To determine if Dr. Alexander’s experiment proves his hypothesis that flies must have calcium in their diet, we need to analyze the survival rates of the flies that were fed calcium versus those that were not.
Let's break down the results:
1. Number of flies alive before the test:
- Fed Calcium: 100 flies
- Not Fed Calcium: 100 flies
2. Number of flies alive after the test:
- Fed Calcium: 92 flies
- Not Fed Calcium: 92 flies
3. Calculate the survival rate for each group:
The survival rate is calculated by dividing the number of flies alive after the test by the number of flies alive before the test.
- Survival rate for flies fed calcium:
[tex]\[
\text{Survival rate} = \frac{92}{100} = 0.92
\][/tex]
- Survival rate for flies not fed calcium:
[tex]\[
\text{Survival rate} = \frac{92}{100} = 0.92
\][/tex]
4. Compare the survival rates:
- Survival rate with calcium: 0.92
- Survival rate without calcium: 0.92
The survival rates for both groups are the same (0.92). This means that the nine days of feeding with or without calcium had no impact on the survival of the flies.
Conclusion:
Since the survival rates are identical, Dr. Alexander's experiment does not prove that the hypothesis (flies must have calcium in their diet) is true. The comparison shows no difference in survival rates between the flies that were fed calcium and those that were not.
Therefore, the correct conclusion is no, the experiment does not prove the hypothesis.
