Null Hypothesis

A null hypothesis is an assumption of the status quo. It assumes that there is no statistically significant difference in the observed value of a parameter and its mean and any such difference that arises is by chance only.

For example: Let's assume that average cooking time for Maggi noodles is 2 minutes. If a sample takes 3 minutes, the null hypothesis assumes that this difference is arising by chance only and is statistically insignificant.

A null hypothesis can be accepted or rejected based on a statistical procedure known as hypothesis testing. If the null hypothesis is rejected, then the corresponding alternate hypothesis can be accepted.

For example, if the null hypothesis in Maggi noodles example is rejected, it means that the mean cooking time is not 2 minutes. It can be more or less than 2 minutes.