Question

When computing the mean, the smallest data valueChoose the correct sentence.


can be any value


can never be negative


can never be less than the mean


can never be zero

Answer 1

Answer: option A is correct i.e., when computing the mean, the smallest data value can be any value.

Explanation:

The mean is the average of the numbers. So, to find the mean we add all the numbers then divide by how many numbers there are.

So there is no restrictions for choosing the data values.

Example:

In order to find the mean of -4, 5, 6, 0, and 8, first we have to add the numbers and then divide the sum by the number of items.  

-4 + 5 + 6 + 0 + 7 = 15

i.e. the sum of the numbers is 15.

Mean = $\frac{15}{5}$ = 3

So, the mean of the data set -4, 5, 6, 0, and 8 is 3.

Here smallest value is less than the mean.

So, option C is incorrect.

we can use positive as well as negative numbers. So option B is also incorrect.

Similarly we can use zero at the place of smallest data value. So, option D is also incorrect.

so, option A is correct i.e., when computing the mean, the smallest data value can be any value.