How do they count the number of deer in a wooded area? Can they round up all the deer in the woods and count them? If so, how would you know you had all the deer? Scientists do a catch, mark, and release process.
We simulated this process by counting white beans. Each student was given a cup about 2/3 full. Each student had between 400 and 500 beans. Pull 15 beans and mark them with a marker. Return the marked beans to the cup and mix well. Pull a sample of 10 to 25 beans and record the total number of beans in your sample and the number marked. Return the sample to the cup and mix well. Repeat this process ten times. This is called sampling with replacement.
Add the number of beans in the samples and the number marked. Set up a ratio to estimate the number of beans in the total population and then record the percent error.
Repeat the process but do not return the samples to the total population. Perform the same calculations.
Which method was more accurate? What could be done to make the process more accurate?
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