Answer:
12.67 inches
Step-by-step explanation:
Problems of normally distributed samples are solved using the z-score formula.
In a set with mean [tex]\mu[/tex] and standard deviation [tex]\sigma[/tex], the zscore of a measure X is given by:
[tex]Z = \frac{X - \mu}{\sigma}[/tex]
The Z-score measures how many standard deviations the measure is from the mean. After finding the Z-score, we look at the z-score table and find the p-value associated with this z-score. This p-value is the probability that the value of the measure is smaller than X, that is, the percentile of X. Subtracting 1 by the pvalue, we get the probability that the value of the measure is greater than X.
In this problem, we have that:
[tex]\mu = 9.6, \sigma = 2.4[/tex]
If a selected pine tree from this forest is at the 90th percentile, what is its diameter (rounded off to two decimal places) in inches?
90th percentile is the value of X when Z has a pvalue of 0.9. So X when Z = 1.28.
[tex]Z = \frac{X - \mu}{\sigma}[/tex]
[tex]1.28 = \frac{X - 9.6}{2.4}[/tex]
[tex]X - 9.6 = 1.28*2.4[/tex]
[tex]X = 12.67[/tex]