In an article in the Annals of Botany, a researcher reported the basal stem diameters of two groups of dicot sunflowers: those that were left to sway freely in the wind and those that were artificially supported. A similar experiment was conducted for monocot maize plants. Although the authors measured other variables in a more complicated experimental design, assume that each group consisted of 64 plants (a total of 128 sunflower and 128 maize plants). The values shown in the table are the sample means plus or minus the standard error.

Use your knowledge of statistical estimation to compare the free-standing and supported basal diameters for the two plants. Write a paragraph describing your conclusions, making sure to include a measure of the accuracy of your inference.

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Sunflower |Maize Free-Standing 35.3 t 72 16.2 + 41 Supported 321 72 14.6 40