"For each of the Exercises 32 through 44, do however many of the following as you think appropriate:

Apply one or more of the techniques discussed in this chapter.

Apply one or more of the techniques discussed in previous chapters.

Construct graphs.

Construct confidence intervals for population parameters.

Formulate relevant hypotheses, perform the appropriate tests, and find p values.

State the statistical decisions and clinical conclusions that the results of your hypothesis tests justify.

Describe the population(s) to which you think your inferences are applicable.

State the assumptions necessary for the validity of your analyses."

"Thomas et al. (A-39) conducted a study to determine the correlates of compliance with followup appointments and prescription filling after an emergency department visit. Among 235 respondents, 158 kept their appointments. Of these, 98 were females. Of those who missed their appointments, 31 were males."

If you could explain why some things are important here and others are not I'd be very appreciative. I'm having trouble wrapping my head around it conceptually.