Answers

1. The following are descriptions of the type of sampling method used in the different types of samples.

a) A bingo game uses the simple random sampling method. All the numbers (total population) are put into a barrel and the required number (sample) are drawn at random. Each item has an equal chance of selection.
b) A Canadian election is an example of non-random sampling (volunteer sampling) because each member of the population (18 years or older) can participate if they so desire.
c) A census does not employ simple random sampling because every member of the target population must be included.

2. Given the sample size of 300 survey participants from a population of 2,700 employees,

a) the sampling interval would be nine (2,700 ÷ 300 = 9),
b) the first 5 numbers of the sample would be 8, 17, 26, 35 and 44.

3. The following is a complete table showing the total population figures for each of Canada's provincial or territorial capitals, according to the 2001 Census of Population.

a)

**Table 1. Total population figures by capital cities in Canada, 2001**
Capital	Territory/Province	Total population 2001 Census
Whitehorse	Yukon	19,058
Yellowknife	Northwest Territories	16,541
Iqaluit	Nunavut	5,236
Victoria	British Columbia	74,125
Edmonton	Alberta	666,104
Regina	Saskatchewan	178,225
Winnipeg	Manitoba	619,544
Toronto	Ontario	2,481,494
Québec	Quebec	169,076
Fredericton	New Brunswick	47,560
Halifax	Nova Scotia	359,111
Charlottetown	Prince Edward Island	32,245
St. John's	Newfoundland and Labrador	99,182

Note: The italicized entries are the missing components from Table 1 in Exercise 3. a).

b) The overall population size would be 4,767,501.
c) The information from Table 1 states that:

i) Hockey was most popular in Toronto and most unpopular in Fredericton.
ii) Lacrosse was most popular in Victoria and most unpopular in Yellowknife.
iii) Curling was most popular in Québec and most unpopular in Regina.
iv) Ringette was most popular in Fredericton and most unpopular in Toronto.

d) The data could be organized by sex and age. Respondents could also be asked to indicate whether or not they have played the sport in the past or in the present, or whether they are simply a fan. Similar questions could also be asked.

4. Given the information provided by Table 3 in Exercise 4:

a) The total student population of the Poplar Ridge Academy is 950.
b) A sample of 50% of the school's student population would equal 475 students.
c) In order to keep the sample proportionate to the number of girls and boys attending the school, roughly 236 boys and 240 girls should be included in the sample.
d) The sampling method used here is stratified sampling.
e) The following table features the breakdown of the 180 member sample so that it is proportionate to gender by grade level.