Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

Hello! I'm a 12th grader that's working on the x-inactivation in calico cats project. I collected all my data, but I'm not sure how to analyze my data. I originally thought that using chi-squared would work, but I don't have expected values. Would the expected values be all equal since the x-inactivation should be evenly spread? Or does the usage of chi-squared not work?

Here is the link to the experiment that I was following: https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science- ... or#summary

Thank you!

Hi Ameliaeng,

This is a fun project! I would agree with you that a chi-squared test is not your best option since you do not have expected data. The experiment page suggests using pie or bar charts to analyze the ratios between the fur colors.

However, on the "Make It Your Own" tab in the experiment, a suggested analysis is comparing the tortoiseshell coloring the gender, which you could use chi-squared for as you would expect all cats with that coloring to be female.

Good luck with the rest of your project, and let us know if you have any more questions!
Cat