Question

Claim: When applied according to package instructions, "Flea Spot" kills and repels ticks and fleas from cats for thirty days. Ms. Wilson designs an experiment to test this claim. She takes 100 white or light-colored cats of similar age, health, and condition and divides them into two equal groups of 50 cats each. A number is put on a collar for each cat and a record is kept of which cat is in which group. The cats in one group are treated with Flea Spot according to package directions. The cats are then kept in a large room together (both groups mixed) and are fed together, the same food, and are treated exactly the same as one another, the only difference being the treatment or lack of treatment with the Flea Spot. After thirty days, the cats are inspected for fleas, specks of flea dirt, and evidence of scratching, to measure whether they have any fleas. Data is recorded by the number on the collar of the cat. After the experiment, researchers note which numbers refer to cats that had the Flea Spot and which did not. They found that there was a marked difference in evidence of fleas between those that had the Spot and those that did not, and that the cats with the Flea Spot showed almost no evidence of fleas at the end of thirty days while those with no treatment did have fleas. State a possible hypothesis for this experiment. What is the control group and what is the experimental group? Identify the independent variable and the dependent variable in this experiment. State a conclusion that could be made from this experiment.

Answer 1

The possible hypothesis for this experiment is that cats treated with Flea Spot according to package instructions will show significantly fewer fleas, flea dirt, and evidence of scratching compared to the untreated group after thirty days. The control group is the set of cats that do not receive the Flea Spot treatment, while the experimental group consists of cats treated with Flea Spot. The independent variable is the application of Flea Spot (treatment or no treatment), and the dependent variable is the presence or absence of fleas, flea dirt, and evidence of scratching in the cats.

Step-by-step explanation:

In this experiment, the hypothesis suggests that the Flea Spot treatment will have a significant impact on reducing fleas and related symptoms in cats. The control group, which does not receive the treatment, serves as a baseline for comparison. The experimental group, treated with Flea Spot, allows researchers to assess the effectiveness of the treatment.

The independent variable is the factor manipulated by the researchers, which in this case is the application of Flea Spot. The dependent variable is the outcome that is measured and expected to change based on the manipulation, which includes the presence or absence of fleas, flea dirt, and evidence of scratching.

By comparing the two groups after thirty days, researchers can draw conclusions about the efficacy of Flea Spot in repelling and killing fleas on cats. The marked difference in evidence of fleas between the treated and untreated groups would support the hypothesis, suggesting that Flea Spot is effective in controlling fleas on cats for the specified duration.

Conclusion:

The conclusion drawn from this experiment would be that, according to the collected data, the application of Flea Spot, as per package instructions, is associated with a significant reduction in fleas, flea dirt, and scratching behavior in cats over the course of thirty days. This supports the claim that Flea Spot is effective in killing and repelling fleas on cats when used as directed.