US Sat-Test Math

SAT Math Practice Questions (2015)

Multiple Choice

Information:

1.)
A special lottery is to be held to select the student who will live in the only deluxe room in a
dormitory. There are
seniors,
juniors, and
sophomores who applied. Each
senior's name is placed in the lottery times; each junior's name, times; and each sophomore's
name, time. What is the probability that a senior's name will be chosen?

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

To determine the probability that a senior's name will be chosen, you must determine the total
number of seniors' names that are in the lottery and divide this number by the total number of
names in the lottery. Since each senior's name is placed in the lottery times, there are
seniors' names. Likewise, there are
juniors' names and
sophomores' names in the lottery. The probability that a senior's name will be
chosen is

2.)

The table above shows the temperatures, in degrees Fahrenheit, in a city in Hawaii over a one-week
period. If
often, and

represents the median temperature, represents the temperature that occurs most
represents the average (arithmetic mean) of the seven temperatures, which of the

following is the correct order of

, and

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

To determine the correct order of

ascending order as shown below.

, and

, it is helpful to first place the seven temperatures in

The median temperature is the middle temperature in the ordered list, which is

, so

The temperature that occurs most often, or the mode, is

, so
. To determine the average,
you can add the seven numbers together and divide by . However, you can determine the
relationship between the average and the median by inspection. The three numbers greater than
are closer to
than are the three numbers smaller than
. Therefore, the average of the seven
numbers will be less than

. The correct order of

, and

is

3.)
The projected sales volume of a video game cartridge is given by the function
where is the number of cartridges sold, in thousands;
is the price per cartridge, in dollars; and
is a constant. If according to the projections,
cartridge, how many cartridges will be sold at

cartridges are sold at

per

per cartridge?

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

For

cartridges sold at

per cartridge,

cartridges sold, in thousands) and

(since

is the number of

. Substituting into the equation yields

.
Solving this equation for

yields

Since

is a constant, the function can be written as

cartridges will be sold at

Since

4.)

. To determine how many

per cartridge, you need to evaluate

is given in thousands, there will be

cartridges sold at

.
per cartridge.

In the

plane above, line

(not shown) contains the point

contains the points

and is perpendicular to

and

. If line

, what is an equation of

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

Since the coordinates of two points on line

which is perpendicular to

are given, the slope of

will have a slope of

Therefore, an equation of line

, it follows that
is

. Line

can be written as

. Since line

.
.

5.)

If two sides of the triangle above have lengths

which of the following?
.
.
.

since slopes of perpendicular lines are

negative reciprocals of each other. The equation of

also contains point

is

and

, the perimeter of the triangle could be

(A) only
(B) only
(C)
only
(D) and
only
(E) , , and

In questions of this type, statements , , and

should each be considered independently of the
others. You must determine which of those statements could be true.
Statement cannot be true. The perimeter of the triangle cannot be
, since the sum of the
two given sides is
without even considering the third side of the triangle.
Continuing to work the problem, you see that in , if the perimeter were
, then the third
side of the triangle would be
, or . A triangle can have side lengths of ,
, and . So the perimeter of the triangle could be
.
Finally, consider whether it is possible for the triangle to have a perimeter of
. In this
case, the third side of the triangle would be
. The third side of this
triangle cannot be
, since the sum of the other two sides is not greater than
. By the
Triangle Inequality, the sum of the lengths of any two sides of a triangle must be greater than
the length of the third side. So the correct answer is only.
6.)

If

and

, what is the value of

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

Since

can be written as

and
. Since

can be written as
, the value of

, the left side of the equation is

is

7.)
If

is divisible by

, and

, which of the following is also divisible by these numbers?

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

Since
is divisible by
multiple of , , and

, and
,
must be a multiple of
. Some multiples of
are ,
,

, as
is the least common
,
, and
.

If you add two multiples of

, the sum will also be a multiple of
. For example,
and
are multiples of
and their sum,
, is also a multiple of
.
If you add a multiple of
to a number that is not a multiple of
, the sum will not be a
multiple of
. For example,
is a multiple of
and
is not. Their sum,
, is
not a multiple of
.
The question asks which answer choice is divisible by , , and
; that is, which answer
choice is a multiple of
. All the answer choices are in the form of " plus a number."
Only choice (D),
, has
added to a multiple of
. The sum of
and
is
also a multiple of
, so the correct answer is choice (D).

