Key Statistical Concepts. . .
Population
— a population is the group of all items of interest to a
statistics practitioner.
— frequently very large; sometimes infinite.
E.g. All 5 million Florida voters (per Example 12.5).
Sample
— A sample is a set of data drawn from the population.
— Potentially very large, but less than the population.
E.g. a sample of 765 voters exit polled on election day.
Parameter
— A descriptive measure of a population.
Statistic
— A descriptive measure of a sample.
4
Pictorially, we have. . .