Techniques for processing poultry were examined in the article “Texture Profiles of Canned Boned Chicken as Affected by Chilling-Aging Times” (Poultry Science [1994]: 1475–1478). Whole chickens were chilled 0, 2, 8, or 24 hours before being cooked and canned. To determine whether the chilling time affected the texture of the canned chicken, samples were evaluated by trained tasters. One characteristic of interest was hardness. The accompanying summary quantities were obtained. Each mean is based on 36 ratings.

a. Do the data suggest that there is a difference in mean hardness for chicken chilled 0 hours before cooking and chicken chilled 2 hours before cooking? Use α = .05.

b. Do the data suggest that there is a difference in mean hardness for chicken chilled 8 hours before cooking and chicken chilled 24 hours before cooking? Use α = .05.

c. Use a 90% confidence interval to estimate the difference in mean hardness for chicken chilled 2 hours before cooking and chicken chilled 8 hours before cooking.

Mean Hardness Standard Deviation 0 hr 7.52 .96 Chilling Time 2 hr 8 hr 6.55 1.74 5.70 1.32 24 hr 5.65 1.50