On Thu, 19 Oct 2000 [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> In article <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>,
> Peter Lewycky <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> > I've often been called upon to do a t-test with 5 animals in one
> > group and 4 animals in the other. The power is abysmally low and
> > rarely do I get a p less than 0.05. One of the difficulties that
> > medical researchers have is with the notion of power and concomitant
> > sample size. I make it a point of calculating power especially
> > where Ho has not been rejected. It gives the researcher some comfort
> > in that his therapy may indeed be effective. All he needs for 0.8
> > power is 28,141 rats per group.
> <grin>
> This has got to be one of the funniest things I have read on a stats
> newsgroup. I'm sure its not really meant to be funny,
Dunno why you'd be so certain of that. I've known Peter for a while,
and certainly would not characterize him as lacking a sense of humour...
> but the thought of truckloads upon truckload of rats arriving to
> satisfy power requirements puts a highly amusing spin on the whole
> thing. :)
> I am stifling an insane cackle because I know statistics is a serious
> business but really....
It may, sometimes, be a serious business; but that's not to say that
one should _take_ it seriously.
-- DFB.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Donald F. Burrill [EMAIL PROTECTED]
348 Hyde Hall, Plymouth State College, [EMAIL PROTECTED]
MSC #29, Plymouth, NH 03264 (603) 535-2597
Department of Mathematics, Boston University [EMAIL PROTECTED]
111 Cummington Street, room 261, Boston, MA 02215 (617) 353-5288
184 Nashua Road, Bedford, NH 03110 (603) 471-7128
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