1.

Mendel developed his theory of genetics by observing large numbers of offspring from
particular parents during plant breeding experiments. However, appropriate statistical methods for
a rigorous analysis of such genetic data were only invented about 50 years later, so Mendel
basically said “The data seem to agree with my theory.” Today, we can analyze Mendel’s data
statistically to see if he was right. According to Mendel’s theory, if pea plants heterozygous for
the two traits of seed color and seed texture are crossed, offspring will be produced with
phenotypes in the following proportions:

Phenotype Proportion
Yellow, smooth 0.5625
Yellow, wrinkled 0.1875
Green, smooth 0.1875
Green, wrinkled 0.0625

Here are the actual data Mendel collected from an experiment crossing two such parents:

Observed
Phenotype Frequency
Yellow, smooth 315
Yellow, wrinkled 101
Green, smooth 108
Green, wrinkled 32

Use an appropriate statistical analysis to determine whether these data agree with Mendel’s
theory. State the conclusion of your analysis clearly.
2. Women with breast cancer are first treated by removing the tumor surgically. Often, radiation
therapy is used afterwards to kill any residual cancer cells that might cause a recurrence of the
cancer. However, such radiation treatments are severe and have serious side effects, so they are
not always used and it is important to assess whether they effectively reduce the probability of a
recurrence of the breast cancer.

A study was done in which women receiving radiation therapy after breast cancer surgery were
matched with women who had not received radiation therapy after their surgery. The women
were followed for 6 years, and classified as to whether or not they had a recurrence of breast
cancer. These data were obtained:

Radiation Recurrence Observed

therapy in 6 years Frequency
Yes Yes 55
Yes No 441
No Yes 28
No No 111

a. Organize these data into a contingency table.

b. Use a hypothesis test appropriate for determining whether the probability of a

recurrence differs for women treated with radiation versus those not treated with
radiation. State the null and alternative hypotheses clearly, both verbally and with
symbolic notation. State the conclusion of your hypothesis test.

c. Calculate the corresponding relative risk of recurrence and odds ratio for recurrence,
and summarize the results verbally.
3. Geneticists wanted to know if a particular gene is associated with differential survival
of male and female larvae. So, they obtained a generation of fruit flies with the same
genotype, and counted numbers of male and female adults, after the larval stage. If the
gene does not affect larval survival differently, then the sex ratio will be even for adults
(i.e. 50% male).

Here are the data:

Males 35
Females 46

Choose an approach for analyzing these data that meets the research goals.
4. The “happy-face fish” lives in the small streams of Turtle Island. There are three
different colors for individuals of this species: yellow, red, and blue. The frequencies of
these colors have remained stable for years as follow: red 70%, yellow 20% and blue
10%.

A recent introduction of a predatory fish into Turtle Island is suspected to eat more often
the bright-colored individuals (red and yellow) and consequently change the frequency of
the colors. A researcher visits Turtle island after the introduction of the predatory fish and
collects 500 individuals of the “happy-face fish” obtaining the following frequencies: 180
red individuals, 170 yellow individuals, and 150 blue individuals.

Use the appropriate statistical test to see whether the data supports a change in color
frequencies in the “happy-face fish.”
5. A researcher is studying the relationship between leg size and jumping distance in the
leopard frog (Rana pipiens). He samples 10 individuals and measures both their leg size
(the independent variable) and their maximum jumping distance (the dependent variable).
The researcher conducts a linear regression and needs help completing the following
ANOVA table to test for the significance of the slope.

Source of variation Sum of Squares df Mean Squares F Critical value

Regression 765.4
Error

Total 1150.3

a) Complete the ANOVA table and conduct a hypothesis test on the slope.

b) Calculate the coefficient of determination (r2). Explain it.

6. People with normal skin usually have 34 capillaries per mm2 on their feet. Do people
with skin ulcers have the same capillary density?

Data: A sample of biopsies was taken from 23 patients with skin ulcers on their feet.
Average capillary density was 22.59 capillaries per mm2, and the standard deviation was
7.31 capillaries per mm2.
7. The breeders of hybrid corn plants state that a certain variety should grow to an
average height of 1.85 m with a standard deviation of 0.25 m, when grown in a
greenhouse under defined conditions. Assume that these numbers represent the
population mean and standard deviation.

a. If a sample of 20 plants is grown, what is the probability that the mean is less than 1.75
m? What is the probability that the mean is greater than 2.0 m?

b. What is the 75th percentile of height for this variety of corn?

8. Researchers want to know if there is variation in the weight of ears of corn from
growing the corn on different farms. A plot of corn was grown on each of 4 farms, using
the same methods on each farm. Ten ears of corn were sampled from each farm and
weighed.

Source of variation Sum of Squares df Mean Square F statistic Critical

value
Among farms 244.86
Within farms
Total 403.07

Complete the ANOVA table and state your conclusion.

9. Question: Do people with private wells experience different levels of mercury
contamination than those with city water supply?

Basic information: 13 water samples were obtained from the city water supply, and 10
from private wells. The average (S.D.) mercury concentration in city water was 0.157
(0.084) μg / liter, and the average (S.D.) concentration in private well water was 0.151
(0.028) μg / liter.
10. Researchers want to know if there is significant difference in weight loss comparing
three different diets. They also wanted to know if there is a difference in weight loss
between males and females when on a diet. Thirty individuals were recruited (15 males
and 15 females) and five males and five females were assigned at random to each diet.

Source of variation Sum of df Mean F CV

Squares Square
Cells
Diet 452.32
Gender 247.32
Interaction
Error 567.83
Total 1403.07

Complete the ANOVA table and state your conclusions.