Homework 7

Problem 1

A student decides to investigate how effective washing with soap is in eliminating bacteria. To do this she tested four different methods—washing with water only, washing with regular soap, washing with antibacterial soap, and spraying hands with antibacterial spray (containing 65% ethanol as an active ingredient). She suspected that the number of bacteria on her hands before washing might vary considerably from day to day. To help even out the effects of those changes, she generated random numbers to determine the order of the four treatments. Each morning she washed her hands according to the treatment randomly chosen. Then she placed her right hand on a sterile media plate designed to encourage bacteria growth. She incubated each plate for 2 days at 36°C, after which she counted the bacteria colonies. She replicated this procedure 8 times for each of the four treatments. The data for the bacteria study is given on Canvas. A higher bacteria count means dirtier hands after washing! You may use software when needed. (Hint: Perform an ANOVA analysis)

Question 1:

What would the appropriate alternate hypothesis be for testing if the washing methods affect the bacteria count?

• a. $H_a$: At least one mean differs
• b. $H_a$: ${\mu }_{\text{Spray}}>{\mu }_{\text{ABSoap}}>{\mu }_{\text{Soap}}>{\mu }_{\text{Water}}$
• c. $H_a$: ${\mu }_{\text{Spray}}={\mu }_{\text{ABSoap}}={\mu }_{\text{Soap}}={\mu }_{\text{Water}}$
• d. $H_a$: All means are equal

Question 2:

What is the computed F test statistic?

Question 3:

What is the p-value for this test?

Question 4:

Choose the correct conclusion for this hypothesis test.

• a. Reject $H_0$. The washing method has a significant effect on bacteria count.
• b. Reject $H_0$. There is insufficient evidence that the washing method has a significant effect on bacteria count.
• c. Fail to reject $H_0$. The washing method has a significant effect on bacteria count.
• d. Fail to reject $H_0$. There is insufficient evidence that the washing method has a significant effect on bacteria count.