In the article “Graphs in Statistical Analysis” (American Statistician, Vol. 27, Issue 1, pp 17–21), F. Anscombe presented four sets of data points with almost identical basic statistical properties (means, standard deviations, regression lines, etc.) but quite different scatterplots. We have provided Anscombe’s four sets of data points on the WeissStats site. Use the technology of your choice to solve the following problems.

a. Obtain the mean and standard deviation of each set of x-values. Compare your results.

b. Obtain the mean and standard deviation of each set of y-values. Compare your results.

c. Find the regression equation for each set of data points. Compare your results.

d. Draw a scatterplot with superimposed regression line for each set of data points.

e. Discuss your results in part (d) with respect to the importance of plotting data before analyzing it and to the effect of outliers.