Which brand of popcorn
leaves fewer kernels
unpopped?
Jenny Lehr and Kim Fiorenzo
Introduction and Description
We were interested in what percent of kernels are left unpopped after popping a
bag of popcorn in a microwave. Popcorn is a very popular snack and is commonly
eaten while watching movies. Many households in America consume popcorn on a
regular basis. We were interested in which brands of popcorn leave the least
amount of popcorn kernels unpopped. To test this, we completed an experimental
study. We bought one box of Wegmans popcorn and one box of Orville Redenbacher
popcorn, randomly selected five bags, popped each bag in the same microwave for
the same amount of time, and counted the number of unpopped and popped kernels.
The results from this test will determine which brand of popcorn produces a lesser
percent of kernels unpopped. These results can be applied to popcorn purchased at
Wegmans on West 26th street.
Prediction
Our purpose was to conclude which brand of popcorn left less kernels unpopped in
each bag. We predicted that the Orville Redenbacher brand would produce a lesser
percent of unpopped kernels per bag.
Sampling Method
We used a random sample to perform our test. We went to Wegmans and selected
one box of six 3.3 oz bags of Orville Redenbacher and Wegmans brand popcorn.
Although we did not randomly select the boxes of popcorn at Wegmans, we
randomly selected five of the six bags using Random Int (1,6) on our calculator. Not
randomizing the boxes at Wegmans is a caution in our experiment.
Calculations
µ1= Orville Redenbaucher
µ2= Wegmans Brand
n1= 5
n2= 5
Confidence Interval= (-12.55, -.6883)
Conditions
1.SRS – met with a small caution (see sampling method)
2.Independence – met - we compared two brands of popcorn that are
produced in separate factories which makes them independent of each other
3. 10% Condition – met – we only used five bags from each of the two brands,
5 bags is definitely under 10 % of the popcorn population
4. Nearly Normal Condition – sight caution - the graph below is not quite
normal it is a little skewed to the right and first bar on the left is a little bit
too high.
Frequency
3
2
1
0
10
12
14
16
18
20
22
24
26
C1
Conclusion
Hypothesis Test Conclusion:
Assuming there is no difference in the percent of kernels left after popping
between Wegmans and Orville Redenbacher brand, the probability of getting
a sample as or more extreme as ours is approximately 1.65%. This is strong
evidence that the Orville Redenbacher brand of popcorn leaves less kernels
unpopped.
Confidence Interval Conclusion:
Using these methods, 95% of samples will produce an interval that contains
the true difference between the percent of unpopped kernels for Wegmans
and Orville Redenbacher brand.
Possible Improvements:
To improve our experiment, we could take more samples of Orville
Redenbacher and Wegmans. We could also compare more than 2 brands of
popcorn to find which brand truly leaves the least amount of kernels
unpopped.
Overall Conclusion:
Through this experiment, we discovered that Orville Redennbacher popcorn
produces a smaller percent of unpopped kernels in a 3.3 oz bag compared to
Wegmans brand.