also would not adjustments in compression ratio, acomplish the same thing?
No, that would only get you back some of the power from running higher percentage of nitro. Raising compression ratio whith the same nitro only slows the engine down, causes detonation, and makes the engine run hotter. See the recommended compression ratios in the link I provided. This has nothing to do with better idle, in fact higher compression ratios make the engine idle a bit rougher. The nitro improves the idle because it has a broader tolerance to fuel ratios. It can be run slightly rich just like lower ratios, but it can be run much richer with little loss of power. With very high percentages of nitro you may have to move the needle several clicks to see a differance on you tach, while with low percentages your ear can detect a change with just one click.