RICAS Data Interpretation 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A scatter plot shows the number of hours students studied and their test scores. Most points form a line going up from left to right. What does this pattern indicate?
- There is a positive correlation between study hours and scores (Correct answer)
- There is a negative correlation between study hours and scores
- There is no relationship between study hours and scores
- Study hours cause lower test scores
Correct answer: There is a positive correlation between study hours and scores
A scatter plot where points trend upward from left to right shows a positive correlation — as one variable increases, so does the other.
Question 2: A pie chart shows how a school spends its budget. The 'Sports' slice has a central angle of 72°. What percent of the budget goes to Sports?
- 72%
- 36%
- 20% (Correct answer)
- 28%
Correct answer: 20%
A full circle is 360°, so 72° ÷ 360° = 0.20 = 20% of the budget goes to Sports.
Question 3: A double bar graph compares boys' and girls' favorite subjects. In the Math column, the boys' bar reaches 30 and the girls' bar reaches 18. How many more boys than girls chose Math?
- 48
- 12 (Correct answer)
- 18
- 30
Correct answer: 12
Subtract the smaller value from the larger: 30 − 18 = 12 more boys than girls chose Math.
Question 4: The table below shows daily high temperatures (°F) for one week: 68, 72, 65, 70, 74, 69, 71. What is the range of temperatures?
- 9 (Correct answer)
- 8
- 6
- 74
Correct answer: 9
Range = highest value − lowest value = 74 − 65 = 9°F.
Question 5: A line graph shows a city's population from 2000 to 2020. The line drops sharply between 2010 and 2015, then rises slightly. What best describes the population trend?
- Steady growth throughout
- A significant decrease followed by a slight recovery (Correct answer)
- Consistent decline throughout
- No change over 20 years
Correct answer: A significant decrease followed by a slight recovery
A sharp drop followed by a small rise means the population significantly decreased and then partially recovered.
Question 6: A frequency table shows that 12 students scored 80–89 on a test and 8 students scored 90–100. What fraction of the 40 total students scored 80 or above?
- 1/4
- 1/2 (Correct answer)
- 3/8
- 2/5
Correct answer: 1/2
12 + 8 = 20 students scored 80 or above; 20/40 = 1/2 of all students.
Question 7: A histogram displays the number of books students read over summer. The bar for '5–7 books' is the tallest. What does this tell you?
- No students read fewer than 5 books
- Most students read between 5 and 7 books (Correct answer)
- The average student read exactly 6 books
- Students who read 5–7 books got the best grades
Correct answer: Most students read between 5 and 7 books
The tallest bar in a histogram represents the interval with the highest frequency — most students read 5–7 books.
RICAS Data Interpretation 2
A scatter plot shows the number of hours students studied and their test scores.
Most points form a line going up from left to right.
What does this pattern indicate?