IN STATISTICS, What's the difference between POPULATION and SAMPLE?

For example, in my textbook there are formulas like POPULATION Coeficient of Variation and SAMPLE coeficient variation. Also Standarized POPULATION data and Standarized SAMPLE data. I don't know when should i use the formulas for population or for Sample!


Help Please!

IN STATISTICS, What's the difference between POPULATION and SAMPLE?
These are exactly what they say they are:





Population is the entire objects or specimens you are concerned with.





Sample or random sample is just that a random sample of the population.





an example of a populations could be all males between the ages of 24-30. an example of a sample would be a handful of those males. Note that a sample is always taken from a certain population and is always smaller in number.
Reply:I need more time to think about this question.
Reply:have a look here:





http://www.stats.gla.ac.uk/steps/glossar...





in short - as already said, population is the whole, sample is a part of the population (if well chosen it has the same characteristics as the population) - that's how e.g. market research works - you can't ask millions of consumers if you want to know how a new product would be liked so you chose a sample that has the same characteristics as the target group for which you make a product and ask only a few hundred people.
Reply:In most studies, it is difficult to obtain information from the entire population. We rely on samples to make estimates or inferences related to the population.





Like if you are cooking a pot of soup(population), and you take a spoon full(sample) to see how it tastes. So although you didn't eat the entire pot of soup, you have a general idea of how it tastes.
Reply:population means the population of the whole area





sample means a sample of people taken out of the population to be tested or studied.