Understanding Measures of Spread in Data

When we look at different sets of data, it's important to know how the numbers are spread out. Here are some simple ways to understand this:

1. Range:
   The range shows us the difference between the biggest and smallest numbers in a set.
   For example:

   • In Set A, the largest number is 10 and the smallest is 2. So, the range is 10 - 2 = 8.
   • In Set B, the largest number is 8 and the smallest is 3. So, the range is 8 - 3 = 5.
     This tells us that Set A is more spread out than Set B.

2. Interquartile Range (IQR):
   The IQR looks at the middle half of the data.
   To find it, you subtract the first quartile (Q1) from the third quartile (Q3).
   A smaller IQR means the numbers are more similar to each other.

3. Variance and Standard Deviation:
   These numbers show how far each number is from the average (or mean).
   For instance:

   • In Set C, if the average is 5 and the standard deviation is low, it means most numbers are close to 5. That shows consistency.
   • If the standard deviation is high, it means the numbers are really different from each other.

When we understand these ideas, we can compare different sets of data better. This helps us see patterns and unusual points in the information!