This Exam P sample reference tests Uniform Distribution. For a continuous uniform variable, the mean is the midpoint and the 75th percentile is one quarter of the support width above that midpoint. The six-unit separation therefore gives width 24 and variance 24²⁄¹²=48, so choice C is correct.
These notes identify the calculation error associated with each wrong letter when that error is reproducible.
AThis reports the recovered support width 24 rather than converting that width to a variance.
BThis squares only the six-unit gap between the mean and the 75th percentile. That gap is one quarter of the width, not a standard deviation.
DThis squares the half-width 12 but omits the factor 1/3 in the equivalent formula Var(X)=w²⁄¹²=(w/2)²⁄³.
EThis divides the squared width 576 by 3 instead of by 12, treating the full width as though it were the half-width.
Original practice · fully worked
Original variant: infer calibration spread from a central coverage rate
A timing calibration error D is uniformly distributed on a symmetric interval centered at zero. Forty percent of calibration errors fall between -2 milliseconds and 2 milliseconds. Calculate Var(D).
A 2.00 ms²
B 5.00 ms²
C 8.33 ms²
D 10.00 ms²
E 25.00 ms²
Variant answer in brief
If the support is [-h,h], the central interval has probability 4/(2h)=0.40, so h=5 and the full width is 10. The variance is 10²⁄¹²=25/3, which rounds to 8.33 and selects choice C.
Setup
Setup
Write the unknown symmetric support using its positive half-width h.
D∼Uniform(−h,h)
Model
Model
Uniform probability is an interval-length ratio. The reported central interval has length four.
Pr(−2≤D≤2)=2h4=0.40
Compute
Compute
Solve for the half-width and use the variance of a uniform variable on a symmetric interval.
h=5
Var(D)=12(2h)2=12100=325=8.333333…
Answer
Answer
The calibration-error variance is approximately 8.33 square milliseconds.
The 3108-page Probability Proof Manual reorganizes 718 verified Exam P solutions by syllabus skill and adds formula proofs, error patterns, and original worked practice.