A research study measured the pulse rates of 57 male college athletes and found a mean resting pulse rate of 70.0 beats per minute with a standard deviation of 9.8 beats per minute. Researchers want to know if the mean resting pulse rate for all male college athletes is lower than the national average of 73.0 beats per minute. Consider a 5% level of significance for this test.

a. Should the outcome variable be considered continuous or dichotomous?

Note: The next 5 questions follow the Five-Step Approach to Hypothesis Testing.

b. Set up the appropriate null and alternative hypotheses.

c. Select the appropriate test statistic. Should a z or t test statistic be used for this hypothesis test? Explain your reasoning and/or show your work.

d. Set up the decision rule for this hypothesis test. Make sure to include the appropriate z or t critical value.

e. Compute the appropriate test statistic for this hypothesis test. Show your work.

f. Make a decision using the decision rule in (e) and write out an appropriate conclusion.

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