ShmoopTube

00:03

Here's a boring, unshmoopy question you'll find on an exam somewhere in your life...

00:08

The following chart shows Dave's weight loss progress.

00:11

Which of the following statements is true?

00:14

And here are your answer choices:

00:21

Well, it's really asking whether or not we can read a bar chart.

00:25

Uh, no... this kind of bar chart.

00:27

There's no formula for answering this question -- you have to brute force it.

00:33

So question A -- did Dave stop losing weight after month 5?

00:37

Well, with one look, we can see here that he flatlines at 160 pounds.

00:41

So we can check A off our list -- it can't be true.

00:44

We're down to 3 possible answers. Now let's try B.

00:48

He lost the most weight between the first two months.

00:51

Well, here they are -- month 1 and 2... ...and yep.

00:53

Looks like the start of his diet went pretty darn well.

00:56

But you can only avoid cupcakes for so long.

01:02

Statement (B) is also false.

01:03

He lost the most weight between the first two months,

01:07

not the fourth and fifth. D is a no-go either.

01:10

At the end of nine months,

01:11

Dave had lost a total of 40 pounds... ...not the 50 claimed by statement D.

01:16

Only statement C is true. Between months 1 and 3, he lost about 25 pounds.

01:21

Way to go, Dave. You can almost fit into those pants you wore in college.

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