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Two-variable data: Models and scatterplots SAT question

Math · Problem-Solving and Data Analysis · Easy · Answer it here, explanation included.

The figure presents a scatterplot titled “Temperature and Elevation.” The horizontal axis is labeled “Elevation, in feet,” and the numbers 6,000 through 9,000, in increments of 500, are indicated. The vertical axis is labeled “Temperature, in degrees Fahrenheit,” and the integers 37 through 45 are indicated. There are 8 data points. The data points begin a little below, and to the right of the top of the vertical axis, then trend downward and to the right. A line of best fit is drawn. The data represented by the 8 data points are as follows. Note that all values are approximate. Point 1. 6,350 feet, 42 point 9 degrees Fahrenheit. Point 2. 6,750 feet, 43 point 8 degrees Fahrenheit. Point 3. 6,750 feet, 42 degrees Fahrenheit. Point 4. 7,500 feet, 42 point 2 degrees Fahrenheit. Point 5. 8,000 feet, 40 point 5 degrees Fahrenheit. Point 6. 8,000 feet, 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Point 7. 8,800 feet, 38 point 6 degrees Fahrenheit. Point 8. 8,800 feet, 37 point 6 degrees Fahrenheit. The line of best fit passes through the data point representing 7,500 feet comma 41 point 1 degrees Fahrenheit, and the data point representing 8,500 feet comma 39 degrees Fahrenheit

The scatterplot above shows the high temperature on a certain day and the elevation of 8 different locations in the Lake Tahoe Basin. A line of best fit for the data is also shown. Which of the following statements best describes the association between the elevation and the temperature of locations in the Lake Tahoe Basin?

ExplanationShow

Choice B is correct. The association between the elevation and the temperature of locations in the Lake Tahoe Basin can be described by looking at the direction of the line of best fit. The line of best fit slopes downward, which corresponds to the temperature decreasing as the elevation increases.

Choices A and C are incorrect. Both of these choices would be represented by a line of best fit that slopes from the lower left to the upper right of the graph, which isn’t what’s shown on the graph. Choice D is incorrect. This choice would be represented by a line of best fit that is horizontal or has a slope very close to 0. This is not what’s shown on the graph.

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