THE NORMAL

DISTRIBUTION
The Normal Curve
Normal Distribution
Data can be "distributed" (spread out) in different ways.

It can be spread out Or more on the right

more on the left

Or it can be all jumbled up

But there are many cases where the data tends to be around a
central value with no bias left or right, and it gets close to a
"Normal Distribution" like this:

A Normal Distribution
The "Bell Curve" is a Normal Distribution.
And the yellow histogram shows some data that
follows it closely, but not perfectly (which is usual).
 It is often called a "Bell Curve"
because it looks like a bell.

Many things closely follow a Normal Distribution:

•heights of people
•size of things produced by machines
•errors in measurements
•blood pressure
•marks on a test
We say the data is "normally distributed":

The Normal Distribution has:
•mean = median = mode
•symmetry about the center
•50% of values less than the mean
and 50% greater than the mean
Standard Deviations
The Standard Deviation is a measure of how spread out numbers are .
When we calculate the standard deviation we find that generally:

68% of values are within

1 standard deviation of the mean

95% of values are within

2 standard deviations of the mean

99.7% of values are within

3 standard deviations of the mean
Example: 95% of students at school are between 1.1m and
1.7m tall.
Assuming this data is normally distributed can you calculate the
mean and standard deviation?
The mean is halfway between 1.1m and 1.7m:
Mean = (1.1m + 1.7m) / 2 = 1.4m
95% is 2 standard deviations either side of the mean (a total of 4
standard deviations) so:

1 standard deviation = (1.7m-1.1m) / 4

  = 0.6m / 4

  = 0.15m
It is good to know the standard deviation, because we can say that
any value is:
•likely to be within 1 standard deviation (68 out of 100 should be)
•very likely to be within 2 standard deviations (95 out of 100
should be)
•almost certainly within 3 standard deviations (997 out of 1000
should be)
Standard Scores
The number of standard deviations from the mean is also called
the "Standard Score", "sigma" or "z-score". Get used to those
words!

Example: In that same school one of your friends is 1.85m tall

You can see on the bell curve that 1.85m is 3 standard deviations from the
mean of 1.4, so:
Your friend's height has a "z-score" of 3.0
It is also possible to calculate how many standard deviations 1.85 is from the
mean
How far is 1.85 from the mean?
It is 1.85 - 1.4 = 0.45m from the mean
How many standard deviations is that? The standard deviation is 0.15m, so:
0.45m / 0.15m = 3 standard deviations
So to convert a value to a Standard Score ("z-score"):
•first subtract the mean,
•then divide by the Standard Deviation
And doing that is called "Standardizing":
We can take any Normal Distribution and convert it to The
Standard Normal Distribution.
Example: Travel Time
A survey of daily travel time had these results (in minutes):
26, 33, 65, 28, 34, 55, 25, 44, 50, 36, 26, 37, 43, 62, 35, 38, 45,
32, 28, 34
The Mean is 38.8 minutes, and the Standard Deviation is 11.4
minutes
Convert the values to z-scores ("standard scores").
 
To convert 26:
first subtract the mean: 26 − 38.8 = −12.8,
then divide by the Standard Deviation: −12.8/11.4 = −1.12
So 26 is −1.12 Standard Deviations from the Mean
Here are the first three conversions

Standard Score
Original Value Calculation
(z-score)
26 (26-38.8) / 11.4 = −1.12
33 (33-38.8) / 11.4 = −0.51
65 (65-38.8) / 11.4 = +2.30
And here they are graphically:
The z-score formula that we have been using is:

x
z

•z is the "z-score" (Standard Score)
•x is the value to be standardized
•μ ('mu") is the mean
•σ ("sigma") is the standard deviation
And this is how to use it:
Example: Travel Time (continued)
Here are the first three conversions using the "z-score formula":
x
•μ = 38.8 z
•σ = 11.4 
x z
x z
 (z-score)
26 26 − 38.8/11.4 −1.12
33 33 − 38.8/11.4 −0.51
65 65 − 38.8/11.4 +2.30
... ... ...
 Areas Under a Normal Curve

The normal distribution is a continuous

probability distribution. ... The total area under the normal
curve is equal to 1. The probability that a normal random
variable X equals any particular value is 0.

