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The National Anthem

Posted: Tue Dec 08, 2009 10:01 am
by Pigeon Army†
((Maf Tuigamala continued from Anniversary Party))

"Thanks, Mrs. Guzhnee."

Maf dipped his head in gratitude to the beefy Cafetorium manager as she handed him the day's meal - sausages and scrambled eggs - and a carton of milk. He turned around, the food on the garish red tray in his hands, and made his way towards an empty table. Maf had gotten out of 11th Grade Physics five minutes early because Miss Kawasaki was feeling generous today, and the Cafetorium was barely populated. Maf found this to be a kind of relief, as he had aimed to do his Mathematics homework today during lunch, and the more time he got to do it, and the quieter the Cafetorium was while he did it, the better.

Maf slid the tray onto the table and slung his bag onto the surface next to it. He sat down and dove into his bag, pulling out the hefty Mathematics textbook and his pencil case and calculator. He had no Maths class today, but yesterday's topic - confidence intervals for population parameters - had knocked him for six, and he was nowhere near close to being found by the guy who bowled him. He studied the first question intently.
A customer claims that the mean volume of juice in bottles of blackcurrant juice is different from the 750 mL that is stated on them.

A random sample of 50 bottles of blackcurrant juice was taken and the volume of juice in each bottle was measured. The sample mean was 747.2 mL and the sample standard deviation was 9.4 mL.

Is the customer's claim justified? Use a 95% confidence interval to support your answer.
Two minutes later, Maf shut the book.

Maf stared at the book for a second more, and then pulled out his iPod. Pushing his earphones into his ears, he switched the iPod on and turned to his latest acquisition - a new mixtape from Lupe Fiasco. He had always been a fan of the man's smooth, socially-conscious lyrics and great beats, and whenever he needed to focus or get himself pumped, he would switch on his MP3 player and listen to some Lupe. The mixtape started up, and as the voice, the drums and the bass guitar all started bursting through the buds in his ears, he re-opened the book and looked at the question again. Hesitantly, he began writing.

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Fifteen minutes later, Maf closed the book, not at all confident of whether he'd answered the question correctly. He shrugged to himself, packed up his things, and piled them into his bag. Slinging it over his shoulder, he grabbed the now-empty red tray and took it up to the bench for empty trays and dishes. With that, he left the Cafetorium, Lupe Fiasco rhyming in his headphones.

We just gonna keep it goin' and goin', until I feel completed and happy about it...

You know?


((Ma'afu Tuigamala continued in Decisions, Decisions))