Lyme disease is spread in the northeastern United States by infected ticks. The ticks are infected mainly by feeding on mice, so more mice result in more infected ticks. The mouse population, in turn, rises and falls with the abundance of acorns, their favored food. Experimenters studied two similar forest areas in a year when the acorn crop failed. To see if mice are more likely to breed when there are more acorns, the researchers added hundreds of thousands of acorns to one area to imitate an abundant acorn crop, while leaving the other area untouched. The next spring, 54 of the 72 mice trapped in the first area were in breeding condition, versus 10 of the 17 mice trapped in the second area.

a. State appropriate hypotheses for performing a significance test. Be sure to define the parameters of interest.

b. Check if the conditions for performing the test are met.