Number and Operations:

The following concepts are covered on the SAT:

Arithmetic word problems (including percent, ratio, and proportion)

Properties of integers (even, odd, prime numbers, divisibility, etc.)
Rational numbers
Sets (union, intersection, elements)
Counting techniques
Sequences and series (including exponential growth)
Elementary number theory

Integers, Odd and Even Numbers, Prime Numbers, Digits

Integers: . . . , -4, -3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, . . .
(Note: zero is neither positive nor negative.)
Consecutive Integers: Integers that follow in sequence; for example, 22, 23, 24, 25. Consecutive
integers can be more generally represented by n, n +1, n + 2, n + 3, . . .
Odd Integers: . . . , -7, -5, -3, -1, 1, 3, 5, 7, . . . , 2k + 1, . . . , where k is an integer
Even Integers: . . . , -6, -4, -2, 0, 2, 4, 6, . . . , 2k, . . . , where k is an integer
(Note: zero is an even integer.)
Prime Numbers: 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, . . .
(Note: 1 is not a prime and 2 is the only even prime.)
Digits: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
(Note: the units digit and the ones digit refer to the same digit in a number. For example, in the
number 125, the 5 is called the units digit or the ones digit.)
Percent Increase and Decrease
Percent
Percent means hundredths, or number out of 100. For example, 40 percent means
.
Problem 1: If the sales tax on a $30.00 item is $1.80, what is the sales tax rate?
Solution:

.
Percent Increase/Decrease
Problem 2: If the price of a computer was decreased from $1,000 to $750, by what percent was the
price decreased?
Solution: The price decrease is $250. The percent decrease is the value of n in the equation
. The value of n is 25, so the price was decreased by 25%.
Note:

Average Speed
Problem: Jos traveled for 2 hours at a rate of 70 kilometers per hour and for 5 hours at a rate of 60
kilometers per hour. What was his average speed for the 7-hour period?
Solution: In this situation, the average speed is

.
The total distance was
.
The total time was 7 hours. Thus, the average speed was
.
Note: In this example, the average speed over the 7-hour period is not the average of the two given
speeds, which would be 65 kilometers per hour.
Sequences
Two common types of sequences that appear on the SAT are arithmetic and geometric sequences.
An arithmetic sequence is a sequence in which successive terms differ by the same constant
amount.
For example: 3, 5, 7, 9, . . . is an arithmetic sequence.
A geometric sequence is a sequence in which the ratio of successive terms is a constant.
For example: 2, 4, 8, 16, . . . is a geometric sequence.
A sequence may also be defined using previously defined terms. For example, the first term of a
sequence is 2, and each successive term is 1 less than twice the preceding term. This sequence
would be 2, 3, 5, 9, 17, . . .
On the SAT, explicit rules are given for each sequence. For example, in the sequence above, you
would not be expected to know that the 6th term is 33 without being given the fact that each term is
1 less than twice the preceding term. For sequences on the SAT, the first term is never referred to as
the zeroth term.

1.)
What is the result when
scientific notation?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

is rounded to the nearest thousand and then expressed in

In the number

, the thousands digit is

hundreds digit of
When
(D).

is more than

and the hundreds digit is

. Since the

, rounding to the nearest thousand gives

is expressed in scientific notation, the result is

, which is choice

2.)
The positive integer
is not divisible by . The remainder when
is divided by
remainder when
is divided by are each equal to . What is ?

and the

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E) It cannot be determined from the information given.

