Question

Over the past 250 years a city has experienced 23 earthquakes at rather regular intervals. Approximately how often have these earthquakes occurred?

A. Every 50 years
B. Every 10 years
C. Every 100 years
D. Every 5 years

Answer 1

To find out how often the earthquakes occurred, divide the total years, 250, by the number of earthquakes, 23, which equals approximately every 10 years.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate the frequency of the earthquakes in the given city over the last 250 years, we need to divide the total time period by the number of earthquakes. This provides us with an approximate interval between the earthquakes.

For 23 earthquakes in 250 years, we use the formula: Interval = Total years ÷ Number of earthquakes = 250 ÷ 23 ≈ 10.87 years.

So, the earthquakes have occurred approximately every 10 years. Therefore, the correct answer is B. Every 10 years.