Which statement correctly describes the mean and range in weather data?

• A. Mean is the mode; range is the sum of all values.
• B. Mean is the median; range is the product of min and max.
• C. Mean is the average value; range is the difference between highest and lowest values.
• D. Mean is the most frequent difference; range is the average.

Answer: (C)

When summarizing weather data, you look at two basic ideas: the mean and the range. The mean is the average value, found by adding all the measurements together and dividing by how many measurements there are. The range shows how spread out the values are, calculated by subtracting the lowest value from the highest value. So saying that the mean is the average value and the range is the difference between the highest and lowest values captures both the central tendency and the spread of the data.

For example, if temperatures are 10, 12, 15, and 22 degrees, the mean is 14.75°C and the range is 12°C. The mean is not the most frequent value (that would be the mode), nor is it necessarily the middle value (the median). The range isn’t a product or some other operation; it’s simply the difference between the extreme values.