1.
Problem Solving:
In a study of women science majors, the following data were obtained on two
groups, those who left their profession within a few months after graduation
(leavers) and those who remained in their profession after they graduated
(stayers). Test the claim that those who stayed had a higher science grade point
average than those who left. Use α = 0.05.
To test the claim, we will perform a two-sample z-test for the difference between two
population means.
Assumptions:
The samples are independent and random.
The population standard deviations are known.
The populations are normally distributed or the sample sizes are large enough
(n1 = 103, n2 = 225 are large enough for the Central Limit Theorem to apply).
Hypotheses:
Null hypothesis (H0): μ1 ≥ μ2 (The mean GPA of leavers is greater than or equal
to the mean GPA of stayers).
Alternative hypothesis (H1): μ1 < μ2 (The mean GPA of leavers is less than the
mean GPA of stayers). This is a one-tailed test.
Test statistic:
( x̄ 1− x̄ 2)( μ 1−μ 2)
z=
√ +σ 1 σ 2
+
n1 n 2
where:
xˉ1=3.16
xˉ2=3.28
σ1=0.52
σ2=0.46
n1=103
n2=225
μ1−μ2=0 (under H0)
(3.16−3.28)−0
z= −0.12 −0.12
√ +0.522 0.462
103
+
225
= =
+¿ ¿ √ 0.00262+ 0.00094 √ 0.0576
= -2.08
P-value:
Using a z-table or calculator, the p-value for a one-tailed test with z = -2.08 is
approximately 0.0188.
Conclusion:
Since the p-value (0.0188) is less than the significance level (α = 0.05), we reject the
null hypothesis. There is sufficient evidence to support the claim that those who stayed
had a higher science grade point average than those who left.
2. Problem Summary: The problem presents data on the time spent by two
services helping people prepare their tax returns. The Internal Revenue
Service (IRS) spent an average of 21 minutes (standard deviation 5.6 minutes)
on 10 people, while a volunteer tax preparer spent an average of 27 minutes
(standard deviation 4.3 minutes) on 14 people. We need to determine if there's a
significant difference in the average time spent at a significance level of α = 0.05
and find the 95% confidence interval for the difference in means.
Assumptions:
Independent Samples: We assume the samples (IRS and volunteer) are
independent.
Normality: We assume the time spent by each service is approximately normally
distributed. This assumption is reasonable for larger sample sizes, and while our
sample sizes are relatively small (10 and 14), we'll proceed with the analysis. If
the sample sizes were much smaller, a non-parametric test would be more
appropriate.
Solution:
Hypothesis Testing:
o Null Hypothesis (H0): There is no difference in the average time spent by
the two services (μ1−μ2=0).
o Alternative Hypothesis (H1): There is a difference in the average time
spent by the two services (μ1−μ2=0). This is a two-tailed test.
Calculate the pooled standard deviation:
√ √ √
2 2
2 +(n −1)s
(n1 1)s1 ❑❑ =
2
( 10 1 ) (5.6)2 +(14−1)(4.3)2 282.24 +240.63 = 4.97
sp= sp =
n 1+n 2−2 10+ 14−2 22
Calculate the test statistic: t=
( x̄ 1− x̄ 2)( μ 1−μ 2)
√
+1 2
sp +
n 1 n2
( 21−27 )−0
¿ −6
√ +1 2 = 4.97 x 0.41 =2.93
+
n 1 n2
Determine the critical value:
The degrees of freedom are df=n1+n2−2=22. For a two-tailed test with α = 0.05
and 22 degrees of freedom, the critical t-value is approximately ±2.074 (from a t-
table or calculator).
Make a decision:
Since the calculated t-value (-2.93) is less than the critical t-value (-2.074), we
reject the null hypothesis. There is sufficient evidence to conclude that there is a
statistically significant difference in the average time spent by the two services.
Calculate the 95% confidence interval:
The formula for the confidence interval is:
(x ̄1
√
- x̄ 2 )±t¿ α /2 , df x s p
+1 2
+ −6 ± 2.074 x 4 .97 x 0.41−6 ± 4.20
n1 n2
The 95% confidence interval is approximately (-10.20, -1.80). This means we are 95%
confident that the true difference in means lies between -10.20 and -1.80 minutes. The
negative values indicate that the volunteer tax preparer takes longer on average.
3, Let's analyze the NHL scoring data to determine if there's a significant difference in
means between the Eastern and Western Conferences.
1. Data Summary:
First, we need to calculate the means and standard deviations for each conference's
scoring data.
Eastern Conference:
Data: 83, 60, 75, 58, 78, 59, 70, 58, 62, 61, 59
Mean ( x̄ E) 67.27
Standard Deviation (sE): 8.94
Sample Size (nE) = 11
Western Conference:
Data: 77, 59, 72, 58, 37, 57, 66, 55, 61
Mean (xW): 62.22
Standard Deviation (sW): 12.20
Sample Size (nW) = 9
2. Hypothesis Testing:
Null Hypothesis (Ho): There is no difference in the mean points scored between
the Eastern and Western Conferences (μE- μW)
Alternative Hypothesis (H1): There is a difference in the mean points scored
between the Eastern and Western Conferences (μE+ μW)
This is a two-tailed test.
Significance Level (α): 0.05
3. Two-Sample t-test (Assuming unequal variances):
Because the sample standard deviations (sE) and (sW) are significantly different, we'll use a
two-sample t-test that doesn't assume equal variances (Welch's t-test).
The formula for the t-statistic is:
x̄ E− x̄ w
t=
√ s2 E s 2 w
n
+ n
❑ E ❑w
Plugging in the values:
67.27−62.22 5.05
t= 5.05
√ 8.94 12.20 √7.26+ 16.6 = 4. 86 =1.04
=
2 2
+
11 9 ❑
4. Degrees of freedom:
The degrees of freedom for Welch's t-test is approximated using the formula:
( )
2 2
s E s w 2
n
+ n ❑
❑ E ❑w
5. Critical Value:
Using a t-table or calculator with α = 0.05 (two-tailed) and df = 14, the critical t-value is
approximately ±2.145.
6. Decision:
Our calculated t-value (1.04) is less than the critical t-value (2.145). Therefore, we fail to
reject the null hypothesis.
7. Conclusion:
There is not enough statistical evidence at the α = 0.05 level to conclude that there is a
significant difference in the mean points scored between the Eastern and Western
Conferences.
