Lim Xin Yong

1.0 Introduction

Central Limit Theorem is a statistical theory stating that given a sufficiently large
sample size from a population with a finite level of variance, the mean of all samples
from the same population will be approximately equal to the mean of the population.
Furthermore, all the samples will follow an approximate normal distribution pattern, with
all variances being approximately equal to the variance of the population, divided by
each sample's size.

This concept was first developed by Abraham de Moivre in 1733, it wasn’t

formally named until 1930, when noted Hungarian mathematician George Polya
officially dubbed it the Central Limit Theorem.

According to the central limit theorem, the mean of a sample of data will be
closer to the mean of the overall population in question, as the sample size increases,
notwithstanding the actual distribution of the data. In other words, the data is accurate
whether the distribution is normal or aberrant.

As a general rule, sample sizes equal to or greater than 30 are considered

sufficient for the Central Limit Theorem to hold, meaning that the distribution of the
sample means is fairly normally distributed. Therefore, the more samples one takes, the
more the graphed results take the shape of a normal distribution.

2.0 Questions and Solutions

Question 1

For a certain type of computers, the length of time bewteen charges of the
battery is normally distributed with a mean of 50 hours and a standard deviation of 15
hours. John owns one of these computers and wants to know the probability that the
length of time will be between 50 and 70 hours.
Lim Xin Yong

Solution 1

P( 50< x < 70)

For x = 50 , z = (50 - 50) / 15 = 0

For x = 70 , z = (70 - 50) / 15 = 1.33 (rounded to 2 decimal places)

P( 50< x < 70) = P( 0< z < 1.33) = [area to the left of z = 1.33] - [area to the left of z = 0]

= 0.9082 - 0.5 = 0.4082

Report 1

Let x be the random variable that represents the length of time. It has a mean of
50 and a standard deviation of 15. We have to find the probability that x is between 50

×−μ
and 70, which is written as P( 50< x < 70). Using the formula z= , where µ is mean
σ
and ϭ is standard deviation. Sub µ = 50 and ϭ = 15 into the formula of Z score, thus

50−50
produced z= when x=50. Therfore, we can get z=0. Next, sub µ = 50 and ϭ = 15
15

70−50
into the formula of Z score, thus produced z= when x=70. Therefore, we can get
15
z=1.33. do not forget to convert the statement of P( 50< x < 70) to P( 0< z < 1.33).
Then, the area to the left of z = 1.33 minus the area to the left of z = 0 is written as

“0.9082 - 0.5” and the answer is 0.4082. Thus, the probability that John's computer has
a length of time between 50 and 70 hours is equal to 0.4082.

Question 2

Entry to a certain University is determined by a national test. The scores on this test are
normally distributed with a mean of 500 and a standard deviation of 100. Tom wants to
be admitted to this university and he knows that he must score better than at least 70%
of the students who took the test. Tom takes the test and scores 585. Will he be
admitted to this university?
Lim Xin Yong

Solution 2

For x = 585 , z = (585 - 500) / 100 = 0.85

The proportion P of students who scored below 585 is given by

P = [area to the left of z = 0.85] = 0.8023 = 80.23%

Report 1

Let x be the random variable that represents the scores. x is normally ditsributed

×−μ
with a mean of 500 and a standard deviation of 100. Using the formula z= , where
σ
µ is mean and ϭ is standard deviation. Sub µ = 500 and ϭ = 100 into the formula of Z

585−500
score, thus produced z= when x=585. Therfore, we can get z=0.85. therefore,
100
we can know that the proportion P of students who scored below 585 is the area to the
left of z =0.85 which is equal to 0.8023. Next, we covert 0.8023 into the percentage
form, which will be 80.23%. Finally, we found that Tom scored better than 80.23% of the
students who took the test and he will be admitted to this University.

3.0 The Importance of Central Limit Theorem

Many practices in statistics, such as those involving hypothesis testing or

confidence intervals, make some assumptions concerning the population that the data
was obtained from. One assumption that is initially made in a statistics course is that the
populations that we work with are normally distributed.

The assumption that data is from a normal distribution simplifies matters but
seems a little unrealistic. Just a little work with some real-world data shows that outliers,
multiple peaks and asymmetry show up quite routinely. We can get around the problem
of data from a population that is not normal. The use of an appropriate sample size and
the central limit theorem help us to get around the problem of data from populations that
are not normal.
Lim Xin Yong

Thus, even though we might not know the shape of the distribution where our
data comes from, the central limit theorem says that we can treat the sampling
distribution as if it were normal. Of course, in order for the conclusions of the theorem to
hold, we do need a sample size that is large enough. Exploratory data analysis can help
us to determine how large of a sample is necessary for a given situation.

Conclusion

The central limit theorem is a result from probability theory. This theorem shows
up in a number of places in the field of statistics. Although the central limit theorem can
seem abstract and devoid of any application, this theorem is actually quite important to
the practice of statistics. This theorem allows us to simplify problems in statistics by
allowing us to work with a distribution that is approximately normal.

References
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https://www.thoughtco.com/importance-of-the-central-limit-theorem-3126556

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Lim Xin Yong