Hypothesis Identification Article AnalysisResearch has shown that gasoline prices are climbing again and the price of diesel has hit a record high! The national average for regular unleaded gasoline stands at $2.816 a gallon compared to 1.989 one year ago. In some areas, prices increased as much as 10 cents over the course of the weekend. According to AAA, demand for gasoline in the United States is down by 200,000 barrels a day from a year ago, one of the biggest declines in more than two decades. "USA Today forecasts a 24-cent jump in the price of gas would bump unleaded regular to a nationwide average of about $2.16 a gallon, blowing through last May's record of about $2.06. Costs could go higher as increased warm-weather driving in another two months pushes up demand; causing escalation of prices.'' (USA Today, 2005)With the high demand on fuel prices, Team B decided to identify data on increased fuel costs in the United States for the past twelve months.
AAAS 2011 Science Without BordersAs stated on the AAA's Fuel Gauge Report "during the onset of fuel shortages and vast price increases, AAA began providing regular, reliable information on fuel issues to the media and public."(AAA, 2005) AAA's website provides us adequate information on the rising and falling costs of the fuel prices in the United States.
This paper will use the data with absolute zero measurements, unleaded gasoline price for the nation in twelve months, establish and provide a the results of the hypothesis test by formulating a numerical and verbal statement, perform the five-step test, describe the results of the test and evaluate solutions to this research issue.
To demonstrate the increase in gasoline prices the following data table is retrieved from AAA's website (2005) demonstrating the national and 12-month averages for regular unleaded gasoline...