Math helps archeologists to do their job. When they discover the remains of ancient people, they often find only a few bones. They want to learn as much as possible from what little they find, and math can help!
By knowing the length of a person's tibia (the shin bone), you can make a reasonably accurate prediction of how tall that person was. Use the following formulas:
|
Adult males: |
H = 81.7 + 2.4 T |
|
Adult females: |
H = 72.6 + 2.5 T |
Where:
H = height in centimeters
T = length of tibia in centimeters
These formulas work best for adults, however. In this activity you will use linear regression to attempt to find formulas that work for 8th grade boys and girls.
Measure the height and tibia length (in centimeters!) of your classmates. Record this data in your math notebook, and share your results with others. Keep separate data for boys and girls.
Use the statistical functions of your TI-83 calculator to find the best fit line for 8th grade boys and for 8th grade girls.
Graph the data points and the best fit line.
When you are done, make a neat copy of all the data collected by your class, a graph of that data and the best fit line, and the equation of the best fit line. Your TI-83 will do the hard part, all you need to do is enter the data and copy the graph and equation!