Problem 1: The manufacturer of the X-15 steel-belted radial truck tire claims that the mean mileage the tire can be driven before the tread wears out is 60,000 miles. The standard deviation of the mileage is 5,000 miles. The Crosset Truck Company bought 48 tires and found that the mean mileage for their trucks is 59,500 miles. Is Crosset's experience different from that claimed by the manufacturer at the .05 significance level?
Problem 2: The management of White Industries is considering a new method of assembling its golf cart. The present method requires 42.3 minutes, on the average, to assemble a cart. The mean assembly time for a random sample of 24 carts, using the new method, was 40.6 minutes, and the standard deviation of the sample was 2.7 minutes. Using the .10 level of significance, can we conclude that the assembly time using the new method is faster?
Problem 3: Experience raising New Jersey Red chickens revealed the mean weight of the chickens at five months is 4.35 pounds. The weights follow the normal distribution. In an effort to increase their weight, a special additive is added to the chicken feed. The subsequent
weights of a sample of five-month-old chickens were (in pounds):
4.41 4.37 4.33 4.35 4.30 4.39 4.36 4.38 4.40 4.39
At the .01 level, has the special additive increased the mean weight of the chickens? Estimate the p-value.
Problem 4: A recent article in the Wall Street Journal reported that the 30-year mortgage rate is now less than 6 percent. A sample of eight small banks in the Midwest revealed the following 30- year rates (in percent):
4.8 5.3 6.5 4.8 6.1 5.8 6.2 5.6
At the .01 significance level, can we conclude that the 30-year mortgage rate for small banks is less than 6 percent? Estimate the p-value.