number of
candies per bag.
-Mean number of candies per bag: 58.229
-Standard Deviation of the number of candies per bag: 3.02
-Total # of candies(n): 118
-Calculator input: T-Interval, Stats
-X: 58.229
-Sx: 3.02
 -n: 118
- C-level: .95
-Answer: (57.678, 58.78)
-Interpretation: There is a 95% confidence that the population mean
number of candies is between 57.678 and 58.78.

I Learned how to apply many of the concepts we learned in class to the Skittles Project.
First, I learned to collect data and then organize data. I figured out how many skittles was in my
own bag and the class total. We made a table to compare the two. I used the data I had and
created a bar graph and a pie chart. Then I learned how to find the mean amount of candies in
a bag and the standard deviation. We created a histogram out of the data. We also created a
box plot from the five number summaries. We then applied the data to find confidence
intervals for yellow skittles. I had learned that we were 99% confident that the proportion of
yellow skittles in any bag falls between .19522 and .22044. For the population mean they were
in between 57.678 and 58.78.