Since the positive integer

leaves nonzero remainder
when divided by , it can be written as
, where is a nonnegative integer and
is equal to one of the values , , , ,
, or

. Since

leaves the same nonzero remainder

, where

when divided by

is a nonnegative integer and

, it can be written as

has the same value. It is also true that

, which can be written as

, it follows that
divided by

leave the same remainder when

We know that
values for

and

. Since

is equal to one of the values

has the property that

and

, or

. We can see which of these

leave the same remainder when divided by

. If

, then
, which leaves remainder when divided by . Thus, is a possible value
for . But we are not done yet; since one of the answer choices is (E), It cannot be determined
from the information given, we must continue and check , , , , and as possible values for
.
If

, then

, which leaves remainder

, which leaves remainder

leaves remainder
when divided by
by

when divided by

when divided by
. If

when divided by

, then

. If

. If

, then

is

, then

, which is choice (A).

, then
, which

, which leaves remainder

, which leaves remainder

Therefore, the only possible value of

. If

when divided

3.)
The set

consists of all multiples of 6. Which of the following sets are contained within

. The set of all multiples of 3

. The set of all multiples of 9
. The set of all multiples of 12

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

only
only
only
and
only
and
only

To solve this problem, consider the set in each of ,

that set is contained within set .

, and

separately and determine whether

For , consider whether the set of all multiples of is contained within set . This will be the case
if every multiple of is also a multiple of . Since is a multiple of but is not a multiple of
, it follows that every multiple of is not necessarily a multiple of . Thus the set of all
multiples of is not contained within .
For , consider whether the set of all multiples of is contained within set . This will be the
case if every multiple of is also a multiple of . Since
is a multiple of but
is not a
multiple of , it follows that every multiple of is not necessarily a multiple of . Thus the set of
all multiples of is not contained within .
For
, consider whether the set of all multiples of
is contained within set . This will be the
case if every multiple of
is also a multiple of . Every multiple of
can be written as
for some integer , and a number is a multiple of if it can be written as
for some integer
. If

is any multiple of
, then
; since
can be written as
, where
is an integer, and so
set of all multiples of
is contained within .
Therefore, of the three sets given in ,
the correct answer is (C).

, and

, only the set in

is an integer, it follows that

is also a multiple of . Thus the
is contained within

. Thus

4.)
At the beginning of 2006, both Alan and Dave were taller than Boris, and Boris was taller than
Charles. During the year, Alan grew inches, Boris and Dave each grew
inches, and Charles
grew inches. Of the following, which could NOT have been true at the beginning of 2007?

(A) Alan was shorter than Boris.

(B) Alan was shorter than Charles.
(C) Boris was shorter than Dave.
(D) Dave was shorter than Alan.
(E) Dave was shorter than Charles.

Consider the choices in turn. At the beginning of 2006, Alan was taller than Boris; during the year,
Alan grew inches and Boris grew
inches. Since Alan grew less than Boris, it is possible that
Alan was shorter than Boris at the beginning of 2007. So choice (A) is not the correct answer.
At the beginning of 2006, Alan was taller than Boris, who was taller than Charles; thus, Alan was
taller than Charles. During the year, Alan grew inches and Charles grew inches. Since Alan
grew less than Charles, it is possible that Alan was shorter than Charles at the beginning of 2007. So
choice (B) is not the correct answer.
At the beginning of 2006, Dave was taller than Boris; during the year, Boris and Dave each grew
inches. Thus Boris was still shorter than Dave at the beginning of 2007. So choice (C) is not the
correct answer.
At the beginning of 2006, Alan and Dave were each taller than Boris, but we cannot determine
whether Alan was shorter than Dave or Dave was shorter than Alan, nor what the difference in their
heights was. So even though Dave grew
inches during the year while Alan grew only inches,
it is possible that Dave was shorter than Alan at the beginning of 2007. So choice (D) is not the
correct answer.
At the beginning of 2006, Dave was taller than Boris, who was taller than Charles; thus, Dave was
taller than Charles. During the year, Dave grew
inches and Charles grew only inches, so Dave
remained taller than Charles. Thus it could not be true that Dave was shorter than Charles at the
beginning of 2007. Therefore, choice (E) is the correct answer.

5.)
If
is an integer and if
integer?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

is a positive integer, which of the following must also be a positive

If

is an integer and if

is a positive integer, then

integers, and must therefore be an integer. Since

The integer

will be positive if

. Therefore, if

is the sum of two

is a positive integer, it follows that

. Since

is a positive integer,

, it follows that

.
, and so

must also be a positive integer.

If
is a positive integer, then the expressions in the other choices must be integers, but they need
not be positive integers:
For
positive.
For

, if
, if

, then
, then

For
, if
not positive.
For
, if
which is not positive.

, then
, then

Therefore, the correct answer is (B).

Algebra and Functions

The following concepts are covered on the test:

Substitution and simplifying algebraic expressions

Properties of exponents
Algebraic word problems
Solutions of linear equations and inequalities
Systems of equations and inequalities
Quadratic equations
Rational and radical equations
Equations of lines
Absolute value
Direct and inverse variation
Concepts of algebraic functions
Newly defined symbols based on commonly used operations

, which is not
, which is not positive.
, which is
,

Factoring
You may need to apply these types of factoring:
x2 + 2x = x (x + 2)
x2 1 = (x + 1) (x 1)
x2 + 2x + 1 = (x + 1) (x + 1) = (x + 1)2
2x2 + 5x 3 = (2x 1) (x + 3)

Functions
A function is a relation in which each element of the domain is paired with exactly one element of
the range. On the SAT, unless otherwise specified, the domain of any function is assumed to be
the set of all real numbers x for which (x) is a real number.
For example, if (x) =

, the domain of is all real numbers greater than or equal to 2. For

this function, 14 is paired with 4, since (14) =

Note: the
4.

= 4.

symbol represents the positive, or principal, square root. For example,

= 4, not

Exponents
You should be familiar with the following rules for exponents on the SAT.
For all values of a, b, x, y:

For all values of a, b, x > 0, y > 0:

Also,

. For example,

Note: For any nonzero number x, it is true that

.
.

Variation
Direct Variation: The variable y is directly proportional to the variable x if there exists a nonzero
constant k such that y = kx.
Inverse Variation: The variable y is inversely proportional to the variable x if there exists a nonzero
constant k such that

or xy = k.

Absolute Value
The absolute value of x is defined as the distance from x to zero on the number line. The absolute
value of x is written as |x|. For all real numbers x:

1.)
At a snack bar, a customer who orders a small soda gets a cup containing
is at least

but no more than

ounces of soda, where

. Which of the following describes all possible values of

?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

If

is at least

but no more than

. These inequalities are equivalent to

, then

describes all possible values of

, or

. By the definition of absolute value, the latter inequalities are equivalent to

the inequality
possible values of

. Therefore,
.

, which is choice (E), describes all

2.)
If
and are real numbers and the square of
following must be true?

is equal to the square root of

, which of the

.
.
.

(A) only
(B) and only
(C) and
only
(D) and
only
(E) , , and

It is given that the square of

or

is equal to the square root of

. Squaring both sides of the latter equation gives

. In symbols, this means

. Therefore, statement ,

, must be true.
Since
has a square root,
must be true.
Statement

must be a nonnegative number. Therefore, statement

need not be true. For example, if

of
true.
Thus, only and

is equal to the square root of

must be true, which is choice (B).

and

, then it is true that the square

, yet statement

, is not

3.)
For the first part of his bike trip, Dag rode down a hill at
miles per hour for hours. For the rest
of his trip, Dag rode up a hill at half that speed for twice as long. What was Dag's average speed, in
miles per hour, for his entire trip?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)
For the first part of his trip, Dag rode for hours at
miles per hour, so the distance he rode on
this part of the trip was
miles. For the rest of his trip, he rode at half the speed of the first part of
the trip, and for twice as long. Therefore, he rode at a speed of

miles per hour for

hours, and

thus he covered a distance of

miles in the rest of his trip. Dag's average speed, in
miles per hour, for the entire trip is equal to the total distance of his trip divided by the total time of
the trip. The total distance of his trip was
miles, and the total time of his trip was
hours. Therefore, Dag's average speed for the entire trip was
hour, which is choice (B).

miles per

4.)
A convenience store sells small bottles of juice for

each and large bottles of juice for

each.

Ciara bought bottles of juice at this store and paid

. Some of the bottles of juice that she
bought were large, and the rest were small. How many small bottles of juice did Ciara buy?

