Statistics in the Real World

Counting is just the beginning of mathematics, and numbers often need to be interpreted for people to use them. It sounds complex, and it can be for those who do not understand the concept. In the real world, many businesses could not function unless they have statistics because it tells them when to produce more or less product for customers. Now that organic food has become more important to people, statistics plays a large role in what growers produce and when.

If a farmer sells organic eggs, knowing when people will buy them and how much they will buy is necessary. The average customer might buy a dozen per week during the summer, but they need twice as much during the colder months of the year. The farmer wants to make a profit, so producing less when demand is low cuts costs. During the cold weather, the farmer needs to have more hens to get more eggs. Using statistical information is how the farmer knows when to have eggs available for local consumption and when to sell eggs to a distributor or sell the chickens.