Table 5.5 reports that the 95% confidence interval for the comparison of mean corn size at six months between the corn plaster and scalpel groups is: −1.2 to −0.2 mm.

Which (if any) of the following statements about the 95% confidence interval is CORRECT?

A. There is a probability of 0.05 that the population mean difference in corn size at six months between the corn plaster and scalpel groups lies between −1.2 and −0.2 mm.

B. There is a probability of 0.95 that the population mean difference in corn size at six months between the corn plaster and scalpel groups lies between −1.2 and −0.2 mm.

C. The 95% confidence interval does not contain the true population mean difference in corn size at six months between the Corn plaster and Scalpel groups.

D. The 95% confidence interval contains the true population mean difference in corn size at six months between the corn plaster and scalpel groups.

E. If we repeated the study 100 times, we would expect 95 of the resulting 95% confidence intervals to include the population mean difference in corn size at six months between the corn plaster and scalpel groups.

Table 5.5

Corn plaster Scalpel Size of (n = (n = Mean 95% confidence index 101) 101) interval corn Mean SD Mean SD SD Difference Lower Upper P-value (mm) Baseline 3.9 (1.7) 3.8 (1.8) 3 1.7 (1.5) 2.7 (2.3) -1.0 -1.5 -0.5 months 6 1.7 (1.6) 2.4 (2.2) -0.7 -1.2 -0.2 months 9 1.7 (1.6) 2.2 (2.1) -0.5 -1.2 0.1 months 12 1.3 (1.6) 2.3 (2.2) -1.0 -1.7 -0.2 0.01 months