Types of Hypothesis

First, we must take a moment to define independent and dependent variables. Simply put, an
independent variable is the cause and the dependent variable is the effect. The independent variable
can be changed whereas the dependent variable is what you're watching for change. For example: How
does the amount of makeup one applies affect how clear their skin is? Here, the independent variable is
the makeup and the dependent variable is the skin.The six most common forms of hypotheses are:

Simple Hypothesis

Complex Hypothesis

Empirical Hypothesis

Null Hypothesis (Denoted by "HO")

Alternative Hypothesis (Denoted by "H1")

Logical Hypothesis

Statistical Hypothesis

A simple hypothesis is a prediction of the relationship between two variables: the independent variable
and the dependent variable.

Drinking sugary drinks daily leads to obesity.

A complex hypothesis examines the relationship between two or more independent variables and two or
more dependent variables.

Overweight adults who 1) value longevity and 2) seek happiness are more likely than other adults to 1)
lose their excess weight and 2) feel a more regular sense of joy.A null hypothesis (H0) exists when a
researcher believes there is no relationship between the two variables, or there is a lack of information
to state a scientific hypothesis. This is something to attempt to disprove or discredit.

There is no significant change in my health during the times when I drink green tea only or root beer
only.This is where the alternative hypothesis (H1) enters the scene. In an attempt to disprove a null
hypothesis, researchers will seek to discover an alternative hypothesis.

My health improves during the times when I drink green tea only, as opposed to root beer only.A logical
hypothesis is a proposed explanation possessing limited evidence. Generally, you want to turn a logical
hypothesis into an empirical hypothesis, putting your theories or postulations to the test.

Cacti experience more successful growth rates than tulips on Mars. (Until we're able to test plant growth
in Mars' ground for an extended period of time, the evidence for this claim will be limited and the
hypothesis will only remain logical.)An empirical hypothesis, or working hypothesis, comes to life when a
theory is being put to the test, using observation and experiment. It's no longer just an idea or notion.
It's actually going through some trial and error, and perhaps changing around those independent
variables.

Roses watered with liquid Vitamin B grow faster than roses watered with liquid Vitamin E. (Here, trial
and error is leading to a series of findings.)

A statistical hypothesis is an examination of a portion of a population.

If you wanted to conduct a study on the life expectancy of Savannians, you would want to examine every
single resident of Savannah. This is not practical. Therefore, you would conduct your research using a
statistical hypothesis, or a sample of the Savannian population.

Parameters of a Good Hypothesis

In order for a hypothesis to be sound, hold tight to these tips:Ask yourself questions.

Brainstorm. Define the independent and dependent variables very specifically, and don't take on more
than you can handle. Keep yourself laser-focused on one specific cause-and-effect theory.

Be logical and use precise language.

Keep your language clean and simple. State your hypothesis as concisely, and to the point, as possible. A
hypothesis is usually written in a form where it proposes that, if something is done, then something else
will occur. Usually, you don't want to state a hypothesis as a question. You believe in something, and
you're seeking to prove it. For example: If I raise the temperature of a cup of water, then the amount of
sugar that can be dissolved in it will be increased.

Make sure your hypothesis is testable with research and experimentation.

Any hypothesis will need proof. Your audience will have to see evidence and reason to believe your
statement. For example, I may want to drink root beer all day, not green tea. If you're going to make me
change my ways, I need some sound reasoning and experimental proof - perhaps case studies of others
who lost weight, cleared up their skin, and had a marked improvement in their immunity by drinking
green tea.

https://bitesizebio.com/7642/types-of-statistical-errors-and-what-they-mean/

Types of Statistical Errors and What They Mean

This column is loaded with pop quizzes for you to test yourself on. If you haven’t already done so, catch
up on yesterday’s piece on hypothesis testing for a refresher.

Take a gander at the table below for a summary of the two types of error that can result from hypothesis
testing.

Type I Errors occur when we reject a null hypothesis that is actually true; the probability of this occurring
is denoted by alpha (a).

Type II Errors are when we accept a null hypothesis that is actually false; its probability is called beta (b).
As you can see from the below table, the other two options are to accept a true null hypothesis, or to
reject a false null hypothesis. Both of these are correct, though one is far more exciting than the other
(and probably easier to get published).

