Tree-ring dates were used extensively in archaeological studies at Burnt Mesa Pueblo. At one site on the mesa, tree-ring dates (for many samples) gave a mean date of ₁ = year 1258 with standard deviation ₁ = 35 years. At a second, removed site, the tree-ring dates gave a mean of ₂ = year 1122 with standard deviation ₂ = 35 years. Assume that both sites had dates that were approximately normally distributed. In the first area, an object was found and dated as x₁ = year 1221. In the second area, another object was found and dated as x₂ = year 1243.

(a) Convert both x₁ and x₂ to z values, and locate both of these values under the standard normal curve of the figure above. (Round your answers to two decimal places.)

z1 =
z2 =

(b) Which of these two items is the more unusual as an archaeological find in its location?

x₁; the further a z value is from zero, the more unusual it is.x₂; the further a z value is from zero, the more unusual it is. x₁; the closer a z value is to zero, the more unusual it is.x₂; the closer a z value is to zero, the more unusual it is.