Question: Freshman 15 – According to the ‘freshman 15’ legend, college freshmen gain 15 lbs (or 6.8 kilograms) during their freshman year. Listed below are the amounts of weight change (in kilograms) for a simple random sample of freshman included in a study (‘Changes in Body Weight and Fat Mass of Men and Women in the First Year of College: A study of the “Freshman 15”, by Hoffman, Policastro, Quick, and Lee, Journal of American College Health, Vol 55, No. 1) Positive values correspond to students who gained weight and negative values correspond to students who lost weight.

Do these values appear to support the legend that college students gain 15 lbs (or 6.8 kilograms) during their first freshman year? Why or why not?

11, 3, 0, -2, 3, -2, -2, 5, -2, 7, 2, 4, 1, 8, 1, 0, -5, 2