It all looks really simple (I hope) when you put it in a table like that. The trouble is we don’t know
whether the null hypothesis is true or not; that’s the whole point of statistics! So instead we are reliant
on the probabilities of each type of error occurring. As in life, nothing is ever easy, so in statistics we
cannot minimise the probability of both errors simultaneously. By reducing the probability of Type I
Errors, we automatically increase the probability of a Type II Error occurring, and vice versa.

Pop Quiz: Given the conundrum, which type of error do we focus on minimising? You’ve got the next
three paragraphs to come up with your answer (no looking at your neighbours, no texting, papers face-
down on your desk when you’re finished).

For a working example I’ll depart from biology for a moment and move to medicine. Pharmaceutical
Company Delta-Theta has manufactured a new pill they claim relieves headaches. As all good
pharmaceutical companies do they have conducted a double-blind study* to test the effects of their pill.
Pop Quiz: Following on from last week, you should be able to tell me the null and alternate hypotheses
(Go!).

The null hypothesis is that the medicine does not relieve headaches (or, that it does no better than a
placebo pill). So the alternate states that the pill does relieve headaches, at least in comparison to a
placebo.

Pop Quiz:What then, would constitute a Type I and Type II error?

A Type I Error refers to rejecting a true null hypothesis; so this would mean that in truth the pill does not
relieve headaches, but the pharmaceutical company concludes that it does. Whereas a Type II Error
occurs when we accept a false null hypothesis; the pill actually does relieve headaches, but Delta-Theta
concludes that it doesn’t. [If you’re still getting your head around which error is which, don’t worry – I
still needed to check my table to make sure I had them the right way around].

So, finally we can return to the question I posed at the start of this article: which type of error do we
focus on minimising? The reason I’ve used a medical example is because of the hefty weight attached to
right or wrong decisions. A Type II Error would falsely conclude that the pill does no good, and so it
wouldn’t be put into the market, resulting in a loss for the company. However, a Type I Error concludes
that the pill does work, when actually it doesn’t. The pill gets put into production and enters the market;
patients take it and are not relieved from headaches. Loss for the consumer.

But what if the medicine wasn’t for headaches? What if it was for HIV, or cancer, or diabetes? What if a
patient stopped taking their regular medication in order to take this new pill? Hence the hefty cost of a
wrong decision.
Thus, we aim to minimise the probability of a Type I Error occurring, at the cost of Type II errors. The
same argument stands for publishing biological results. Which is more embarrassing and career
damaging, publishing incorrect results (Type I) or failing to recognise and publish significant results?

Biologists have reached a consensus on what probability of a Type I error we are prepared to accept; the
magical 5 % threshold. This leads to a discussion of p-values, our next subject.

Until then, you are very welcome to leave your comments and feedback on the statistics series thus far.

*A double-blind study is where neither the patient nor the doctor knows whether the actual drug or a
placebo has been administered. The purpose being to negate any change in the doctor’s behaviour if he
or she knows which the patient has been allocated, e.g. by giving less attention to patients on the
placebo. I highly recommend pretty much anything Ben Goldacre has written if you wish to delve further
into this fascinating subject of human psychology and medical testing.

You are here: Home / Basics / Different Types of Errors in Measurement and Measurement Error
Calculation

Different Types of Errors in Measurement and Measurement Error Calculation

April 3, 2019 By Dave 2 Comments

Errors in Measurement
Measurement Errors

The measurement of an amount is based on some international standards which are completely accurate
compared with others. Generally, measurement of any quantity is done by comparing it with derived
standards with which they are not completely accurate. Thus, the errors in measurement are not only
due to error in methods, but are also due to derivation being not done perfectly well. So, 100%
measurement error is not possible with any methods.

It is very important for the operator to take proper care of the experiment while performing on industrial
instruments so that the error in measurement can be reduced. Some of the errors are constant in nature
due to the unknown reasons, some will be random in nature, and the other will be due to gross blunder
on the part of the experimenter.

You are here: Home / Basics / Different Types of Errors in Measurement and Measurement Error
Calculation

Different Types of Errors in Measurement and Measurement Error Calculation

April 3, 2019 By Dave 2 Comments

Errors in Measurement

Measurement Errors

The measurement of an amount is based on some international standards which are completely accurate
compared with others. Generally, measurement of any quantity is done by comparing it with derived
standards with which they are not completely accurate. Thus, the errors in measurement are not only
due to error in methods, but are also due to derivation being not done perfectly well. So, 100%
measurement error is not possible with any methods.
It is very important for the operator to take proper care of the experiment while performing on industrial
instruments so that the error in measurement can be reduced. Some of the errors are constant in nature
due to the unknown reasons, some will be random in nature, and the other will be due to gross blunder
on the part of the experimenter.

