Finally, focus on the exact wording of what’s asked: “The total weight...Monday...approx-imately
what percent greater than...total weight on Friday?” The question asks for the increase from
Friday’s total to Monday’s total. (Don’t get confused by the fact that Monday comes before Friday;
the logic of what’s asked here makes Friday’s amount the starting point and requires you to express
Monday’s amount as an increase over Friday’s.)
Use the percent change formula:
On your calculator, divide 0.325 by 0.675. You’ll get approximately 0.481, which is 48.1%. this is
closest to choice (C).
Note that because this is a percent question, it’s a strong candidate for Picking Numbers. Had you
tried to do so, making w and t each 100, for example, you would have moved through the question
quickly and easily. Remember that, in the abstract, neither Picking Numbers nor algebra is better
than the other. Whatever gets you to the answer faster is better.
The answer is (C).
AVERAGE, MEDIAN, AND MODE
Average (arithmetic mean)Median = middle value (or average of two middle values)Mode = most frequent value