Question

A city's yearly snowfall in inches over the last 5 years is recorded.

What is the mean of the snowfall in the last 5 years and how can it be interpreted?

Responses:

A mean of 25 shows that the data values are relatively close together. It represents that typically the city's snowfall has been about 25 inches yearly the last 5 years.

A mean of 25 shows that the data values are spread out. It represents that the city's snowfall has been exactly 25 inches each year for the last 5 years.

A mean of 27.2 shows that the data values are relatively close together. It represents that typically the city's snowfall has been about 27.2 inches yearly the last 5 years.

A mean of 27.2 shows that the data values are spread out. It represents that the city's snowfall has been exactly 27.2 inches each year for the last 5 years.

Year Snowfall (inches)
2015 25
2016 27
2017 25
2018 29
2019 30

Answer 1

A mean of 27.2 shows that the data values are relatively close together. It represents that typically the city's snowfall has been about 27.2 inches yearly over the last 5 years.

Explanation:

The mean, also known as the average, is the sum of all the data values divided by the number of data points. In this case, the mean of 27.2 inches indicates that, on average, the city has experienced a snowfall of approximately 27.2 inches per year over the last 5 years. The fact that the mean is close to the individual values of 25, 27, 25, 29, and 30 inches suggests that the data points are relatively close together and do not deviate significantly from the mean, indicating that the snowfall in the city has been relatively consistent over the past 5 years.