Errors in Measurement System

An error may be defined as the difference between the measured value and the actual value. For
example, if the two operators use the same device or instrument for finding the errors in measurement,
it is not necessary that they may get similar results. There may be a difference between both
measurements. The difference that occurs between both the measurements is referred to as an ERROR.

Sequentially, to understand the concept of errors in measurement, you should know the two terms that
define the error. They are true value and the measured value. The true value is impossible to find out the
truth of quantity by experimental means. It may be defined as the average value of an infinite number of
measured values. Measured value can be defined as the estimated value of true value that can be found
by taking several measured values during an experiment.

Gross Errors

Gross errors are caused by mistake in using instruments or meters, calculating measurement and
recording data results. The best example of these errors is a person or operator reading pressure gage
1.01N/m2 as 1.10N/m2. It may be due to the person’s bad habit of not properly remembering data at
the time of taking down reading, writing and calculating, and then presenting the wrong data at a later
time. This may be the reason for gross errors in the reported data, and such errors may end up in
calculation of the final results, thus deviating results.

2) Blunders

Blunders are final source of errors and these errors are caused by faulty recording or due to a wrong
value while recording a measurement, or misreading a scale or forgetting a digit while reading a scale.
These blunders should stick out like sore thumbs if one person checks the work of another person. It
should not be comprised in the analysis of data.
Measurement Error

The measurement error is the result of the variation of a measurement of the true value. Usually,
Measurement error consists of a random error and systematic error. The best example of the
measurement error is, if electronic scales are loaded with 1kg standard weight and the reading is 10002
grams, then

The measurement error is = (1002 grams-1000 grams) = 2 grams

Measurement Errors are classified into two types: systematic error and random errors

Systematic Errors

The Systematic errors that occur due to fault in the measuring device are known as systematic errors.
Usually they are called as Zero Error – a positive or negative error. These errors can be detached by
correcting the measurement device. These errors may be classified into different categories.

Systematic Errors

Systematic Errors

In order to understand the concept of systematic errors, let us classify the errors as:

Instrumental Errors

Environmental Errors

Observational Errors

Theoritical

Instrumental Errors
Instrumental errors occur due to wrong construction of the measuring instruments. These errors may
occur due to hysteresis or friction. These types of errors include loading effect and misuse of the
instruments. In order to reduce the gross errors in measurement, different correction factors must be
applied and in the extreme condition instrument must be recalibrated carefully.

Environmental Errors

The environmental errors occur due to some external conditions of the instrument. External conditions
mainly include pressure, temperature, humidity or due to magnetic fields. In order to reduce the
environmental errors

Try to maintain the humidity and temperature constant in the laboratory by making some arrangements.

Ensure that there shall not be any external electrostatic or magnetic field around the instrument.

Observational Errors

As the name suggests, these types of errors occurs due to wrong observations or reading in the
instruments particularly in case of energy meter reading. The wrong observations may be due to
PARALLAX. In order to reduce the PARALLAX error highly accurate meters are needed: meters provided
with mirror scales.

Theoretical Errors

Theoretical errors are caused by simplification of the model system. For example, a theory states that the
temperature of the system surrounding will not change the readings taken when it actually does, then
this factor will begin a source of error in measurement.

Random Errors
Random errors are caused by the sudden change in experimental conditions and noise and tiredness in
the working persons. These errors are either positive or negative. An example of the random errors is
during changes in humidity, unexpected change in temperature and fluctuation in voltage. These errors
may be reduced by taking the average of a large number of readings.

Random Errors

Random Errors

Measurement Error Calculation

There are several ways to make a reasonable measurement error calculation such as estimating random
errors and estimating systematic errors.

Estimating Random Errors

There are a number of ways to make a reasonable estimate of the random error in a particular
measurement. The best way is to make a series of measurements of a given quantity (say, x) and
calculate the mean and standard deviation (x ̅ & σ_x ) from this data.

