Example Problems
6.19 For a car traveling 30 mph, the distance required to brake to stop is normally distributed with a mean
of 50 feet and a standard deviation of 8 feet. Suppose you are traveling 30 mph and a car moves
abruptly into your path at a distance of 60 feet.
If you apply your brakes, what is the probability that you will break to a stop within 40 ft or less?
Let X = stopping distance in feet
Given
1) the mean of X (i.e. the mean stopping distance):
2) the standard deviation of X:
= 50 feet
= 50 feet
a) Find:
P(X<40)
[i.e. the probability that you will break to a stop within 40 ft or less]
To find the required probability using the normal tables in the text, you must first convert X = 40 to a
value of z.
z
X
=
40 50
= -1.25
8
A stopping distance of 40 feet is 1.25 standard deviations to the left of the mean of 50 feet.
Using the table, find 1.25 to get a value of 0.3944. This value is P(-1.25 < z < 0).
Since you want P(z < 40) = P(z< -1.25), subtract the value you found in the table from 0.5000.
[0.5000 is the probability that a value is less than the mean when you have a normal curve.]
P(z < 40) = P(z< -1.25) = 0.5 - .3944 = 0.1056
Thus, you will be able to stop in less than 40 feet about 10.56% of the time.
b) To avoid a collision, find P(X < 60).
z
X
=
60 50
= +1.25
8
A stopping distance of 40 feet is 1.25 standard deviations to the right of the mean of 50 feet.
P(z < 60) = P(z < 1.25) = 0.5 + .3944 = 0.8944
[Note since you want the probability of everything to the left of 60, you add the area between 0 and
1.25 to the area to the left of the mean.]
3360p619
1