A Local Consumer Reporter Wants to Compare the Average Costs

question 42

Multiple Choice

A local consumer reporter wants to compare the average costs of grocery items purchased at three different supermarkets, A, B, and C. Prices (in dollars) were recorded for a sample of 60 randomly selected grocery items at each of the three supermarkets. In order to reduce item-to-item variation, the prices were recorded for each item on the same day at each supermarket. $$\begin{array} { l l c c c } \hline & \text { Item } & \text { A } & \text { B } & \text { C } \\\hline \text { 1) } & \text { paper towels } & 1.26 & 1.46 & 1.41 \\\text { 2) } & \text { cereal } & 2.76 & 3.21 & 2.96 \\\text { 3) } & \text { floor cleaner } & 5.93 & 5.81 & 6.82 \\\text { ? } & \text { ? } &\text { ? } & \text { ? } & \text { ? } \\ \text { 59) } & \text { shaving cream } & 1.08 & 0.98 & 1.04 \\\text { 60) } & \text { canned green beans } & 0.54 & 0.69 & 0.46 \\\hline\end{array}$$ Identify the treatments for this experiment.

• A) the three supermarkets
• B) the 60 grocery items
• C) the 60 × 3 = 180 prices
• D) the day on which the data were collected

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Definitions:

Social Security

A government program designed to provide financial support to individuals during retirement, disability, or upon death, ensuring a basic level of sustenance.

Medicare Trust Funds

Financial accounts from which the U.S. federal government disburses payments for Medicare, the health insurance program for the elderly and disabled.

Job Growth

An increase in the number of jobs or employment opportunities within an economy over a certain period, often seen as an indicator of economic health.

Millennium

A period of one thousand years.