The mean x ̅ is defined as

Where, Xi is the result of the i th measurements

‘N’ is the number of measurements

The standard variation is given by

If a measurement is repeated many times, then 68% of the measured valves will drop in the range x ̅ ±
σ_x

We become more positive that , is an accurate representation of the true value of the quantity x ̅ . The
standard deviation of the mean σ_x is defined as

σ_(x ̅ )=σ_x⁄√N

The quantity σ_x is a good estimate of our uncertainty in x . ̅ Notice that the measurement precision
increases in proportion to √N as we increase the number of measurements. The following example will
clarify these ideas. Assume you made the following five measurements of a length:

Error Calculation

Error Calculation

Therefore, the result is 22.84±.08mm

In some cases, it is hardly useful to repeat a measurement many times. In that situation, you can
estimate frequently the error by taking account of the smallest division of the measuring instrument.

For example, when using a meter stick, one can measure, perhaps a half or sometimes even a fifth of a
millimeter. So, the absolute error would be estimated to be around 0.5 mm or 0.2 mm.

Thus, this is all about the various types of errors in measurement and error measurement calculation.
We hope you are satisfied with this article. We express our gratitude to all the readers. Please share your
suggestions and comments in the comment section below.
https://stattrek.com/descriptive-statistics/measures-of-position.aspx

Measures of Position

Statisticians often talk about the position of a value, relative to other values in a set of data. The most
common measures of position are percentiles, quartiles, and standard scores (aka, z-scores).

Percentiles

Assume that the elements in a data set are rank ordered from the smallest to the largest. The values that
divide a rank-ordered set of elements into 100 equal parts are called percentiles.

An element having a percentile rank of Pi would have a greater value than i percent of all the elements in
the set. Thus, the observation at the 50th percentile would be denoted P50, and it would be greater than
50 percent of the observations in the set. An observation at the 50th percentile would correspond to the
median value in the set.

Quartiles

Quartiles divide a rank-ordered data set into four equal parts. The values that divide each part are called
the first, second, and third quartiles; and they are denoted by Q1, Q2, and Q3, respectively. The chart
below shows a set of four numbers divided into quartiles.

Eight numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

Note the relationship between quartiles and percentiles. Q1 corresponds to P25, Q2 corresponds to P50,
Q3 corresponds to P75. Q2 is the median value in the set.

Standard Scores (z-Scores)

A standard score (aka, a z-score) indicates how many standard deviations an element is from the mean. A
standard score can be calculated from the following formula.

z = (X - μ) / σ
where z is the z-score, X is the value of the element, μ is the mean of the population, and σ is the
standard deviation.

Here is how to interpret z-scores.

A z-score less than 0 represents an element less than the mean.

A z-score greater than 0 represents an element greater than the mean.

A z-score equal to 0 represents an element equal to the mean.

A z-score equal to 1 represents an element that is 1 standard deviation greater than the mean; a z-score
equal to 2, 2 standard deviations greater than the mean; etc.

A z-score equal to -1 represents an element that is 1 standard deviation less than the mean; a z-score
equal to -2, 2 standard deviations less than the mean; etc.

Test Your Understanding

Problem 1

A national achievement test is administered annually to 3rd graders. The test has a mean score of 100
and a standard deviation of 15. If Jane's z-score is 1.20, what was her score on the test?

(A) 82

(B) 88

(C) 100

(D) 112

(E) 118

Solution

The correct answer is (E). From the z-score equation, we know

z = (X - μ) / σ

where z is the z-score, X is the value of the element, μ is the mean of the population, and σ is the
standard deviation.

Solving for Jane's test score (X), we get

X = ( z * σ) + 100 = ( 1.20 * 15) + 100 = 18 + 100 = 118

https://statisticsbyjim.com/glossary/significance-level/

The significance level, also denoted as alpha or α, is a measure of the strength of the evidence that must
be present in your sample before you will reject the null hypothesis and conclude that the effect is
statistically significant. The researcher determines the significance level before conducting the
experiment.

The significance level is the probability of rejecting the null hypothesis when it is true. For example, a
significance level of 0.05 indicates a 5% risk of concluding that a difference exists when there is no actual
difference. Lower significance levels indicate that you require stronger evidence before you will reject
the null hypothesis.

Use significance levels during hypothesis testing to help you determine which hypothesis the data
support. Compare your p-value to your significance level. If the p-value is less than your significance
level, you can reject the null hypothesis and conclude that the effect is statistically significant. In other
words, the evidence in your sample is strong enough to be able to reject the null hypothesis at the
population level.