The applet below allows for the investigation of sampling distributions by repeatedly taking samples from a population. The top plot displays the distribution of a population. Several options are available for the population distribution (Uniform, Bell shaped, Skewed, Binary and Custom). Each distribution can be changed interactively by clicking and dragging the mouse on the plot. The Custom option provides a blank plot on which a distribution can be constructed. When the Sample button is clicked, N random samples of size n will be repeatedly selected from the population. The sample statistics specified in the bottom two plots will be updated for each sample. If the Animate option is checked, the display will show the points selected from the population dropping into the second plot and the corresponding summary statistic values dropping into the third and fourth plots. To stop an animation uncheck the Animate option. Summary statistics for each plot are shown in the panel to the left of the plot. Things to try with the applet: