Here are five numbers: 14.2, 15.1, 16.5, 16.7, 18.0. Work out the mean.
How to approach this question
1. The mean is the sum of the numbers divided by the count of the numbers.
2. Add all five numbers together: 14.2 + 15.1 + 16.5 + 16.7 + 18.0.
3. Count how many numbers there are (which is 5).
4. Divide the sum by the count.
Full Answer
16.1
The mean is calculated by summing all the values and dividing by the number of values.
The five numbers are: 14.2, 15.1, 16.5, 16.7, 18.0.
Step 1: Sum the numbers.
14.2 + 15.1 + 16.5 + 16.7 + 18.0 = 80.5
Step 2: Count the numbers.
There are 5 numbers.
Step 3: Divide the sum by the count.
Mean = 80.5 / 5 = 16.1.
Common mistakes
✗ Making an error when adding the numbers.
✗ Dividing by the wrong number (e.g., 4 or 6 instead of 5).
✗ Confusing the mean with the median (the middle value) or mode (most frequent value).
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