(A) Two
(B) Three
(C) Four
(D) Five
(E) Six

Let
be the number of large bottles of juice Ciara bought, and let be the number of small
bottles of juice she bought. Since Ciara bought a total of bottles of juice, the equation

is true.
The small bottles of juice cost
Since Ciara bought

large bottles of juice and

dollars, the equation

Since

dollars each, and the large bottles of juice cost

, it is true that

dollars each.

small bottles of juice and paid a total of

is true.
. Substituting this expression for

gives
. Simplifying gives
small bottles of juice, which is choice (E).

, or

in

. Thus, Ciara bought six

5.)
If

, which of the following must be true?

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

or

The inequalities
are equivalent to the inequalities
,
or
. Dividing each term of the latter inequalities by the positive number does not
change the direction of the inequalities, so
is equivalent to
. If is added
to each term of
, the equivalent inequalities
result. Therefore, if
, it must be true that
, which is choice (C).

Geometry and Measurement

The following concepts are covered on the test:

Area and perimeter of a polygon

Area and circumference of a circle
Volume of a box, cube, and cylinder
Pythagorean Theorem and special properties of isosceles, equilateral, and right triangles
Properties of parallel and perpendicular lines
Coordinate geometry
Geometric visualization
Slope
Similarity
Transformations

Geometric Figures
Figures that accompany problems are intended to provide information useful in solving the
problems. They are drawn as accurately as possible EXCEPT when it is stated in a particular
problem that the figure is not drawn to scale. In general, even when figures are not drawn to scale,
the relative positions of points and angles may be assumed to be in the order shown. Also, line
segments that extend through points and appear to lie on the same line may be assumed to be on the
same line. A point that appears to lie on a line or curve may be assumed to lie on the line or curve.
The text "Note: Figure not drawn to scale" is included with the figure when degree measures may
not be accurately shown and specific lengths may not be drawn proportionally. The following
examples illustrate what information can and cannot be assumed from figures.
Example 1

Since
and
are line segments, angles ACB and DCE are vertical angles. Therefore, you can
conclude that x = y. Even though the figure is drawn to scale, you should NOT make any other
assumptions without additional information. For example, you should NOT assume that AC = CD or
that the angle at vertex E is a right angle even though they might look that way in the figure.

Example 2:

A question may refer to a triangle such as ABC above. Although the note indicates that the figure is
not drawn to scale, you may assume the following from the figure:

ABD and DBC are triangles.

D is between A and C.
A, D, and C are points on a line.
The length of
is less than the length of
.
The measure of angle ABD is less than the measure of angle ABC.

You may not assume the following from the figure:

The length of
is less than the length of
.
The measures of angles BAD and BDA are equal.
The measure of angle ABD is greater than the measure of angle DBC.
Angle ABC is a right angle.

Properties of Parallel Lines

1.If two parallel lines are cut by a third line, the alternate interior angles are congruent. In the figure
above,
c = x and w = d
2. If two parallel lines are cut by a third line, the corresponding angles are congruent. In the figure,
a = w, b = x, c = y, and d = z
3. If two parallel lines are cut by a third line, the sum of the measures of the interior angles on the
same side of the transversal is 180. In the figure,
c + w = 180 and d + x = 180

Angle Relationships

1. The sum of the measures of the interior angles of a triangle is 180. In the figure above,
x = 70 because 60 + 50 + x = 180
2. When two lines intersect, vertical angles are congruent. In the figure,
y = 50
3. A straight angle measures 180. In the figure,
z = 130 because z + 50 = 180
4. The sum of the measures of the interior angles of a polygon can be found by drawing all
diagonals of the polygon from one vertex and multiplying the number of triangles formed by 180.

Since this polygon is divided into 3 triangles, the sum of the measures of
its angles is 3 x 180, or 540.
Unless otherwise noted in the SAT, the term "polygon" will be used to mean a convex polygon, that
is, a polygon in which each interior angle has a measure of less than 180.
A polygon is "regular" if all its sides are congruent and all its angles are congruent.

