When Working for the Brooklyn District Attorney, Investigator Robert Burton

question 45

Essay

When working for the Brooklyn District Attorney, investigator Robert Burton analyzed the leading digits of the
amounts from 784 checks issued by seven suspect companies. The frequencies were found to be
0, 12, 0, 73, 482, 186, 8, 23, and 0, and those digits correspond to the leading digits of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9,
respectively. If the observed frequencies are substantially different from the frequencies expected with Benford's
Law, the check amounts appear to result from fraud. Use a 0.05 significance level to test for goodness-of-fit
with Benford's Law. Does it appear that the checks are the result of fraud?

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Definitions:

Protein-Digesting Enzyme

An enzyme, also known as a protease, that breaks down proteins into smaller peptides or amino acids, crucial for many biological processes including digestion.

Stomach Juice

A mix of hydrochloric acid, enzymes, and mucus produced in the stomach, crucial for the digestion of food and killing pathogens.

Oxidoreductases

Enzymes that catalyze the transfer of electrons from one molecule (the reductant) to another (the oxidant), crucial in both energy production and detoxification.

Oxidation-Reduction Reactions

Chemical reactions involving the transfer of electrons between two substances, affecting the oxidation state of the reactants.