The Whitney Gourmet Cat Food Company was interested in exploring ways of expandi
ID: 3367367 • Letter: T
Question
The Whitney Gourmet Cat Food Company was interested in exploring ways of expanding its market share by offering new cat food products in addition to the existing kidney and shrimp foods. Experimental formulations were developed for two new products, one based on chicken livers and the other based on salmon. The team agreed that an experiment should be conducted to compare the two new foods against the two existing products and, in addition, against a supermarket brand of a beef-based product. A local animal shelter agreed to participate in the study. A random sample of 50 cats from the population at the shelter was selected. Ten cats were randomly assigned to each of the five products being tested. Each of the cats was then presented with 3 ounces of the selected food in a dish at feeding time. The response variable of interest was operationally defined as the amount of food (in ounces) that the cat consumed within a 10-minute time interval that began when the filled dish was presented. This definition was selected in an attempt to distinguish between what the cat seemed to really be attracted to and what would be eaten because nothing else was available. The results for this experiment are presented in Table WG10.1 TABLE WG10.1 OUNCES EATEN FOR FIVE CAT-FOOD PRODUCTS Kidney Shrimp Chicken Liver Salmon Beef 231 2.69 1.79 2.09 2.33 1.87 1.96 1.67 2.05 1.64 2.26 2.16 2.24 1.75 1.96 1.18 1.58 1.92 2.18 1.32 193 1.94 2.29 2.62 2.41 2.68 2.25 2.17 2.37 2.26 2.45 2.57 2.472.45 2.592.34 2.34 2.22 2.45 2.36 232 2.59 (a) What are the advantages and disadvantages of conducting the experiment at the animal shelter? (b) Can you think of any factors that might bias or confound the results of this experiment? (c) Suggest an alternative approach for conducting the experiment. What would be the advantages and disadvantages of conducting the experiment under this alternative approach?Explanation / Answer
(a) pros- random sample is taken.So, non biased
Cons- 1. experiment is incomplete.To compare with what cats want to eat, all the 5 options should be available in front of cat so that to check the taste preferences of the cat.here only one option is available so that would be eaten by cat.
2. also, amount of food that cat consumed varies according to breed,not necessarily according to taste
(b) weather conditions, eating capacity of cats, breeds
(C) 1. all cats that are randomly selected should be of same breed and sizes.
2. also,all options should be available simultaneously to understand the taste preferences
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