1.To calculate the area under a normal curve, we use a z -

score table.
2.In a z -score table, the left most column tells you how many
standard deviations above the mean to 1 decimal place, the top
row gives the second decimal place, and the intersection of a
row and column gives the probability.
Examples:

1. Find the area between zand

0 z  1.54

Locate the area for z  .0 0.5000

Locate the area for z  1. .54 0.9382

Then subtract 0.9382

- 0.5000
= 0.4382
.
Examples:

2. Find the area between z  1and

.52 z  2.5

Locate the area for z  1. .52 0.9357

Locate the area for z . 2.5 0.9938

Then subtract 0.9938

- 0.9357
= 0.0581
.
Examples:

3. Find the area to the right of z  1.56

Let A = the area to the right of z  1.56 0.9406

Let A1 = the area between zand

0 z  1.56 0.4406

Then subtract 0.5000

- 0.4406
= 0.0594
.
Examples:

4. Find the area between z  and

1.5 z  2.5

Locate the area of z  1.5 0.0668

Locate the area of z  2.5 0.0062

Then subtract 0.0668

- 0.0062
= 0.0606
.
Locating Percentiles Under the
Normal Curve
Examples:
1. P99 99%  0.9900
Find the area 0.9900 in the z-table.

0.9900 is not in the z-table. So get the nearest value which is

0.9901.

0.9901  z  2.33

The P99 is the point where z  2.33

Examples:
2. P90 90%  0.9000
Find the area 0.9000 in the z-table.

0.9000 is not in the z-table. So get the nearest value which is

0.8997.

0.8997  z  1.28

The P90 is the point where z  1..28

Examples:
3. P68 68%  0.6800
Find the area 0.6800 in the z-table.

0.6800 is not in the z-table. The nearest value is 0.6808.

0.6808  z  0.47

The P68 is the point where z  0.47

.
Examples:
4. P40 40%  0.4000
Find the area 0.4000 in the z-table.

0.4000 is not in the z-table. So get the nearest value which is

0.4013.

0.4013  z  0.25

The P40 is the point where z  0..25

Examples:
5. P32 32%  0.3200
Find the area 0.3200 in the z-table.

0.3200 is not in the z-table. So get the nearest value which is

0.3192.

0.3192  z  0.47

The P32 is the point where z  0..47

Applying the Normal Curve
Concepts in Problem
Solving
The Z-Score
The areas under the normal curve are given in terms of z-values or
scores. Either the z-scores locates X within a sample or within a
population.
X 
Z-score for population data: z

X X
Z-score for sample data: z
s
Where:
           X = given measurement
           μ = population mean
           σ = population standard deviation
           X  = sample mean
           s  = sample standard deviation
What is the importance of the z-scores?
Raw scores may be composed of large values, but large values
cannot be accommodated at the base line of the normal curve, So
they have to be transformed into scores for convenience without
sacrificing meanings associated with the scores.
For any population, the mean and the standard deviation are fixed.
Thus, the z formula matches the z-values one-to-one with the X
values (raw scores). That is, for every X value there corresponds a
z-value and for each z-value there is exactly one X value.
The z values are matched with specific areas under the normal
curve in a normal distribution table. Therefore, if we wish to find
the percentage associated with X, we must find its matched z-
value using the z-formula. The z-value leads to the area under the
curve found in the normal curve table, which is a probability, and
that probability gives the desired percentage for X.
Examples:
1.Reading Scores

Given the mean, μ=50 and the standard deviation, σ=4 of a

population of Reading scores. Find the z-value that corresponds to a
score X=58    

Solution:
X 
z

58  50
z
4
z2
From the diagram, we see that the score X=58 corresponds
to z=2. it is above the mean. so we can say that, with respect to
the mean, the score 58 is above average.
2. Score in PE
  Locate the z-value that corresponds to a PE score of 39 given
that μ=45 and σ=6

Solution: X 
z

39  45
z
6

z  1

With respect to the mean, the score 39 is below the population

mean. We can also say that score 39 is below average.
3. Scores in Science Test
   Given X=20,  X =26, and s=4. Compute the corresponding z-
score.

Solution: X X
z
s
20  26
z
4
z  1.5

The corresponding z-score is -1.5 to the left of the mean.

