An Excel spreadsheet exercise appropriate for undergraduate analytical chemistry students is described. The goal is for students to use Excel to calculate linear regressions for both a basic calibration curve and a standard addition, as well as to determine confidence intervals associated with these measurements. Templates are provided to the students that allow them to explore how the slope, intercept and noise influence the uncertainty of a measurement. Students learn not only how a linear regression is calculated, but also how to construct a calibration curve that minimizes uncertainty. It is assumed that the reader has some familiarity with this spreadsheet software, and that their students have been introduced to basic statistical terms.
Smith et al. (Wed,) studied this question.