To solve this problem,lets say that
X = the weight of the machine components.
X is normally distributed with mean=8.5 and sd=0.09
We need to find x1 and x2 such that
P(X<x1)=0.03 and P(X>x2)=0.03
Standardizing:
P( Z< (x1 - 8.5)/0.09 ) =0.03
P(Z > (x2 - 8.5)/0.09 ) =0.03.
From the Z standard table, we can see that approximately P
= 0.03 is achieved when Z equals to:
z = -1.88 and z= 1.88
Therefore,
P(Z<-1.88)=0.03 and P(Z>1.88)=0.03
So,
(x1 - 8.5)/0.09 = -1.88 and
(x2 - 8.5)/0.09 =1.88
Solving for x1 and x2:
x1=-1.88(0.09) + 8.5 and
x2=1.88(0.09) + 8.5
Which yields:
x1 = 8.33 g
x2 = 8.67 g
Answer: The bottom 3 is separated by the weight 8.33 g and the top 3 by the weight 8.67 g.