A certain library has 10,000 books. Two thousand of these books are nonfiction books and the rest are fiction. In order to estimate the total number of pages in their nonfiction books, two plans are proposed.
Plan I:
1. Sample 50 books at random.
2. Estimate the mean number of pages per book using a confidence interval.
3. Multiply both ends of the interval by 10,000 to get an interval estimate of the total.
Plan II:
1. Identify the 2,000 nonfiction books.
2. Sample 50 nonfiction books at random.
3. Estimate the mean number of pages for nonfiction books using a confidence interval.
4. Multiply both ends of the interval by 2,000 to get an interval estimate of the total.
On the basis of the information given, which of the following is the better method for estimating the total number of pages in nonfiction books in the library?
A. Choose plan I over plan II.
B. Choose plan II over plan I.
C. Choose either plan, since both are good and will produce equivalent results.
D. Choose neither plan since neither estimates the total number of nonfiction pages.
E. The plans cannot be evaluated from the information given.
Answer: B