Answer
See the explanation
Work Step by Step
Consider major events that happened within the last three months of 2001. The September 11 terror attacks are clearly the most major of these events. Consider the effect that the September 11 attacks may have had on people's driving habits and what may have caused an increase in fatal traffic accidents. Use the information presented in the description of problem 0.4 starting on page 9 to interpret the meaning of the vertical blue lines and dots in figure 0.4.
The September 11 terrorist attacks happened in September 2001. These attacks likely caused a general fear of flying nationwide and as a result many people opted to drive long distances rather than to fly. An increase in people driving long distances meant an increase in the number of fatal traffic accidents following the September 11 attacks. This is illustrated in figure 8.4 by the blue dots (representing 2001 data) being at the higher end of the vertical blue line (representing data from 1996 through 2001).
