Some people claim that they can get relief from migraine hea…
Some people claim that they can get relief from migraine headache pain by drinking a large glass of ice water. To test this claim, researchers plan to enlist 200 people who suffer from migraines in a test. When a participant experiences a migraine headache, he or she will take a pill that may be a standard pain reliever or a placebo (100 will randomly be selected to receive a standard pain reliever, and the rest will get a placebo). In each group of 100, fifty will randomly be selected and be told to drink a large glass of ice water; the rest will be told to avoid ice water. The pill will be administered as in a double-blind study, although the ice water cannot be administered this way. One hour after taking the pill. participants will report their level of pain. (a) What is the response variable in this study? (b) The study notes that some participants will get a placebo. What is meant by a placebo in the context of this study? (c) When we are analyzing the results of this study, are we allowed to make cause and effect conclusions? Why or why not?
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