Dziorny, Gail

LS 521 Sp 02

March 9, 2002

 

Bar Graph Drop In

 

            The making of graphs is an important topic in math. Graphs are used in almost every content area to display data in a visual way. The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics recognizes data analysis and probability as one of its important content standards.

           

            There is an excellent web site that talks about what a bar graph is and goes into extensive detail about the parts of a graph. Read the information on this site.

            http://cstl.syr.edu/fipse/TabBar/RevBar/REVBAR.HTM

 

Now it is your turn to make your own bar graph and answer questions about the information presented on the graph.

 

In order to make the information current and interesting I have chosen this site for you to use:

            http://www.usatoday.com/life/enter/tv/nielsen.htm

I would like you to make a bar graph o the top ten shows for the week.

The x-axis (horizontal) will have the ten shows listed.

The y-axis (vertical) will have the scale listed. When graphing the numbers, use the number of millions of homes the show is seen in, that is, the second number with the million homes after it.

 

Make sure your graph has a title. Clearly label the axes and choose an appropriate scale-one that will give the numbers some distinctions. Whole numbers will not be as good as decimals. Your graph may have horizontal or vertical bars.

 

Now that you have graphed the information, answer the following questions:

  1. What is the difference in the number of households who watched the number one show and the number ten show?

 

  1. How many more households would have to watch show number two to equal the households for show number one?

 

  1. What is the difference between the number of households watching the number five show and the number ten show?

 

  1. Do most households enjoy comedy, variety, drama, news or reality based shows?

 

  1. If you were an advertiser, based on the ten most popular shows, about what age group would you target for your ads? Do you think advertising executives look at these ratings when deciding what shows to air?

 

  1. Do you think the night of the week has anything to do with which shows are popular? Can you tell from the graph which night is most popular?

 

  1. Going back to the USA Today link, which network has the most top ten shows?

 

  1. If seven million more households had tuned into the number ten show, would it have then been the number one show?

 

  1. How many more households would have had to tune into the number six show to make it number one?

 

  1.  Do you and your family’s viewing habits correspond to the top ten shows on the rating or are they different? Explain.