Question

Greg wants to move out of his dormitory and into an apartment near his college. His parents agreed, on the condition that the rent is no more than 25% of the cost of dorm living. To get an idea of rent amounts for one-bedroom apartments, Greg looks at listings in a local newspaper and on an Internet site.Which answer best describes the sample and population?A. Sample: all available apartments near the collegePopulation: all available dormitories near the collegeB. Sample: all available apartments near the collegePopulation: listings in a local newspaper and on an Internet siteC. Sample: listings in a local newspaper and on an Internet sitePopulation: all available apartments near the collegeD. Sample: all available dormitories near the collegePopulation: all available apartments near the college

Answer 1

C. Sample: listings in a local newspaper and on an Internet sitePopulation: all available apartments near the college

Explanation:

The sample is the set of information Greg collects to do his estimation. The sample is necessarily a subset of the population. That is, in this case, the apartments listed in the local newspaper and the internet. He will estimate a mean rent for the sample and, with this result, estimate the population mean rent.

The population is the bigger set available for Greg to do the estimation, and the set he wants to estimate a parameter from (in this case, the mean rent).

In this case, the population is all the apartments near the college.