Normal Distribution Practice Questions
On a specific day, the speed of cars as they pass a speed camera can be modelled by a normal
distribution with a mean of 67.3 𝑘𝑚 ℎ!" .
A speed of 75.7 𝑘𝑚 ℎ!" is two standard deviations from the mean.
(a) Find the standard deviation for the speed of the cars.
[2]
Speeding tickets are issued to all drivers travelling at a speed greater than 72 𝑘𝑚 ℎ!" .
(b) Find the probability that a randomly selected driver who passes the speed camera receives a
speeding ticket.
[2]
It is found that 82% of cars on this road travel at speeds between 𝑝 𝑘𝑚 ℎ!" and 𝑞 𝑘𝑚 ℎ!" , where
𝑝 < 𝑞. This interval includes cars travelling at a speed of 74 𝑘𝑚 ℎ!" .
(c) Show that the region of the normal distribution between 𝑝 and 𝑞 is not symmetrical about the
mean.
[3]
2.
Roy is a member of a motorsport club and regularly drives around the Port Campbell racetrack.
The times he takes to complete a lap are normally distributed with mean 59 seconds
and standard deviation 3 seconds.
(a) Find the probability that Roy completes a lap in less than 55 seconds.
[2]
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Roy will complete a 20 lap race. It is expected that 8.6 of the laps will take more than 𝑡 seconds.
(b) Find the value of 𝑡.
[3]
3.
A factory produces bags of sugar with a labelled weight of 500 g. The weights of the bags are
normally distributed with a mean of 500 g and a standard deviation of 3 g.
(a) Write down the percentage of bags that weigh more than 500 g.
[1]
A bag that weighs less than 495 g is rejected by the factory for being underweight.
(b) Find the probability that a randomly chosen bag is rejected for being underweight.
[2]
(c) A bag that weighs more than 𝑘 grams is rejected by the factory for being overweight. The
factory rejects 2% of bags for being overweight.
Find the value of 𝑘.
[3]
4.
The masses of Fuji apples are normally distributed with a mean of 163 g and a
standard deviation of 6.83 g.
When Fuji apples are picked, they are classified as small, medium, large or extra
large depending on their mass. Large apples have a mass of between 172 g and 183 g.
(a) Determine the probability that a Fuji apple selected at random will be a large apple.
[2]
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Approximately 68% of Fuji apples have a mass within the medium-sized category, which
is between 𝑘 and 172 g.
(b) Find the value of 𝑘.
[3]
5.
The stopping distances for bicycles travelling at 20 km h!" are assumed to follow a
normal distribution with mean 6.76 m and standard deviation 0.12 m.
Under this assumption, find, correct to four decimal places, the probability that a bicycle chosen
!"
at random travelling at 20 km h manages to stop
(a.i) in less than 6.5 m.
[2]
(a.ii) in more than 7 m.
[1]
1000 randomly selected bicycles are tested and their stopping distances when travelling at
20 km h!" are measured.
Find, correct to four significant figures, the expected number of bicycles tested that stop between
(b.i) 6.5 m and 6.75 m.
[2]
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(b.ii) 6.75 m and 7 m.
[1]
The measured stopping distances of the 1000 bicycles are given in the table.
It is decided to perform a 𝜒 # goodness of fit test at the 5% level of significance to decide whether
the stopping distances of bicycles travelling at 20 km h!" can be modelled by a normal
distribution with mean 6.76 m and standard deviation 0.12 m.
(c) State the null and alternative hypotheses.
[2]
(d) Find the 𝑝-value for the test.
[3]
(e) State the conclusion of the test. Give a reason for your answer.
[2]
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6.
It is known that the weights of male Persian cats are normally distributed with mean 6.1 kg and
variance 0.5# kg# .
(a) Sketch a diagram showing the above information.
[2]
(b) Find the proportion of male Persian cats weighing between 5.5 kg and 6.5 kg.
[2]
A group of 80 male Persian cats are drawn from this population.
(c) Determine the expected number of cats in this group that have a weight of less than 5.3 kg.
[3]
(d) It is found that 12 of the cats weigh more than 𝑥 kg. Estimate the value of 𝑥.
[3]
(e) Ten of the cats are chosen at random. Find the probability that exactly one of them weighs
over 6.25 kg.
[4]
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