4. Luz scored 90 in English test and 70 in a Physics test. Scores in
the English test have a mean of 80 and a standard deviation of 10.
Scores in Physics test have a mean of 60 and a standard deviation
of 8. In which subject was her standing better assuming that the
scores in English and Physics are normally distributed?
Solution:
English: Physics: 
X X X X
z z
s s
90  80 70  60
z z
10 8
z 1 z  1.25
Her standing in Physics was better than her English
5. In a Science test, the mean score is 42 and the standard
deviation is 5. Assuming the scores are normally distributed,
what percent of the score is
a. greater than 48
b. less than 50
c. between 30 and 48
Solution:
a. Convert the score 48 to a z-score

X X
z
s
48  42
z
5
z  1. 2
 From the table:
Let A= area to the right of z=1.2                       A1=0.3849
      A1= area between z=0 and z=1.2                        A=A2-A1
      A2= area of the half of the curve                         A=0.5-0.3849
                       A=0.1151

Hence, 11.51% of the scores is greater than 48.

b. Convert the score 50 to a z-score
                          
X X
z
s
50  42
z
5
z  1. 6
Let A= area below z=1.6 From the table:
      A1= area of the half of the curve            A2=0.4452
      A2= area between z=0 and z=1.6              A=A1+A2
             A=0.5+0.4452
             A=0.9452  or 94.52%

Hence, 94.52% of the scores is less than 50.

 30  42 48  42
z z
5 5
z  2. 4 z  1. 2
 Let A= area between z=-2.4 and z=1.2
      A1= area between z=0 and z=-2.4
      A2= area between z=0 and z=1.2

From the table:

                          A1=0.4918
                          A2=0.3849
                          A=A1+A2
                          A=0.4918+0.3849
                          

Hence, 87.67% of the scores are between 30 and 48.

Problem 1: The scores of STEM 1 students in the Final
examination for General Mathematics has a mean of 32
and a standard deviation of 5. Find the z-scores
corresponding to each of the following:
a. 37
b. 22
c. 33
 X  X  X 
z z z
  
37  32 22  32 33  32
z z z
5 5 5
z 1 z  2 z  0.2
Problem 2: Find the raw score of a standard score of z = -
1.2 in a normally distributed population with mean 30 and
standard deviation 4.

Manipulate the formula of z.

X 
z

X  30
 1.2 
4
 4.8  X  30
 4.8  30  X
X  25.2
X  25
Problem 3: The average score in a Statistics and
Probability Test is 80 with standard deviation 10. What is
the standard score of the following students? Carlos – 97
Shirley – 86
Carlos: Shirley:
X  X 
z z
 
97  80 86  80
z z
10 10
z  1. 7 z  0.6
How many percent of students got below 81?
X 
z

81 80
z
10
z  0.1

Using the z-table, look for the area below 0.1= 0.5398 or
53.98%

There are 53.98% of students got below 81.

Problem 4: The scores of Grade 11-ABM students in standardized
test are normally distributed with the mean of 60 and standard
deviation of 8. Answer the following:
1. How many percent of the students got below 72?
2. What part of the group scored between 58 and 76?
3. If there were 250 students who took the test, about how
many students scored higher than 64?
 X  Using the z-table, look for the area below
1. z
 1.5
1.5 = 0.9332 or 93.32%
72  60
z
8 There are 93.32% of students got below
72.
z  1. 5

2. 58  60 Using the z-table, look for the area between

z
8 -0.25 and 2.
-0.25 = 0.4013 or 40.13%
z  0.25
2 = 0.9772 or 97.72%
76  60 Subtract: 97.72%- 40.13% = 57.59%
z
8 There are 57.59% of students scored
z2 between 58 and 76.
 X  Using the z-table, look for the area above 0.5
3. z 0.5 = 0.6915

Subtract: 1- 0.6915 = 0.3085 or 30.85%
64  60 30.85% of 250 = 77
z
8
z  0.5
There were 77 students out of 250 got a
score higher than 64.
4. Find the raw score of a standard score of z = 2.52 in a normally
distributed population with mean 42 and standard deviation 3.

Manipulate the formula of z.

X 
z

X  42
2.52 
3
7.56  X  42
7.56  42  X
X  49.56
X  49