In a statistics class, a teacher had the students complete an activity in which they grabbed as many bite-sized pretzels as they could with their dominant hand, without crushing them. The teacher then measured their handspan in centimeters. A regression analysis was completed and the value for s was found to be 3 point 0 5 Which of the following is the best interpretation of s ?
Answer
A
The average residual is about 3 point 0 5 pretzels.
B
The average number of pretzels a student could grab is 3 point 0 5 pretzels.
C
The average handspan of a student is 3 point 0 5 centimeters.
D
The average residual is about 3 point 0 5 centimeters.
Explanation
The value s is the standard deviation of the residuals, so it describes the typical size of the prediction errors. Since the response variable is the number of pretzels grabbed, s is measured in pretzels; predictions are typically off by about 3.05 pretzels. Choice C is the closest interpretation, though “typical residual size” is more accurate than “average residual.”
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