Interpreting Scatterplots and Correlation

What does a positive correlation mean in a scatterplot?

• One goes up, the other goes down

• The dots are random

• Both variables increase together

• One causes the other to increase

What does each point on a scatterplot represent?

• A frequency

• A category

• A relationship

• A single observation

Which graph shows no correlation?

• Points trend upward

• Points trend downward

• Points are scattered randomly

• Points form a line

What is an outlier in a scatterplot?

• A bar on the x-axis

• The average value

• A point that follows the trend

• A point far from the rest

Which statement about correlation and causation is true?

• They are the same

• Correlation proves causation

• Causation proves correlation

• Correlation does not mean causation

What is the best conclusion if shoe size and GPA show no trend?

• Bigger shoes = better GPA

• GPA drops with bigger feet

• No relationship between them

• One causes the other

What does a strong cluster in a scatterplot suggest?

• Random variation

• A possible subgroup

• An outlier

• Missing values

A point at (75, 4) is far from other data. What should you do?

• Always remove it

• Treat it as typical

• Ignore it

• Investigate it as an outlier

If students who study more tend to score higher, what's the correlation?

• Positive

• Negative

• None

• Random

A city has more fire stations and more fires. Which is a reasonable conclusion?

• Fire stations cause fires

• Bigger cities have more of both

• Fires cause fire stations

• Fires are unrelated to city size