The standard deviation alone does not measure relativevariation. For example, a standard deviation of $1 would beconsidered large if it is describing the variability from store tostore in the price of an ice cube tray. On the other hand, astandard deviation of $1 would be considered small if it isdescribing store-to-store variability in the price of a particularbrand of freezer. A quantity designed to give a relative measure ofvariability is the coefficient of variation. Denoted by CV, thecoefficient of variation expresses the standard deviation as apercentage of the mean. It is defined by the formula CV =100(s/ x ). Consider two samples. Sample 1 givesthe actual weight (in ounces) of the contents of cans of pet foodlabeled as having a net weight of 8 oz. Sample 2 gives the actualweight (in pounds) of the contents of bags of dry pet food labeledas having a net weight of 50 lb. There are weights for the twosamples.
| Sample 1 | 8.2 | 7.3 | 7.4 | 8.6 | 7.4 |
| 8.2 | 8.6 | 7.5 | 7.5 | 7.1 |
| Sample 2 | 51.8 | 51.2 | 51.9 | 51.6 | 52.7 |
| 47 | 50.4 | 50.3 | 48.7 | 48.2 |
(a) For each of the given samples, calculate the mean and thestandard deviation. (Round all intermediate calculations andanswers to five decimal places.)
| For sample 1 |
| Mean | |
| Standard deviation | |
| For sample 2 |
| Mean | |
| Standard deviation | |
(b) Compute the coefficient of variation for each sample. (Roundall answers to two decimal places.)
