Final answer:
The variance is a measure of how spread out the data is from the mean. To find the variance, calculate the squared difference between each data point and the mean, then take the average of these squared differences.
Step-by-step explanation:
The variance is a measure of how spread out the data is from the mean. It tells us how much the data points differ from the average value. To find the variance, you need to calculate the squared difference between each data point and the mean, then take the average of these squared differences.
For example, if you have the data set {1, 3, 5}, the mean is (1 + 3 + 5)/3 = 3. The squared differences from the mean are (1-3)^2 = 4, (3-3)^2 = 0, and (5-3)^2 = 4. Taking the average of these squared differences gives us (4 + 0 + 4)/3 = 2. This is the variance of the data set.