STAT 2510SEF, STAT S251F, and STAT S251W
Statistical Data Analysis
Autumn Term, 2025
Assignment 1
Question 1 (10 marks)
For each scenario below, decide if the sampling method used is random or non-random. Provide a clear reason for your choice.
(a) HKMU wants to survey its students about campus life. The administration obtains an alphabetical list of all 20,000 enrolled students. They select every 100th student on the list after the subjectively determined starting point, 54 until they have a sample (54th, 154th, 254th student, etc.) of 200 students. [5]
(b) An Education Bureau official wants to understand public opinion on increasing the percentage of non-local undergraduate students to government funded universities. He posts a link to an online survey on the bureau’s official Facebook page and encourage all followers to participate. [5]
Question 2 (13 marks)
(a) For each scenario below:
• Identify the scale of measurement being used: nominal, ordinal, interval, or ratio
• State whether the data produced would be discrete or continuous
(i) A chef asks diners to categorize the spiciness level of a new dish as mild, medium, or hot. [2]
(ii) A meteorologist records the temperature (in degrees Fahrenheit) at a weather station at noon each day. [2]
(iii) A librarian counts the number of books checked out by a student during the semester. [2]
(iv) A survey asks individuals to report their primary mode of transportation: car, bus, bicycle, or walking. [2]
(b) For each scenario below, state whether the data collected is primary or secondary. Provide a brief reason for your answer.
(i) An economist is studying long-term trends in flat prices in Hong Kong. She downloads a comprehensive dataset on Hong Kong median flat prices from 1980 to 2020 from the Census & Statistics Department website to analyze in her research. [3]
(ii) A tech company wants to understand how users interact with a new feature in its mobile app. It develops a program that anonymously records the number of times each user clicks the new button over a one-week period. [2]