Problem

Hazardous waste: Following is a list of the number of hazardous waste sites in a sample of states of the United States in a recent year. The list has been sorted into numerical order.
\begin{tabular}{llllllllll}
\hline 2 & 5 & 9 & 11 & 12 & 13 & 13 & 13 & 13 & 14 \\
15 & 16 & 19 & 20 & 21 & 25 & 26 & 29 & 30 & 32 \\
32 & 32 & 38 & 40 & 48 & 49 & 52 & 67 & 86 & 116 \\
\hline
\end{tabular}

Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
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Part 1 of 2
(a) What is the $17^{\text {th }}$ percentile?

The $17^{\text {an }}$ percentile is $\square$.

Part 2 of 2
(b) What is the $62^{\text {nd }}$ percentile?

The $62^{\text {nd }}$ percentile is $\square$.

Answer

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Answer

The \( 62^{\text{nd}} \) percentile is \( \boxed{31} \)

Steps

Step 1 :Count the number of data points in the list, which is \( N = 30 \)

Step 2 :Use the formula \( \text{Position} = \frac{P}{100} \times (N + 1) \) to find the position for the 17th percentile, where \( P = 17 \)

Step 3 :Calculate the position for the 17th percentile, which is \( \text{Position} = \frac{17}{100} \times (30 + 1) = 5.27 \)

Step 4 :Since the position is not an integer, interpolate between the 5th and 6th data points to find the 17th percentile value

Step 5 :Calculate the 17th percentile value by taking the average of the 5th and 6th data points, which is \( \frac{11 + 12}{2} = 11.5 \)

Step 6 :The \( 17^{\text{th}} \) percentile is \( \boxed{11.5} \)

Step 7 :Use the same formula to calculate the position for the 62nd percentile, where \( P = 62 \)

Step 8 :Calculate the position for the 62nd percentile, which is \( \text{Position} = \frac{62}{100} \times (30 + 1) = 19.22 \)

Step 9 :Since the position is not an integer, interpolate between the 19th and 20th data points to find the 62nd percentile value

Step 10 :Calculate the 62nd percentile value by taking the average of the 19th and 20th data points, which is \( \frac{30 + 32}{2} = 31 \)

Step 11 :The \( 62^{\text{nd}} \) percentile is \( \boxed{31} \)

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