PeptideChemSF said:

Whatever the answer turns out to be, the method for getting there is the same: state the assumption, do the arithmetic in public, and invite the…

There is a second half to this that has not been said yet. Worth answering the question that was asked rather than the one behind it. The narrow version usually has an answer; the broad version usually does not, and answering the broad one is how a thread stops being useful.

One concrete data point for the thread. If you are comparing against somebody else’s result, check that you are comparing the same measurement taken the same way. Most of the apparent contradictions in these threads dissolve at that step.

I would rather be corrected than agreed with, if it comes to it.

A narrower follow-up, since the general answer is now clear:

What did you change at the same time, and can you separate the two now?

DataDave said:

If you are comparing against somebody else’s result, check that you are comparing the same measurement taken the same way.

Pushing back on DataDave here. The counter-case has not been addressed. Somebody upthread described the situation that does not fit, and the thread moved on rather than engaging with it, which is the failure mode this board is supposed to avoid.

I would rather be corrected than agreed with, if it comes to it.

DataDave said:

If you are comparing against somebody else’s result, check that you are comparing the same measurement taken the same way.

Agreed, with the usual condition: that holds for the average and this board is a collection of individuals. A population claim and a personal prediction are different things and get quoted interchangeably.