Question

Will storing batteries in a freezer make them last longer? To find out, a company that produces batteries takes a random sample of 100 AA batteries from its warehouse. The company statistician randomly assigns 50 batteries to be stored in the freezer and the other 50 to be stored at room temperature for 3 years. At the end of that time period, each battery’s charge is tested. Result: Batteries stored in the freezer had a significantly higher average charge.

What conclusion can be drawn from this study?
A)We can infer that being stored in the freezer caused the increase in average charge. We can also generalize this result to the entire population of batteries produced by the company.
B)We can’t infer that being stored in the freezer caused the increase in average charge. Furthermore, we can’t generalize this result to the entire population of batteries in the warehouse.
C)We can infer that being stored in the freezer caused the increase in average charge. We can also generalize this result to the entire population of batteries in the warehouse.
D)We can infer that being stored in the freezer caused the increase in average charge. However, we can’t generalize this result to the entire population of batteries in the warehouse.
E)We can’t infer that being stored in the freezer caused the increase in average charge. However, we can generalize this result to the entire population of batteries in the warehouse.

Answer 1

The correct conclusion is that being stored in the freezer likely caused the increase in average charge (option D) but this result cannot be generalized to the entire population of batteries without further evidence.

Step-by-step explanation:

From the study conducted by the battery company, the result showed that batteries stored in the freezer had a significantly higher average charge than those stored at room temperature. The appropriate conclusion to draw from this finding would be option D: We can infer that being stored in the freezer caused the increase in average charge. However, we can’t generalize this result to the entire population of batteries in the warehouse. The company took a random sample, and if the methodology was sound, we can infer causality for this sample. To generalize the findings to the entire population, we would require additional evidence to suggest that the sample is representative of the entire population of batteries produced by the company. Furthermore, without replication of the study to rule out other variables, caution should be taken before assuming generalizability.