The median is the middle value after the data are put in numerical order. A table arranged by day isn't necessarily arranged by pages, so find the middle by page count, not by weekday. With an odd number of entries, there's one middle position. For an unsorted table, enter each day's count in a Desmos list and use , keeping repeated counts.
Hints
- Hint 1
A median depends on position, not on adding the page counts. Count all the days in the table. With seven entries, how many would sit on each side of the middle entry?
- Hint 2
The table is in weekday order, not page-count order. Put every day's count in one Desmos list, including both days with the same count, then ask Desmos for its median.
Step-by-step
Approach 1: Find the median with a Desmos list
Step 1Locate the middle position
The median is the middle value after the counts are ordered. The table has seven days, so three counts will sit on either side of the fourth count. Don't take the fourth table row: the rows are ordered by day, not by pages read.
- Step 2
Enter every daily count
Type in table order. Desmos stores a seven-item list. Check that it includes both s: Tuesday and Friday are two separate days, even though Olivia read the same number of pages.
- Step 3
Read the median
Type . Desmos orders the counts and shows for the middle value. So Olivia read a median of pages per day that week. Choice C.
Approach 2: See the middle by ordering the counts
Step 1Sort the page counts
Arrange the seven daily counts from least to greatest:
Keep both occurrences of ; each represents a different day's reading.
- Step 2
Take the fourth count
Three counts lie before the fourth entry and three lie after it, so that entry is the median. Olivia's median was pages per day. Choice C.