QNT 561 Week 2 DQs

Question 01:

Consider The  Basic Steps in the Research Process as described by Samuels (2004). From your workplace select a topic for research and describe steps 1, 2, 6, 7, and 11 of their 23 steps.

Reference

Samuels, H. (2004). Cambridge Rindge & Latin School. CRLS Research Guide. Basic Steps in the Research Process. Retrieved March 24, 2012, from http://www.crlsresearchguide.org/

Question 02:

You are responsible for reliability of the electronic product that your company produces. 

You decide to measure the time between equipment malfunctions over a one-year period.  Over that time you measured 40 electronic products.  You made 850 observations with a mean time between equipment failures of 550.35 hours. The manufacturer indicates a population standard deviation of 207 hours.

Your company supplies the electronic product to another company as a component to their product.  You guarantee an average time between malfunctions of 600 or more hours.

Calculate a 99% confidence interval estimate for the mean time between malfunctions for all electronics of this type then interpret the results to assess whether your company will have a problem with this guarantee.  Explain your reasoning?

Question 03:

As a city planner for a growing community you are to project a budget for garbage trucks.  To support your analysis you plan to use an estimate of the mean weight of garbage discarded weekly by household in the community. 

A sample of 62 households produced a standard deviation = 12.46 pounds

a.  Find the sample size necessary to estimate the mean weight of garbage by household if you want to be 90% confident that the sample mean is within 2 pounds of the true population mean. 

b.  Find the sample size necessary again at a 95% confidence level.

c.  Find the sample size necessary again at the 99% confidence and indicate the change in the sample size and why you think this is so.

d.  Discuss the direction of change in sample size and why you think there is a sample size change from a confidence level of 90% to 99%.

e.  Give an example from your workplace of a problem that requires you to determine a sample size.

Question 04:

With the health and weight issues so popular in the news lately there are any number of clinics making claims to help clients reduce their weight. The claims can be difficult to accept without credible supporting evidence.

Go to http://www.medshapeweightloss.com/?gclid=CL2Uv_PM8ZkCFWNM5Qodf1_VRQ
a site that makes claims of dramatic results for clients.

1.  Identify a claim
2.  Identify any supporting evidence (if any) for the claim
3.  Outline the research you would do (along with measures) to support or refute the claim

4.  Determine the research design you would use: exploratory, descriptive, causal and explain why

Reference
MEDSHAPE Weight Loss Clinic, LLC. (2012) Retrieved on April 14, 2012, from
    http://www.medshapeweightloss.com/?gclid=CL2Uv_PM8ZkCFWNM5Qodf1_VRQ