Final answer:
To find the median sea otter weight, order the weights and calculate the average of the middle two weights, which results in a median weight of 76.6 pounds.
Step-by-step explanation:
The median sea otter weight can be determined by first ordering the weights from lowest to highest:
- 62.7 pounds
- 70.1 pounds
- 73.8 pounds
- 79.4 pounds
- 85.9 pounds
- 99.0 pounds
Since there are six data points, median is the average of the middle two numbers, which are 73.8 and 79.4 pounds.
The median of sea otter weights is 76.6 pounds (option c), which is the sum of the third and fourth weights divided by two.
The median is the middle value in a set of numbers arranged in numerical order. In this case, the sea otter weights are 70.1, 99.0, 85.9, 79.4, 73.8, and 62.7 pounds. To find the median, we need to put the weights in ascending order: 62.7, 70.1, 73.8, 79.4, 85.9, 99.0. Since the set contains an even number of values, the median will be the average of the two middle numbers, which are 73.8 and 79.4. Therefore, the median sea otter weight is 76.6 pounds.