Side Relationships
1. Pythagorean theorem: In any right triangle, a2 + b2 = c2, where c is the length of the longest side
and a and b are the lengths of the two shorter sides.
To find the value of x, use the Pythagorean Theorem.

x 2 = 3 2 + 42
x2 = 9 + 16

2. In any equilateral triangle, all sides are congruent and all angles are congruent.

Because the measure of the unmarked angle is 60, the measures of all angles of the triangle are
equal; and, therefore, the lengths of all sides of the triangle are equal: x = y = 10.
3. In an isosceles triangle, the angles opposite congruent sides are congruent. Also, the sides
opposite congruent angles are congruent. In the figures below, a = b and x = y.

4. In any triangle, the longest side is opposite the largest angle, and the shortest side is opposite the
smallest angle. In the figure below, a < b < c.

5. Two polygons are similar if and only if the lengths of their corresponding sides are in the same
ratio and the measures of their corresponding angles are equal.

If polygons ABCDEF and GHIJKL are similar, then

and

are corresponding sides, so that

. Therefore, x = 9 = HI.
Note:

means the line segment with endpoints A and F, and AF means the length of

Area and Perimeter

Rectangles
Area of a rectangle = length width =
Perimeter of a rectangle = 2(

+ w) = 2

w
+ 2w

Circles
Area of a circle =

r2 (where r is the radius)

Circumference of a circle = 2

r=

d (where d is the diameter)

Triangles
Area of a triangle =

(base altitude)

Perimeter of a triangle = the sum of the lengths of the three sides

Triangle inequality: The sum of the lengths of any two sides of a triangle must be greater than the
length of the third side.
Volume
Volume of a rectangular solid (or cube) =

wh

(l is the length, w is the width, and h is the height)

Volume of a right circular cylinder = r2h
(r is the radius of the base, and h is the height)
Be familiar with the formulas that are provided in the Reference Information included with the
test directions.

Coordinate Geometry

1. In questions that involve the x- and y-axes, x-values to the right of the y-axis are positive and x-

values to the left of the y-axis are negative. Similarly, y-values above the x-axis are positive and yvalues below the x-axis are negative. In an ordered pair (x, y), the x-coordinate is written first. Point
P in the figure above appears to lie at the intersection of gridlines. From the figure, you can
conclude that the x-coordinate of P is 2 and the y-coordinate of P is 3. Therefore, the coordinates
of point P are (2, 3). Similarly, you can conclude that the line shown in the figure passes through
the point with coordinates (2, 1) and the point (2, 2).
2. Slope of a line =

A line that slopes upward as you go from left to right has a positive slope. A line that slopes
downward as you go from left to right has a negative slope. A horizontal line has a slope of zero.
The slope of a vertical line is undefined.
Parallel lines have the same slope. The product of the slopes of two perpendicular lines is 1,
provided the slope of each of the lines is defined. For example, any line perpendicular to line
above has a slope of

The equation of a line can be expressed as y = mx + b, where m is the slope and b is the y-intercept.
Since the slope of line

is

, the equation of line

can be expressed as

the point (2, 1) is on the line, x = 2 and y = 1 must satisfy the equation. Hence,
and the equation of

line is

, since
so

3. A quadratic function can be expressed as y = a (x h)2 + k, where the vertex of the parabola is at
the point (h, k) and a 0. If a > 0, the parabola opens upward; and if a < 0, the parabola opens
downward.

The parabola above has its vertex at (2, 4). Therefore, h = 2 and k = 4. The equation can be
represented by y = a (x + 2)2 + 4. Since the parabola opens downward, we know that a < 0. To find
the value of a, we also need to know another point on the parabola. Since we know the parabola
passes through the point (1, 1), x = 1 and y = 1 must satisfy the equation.
Hence, 1 = a(1 + 2)2 + 4,
so

Therefore, an equation for the parabola is

1.)

In the figure above, side

of

lies on line

. What is the value of

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E) It cannot be determined from the information given.

Since the angles of

are of measures

the angles of a triangle is

or
.
Since side

of

, and

, and the sum of the measures of

, it must be true that

lies on line

. That is,
which is choice (A).

. Since

, the angle measures

. Therefore,

and

, it follows that

must add up to
. Therefore,

2.)

In the figure above,

area of
is

is a radius of the circle,

is tangent to the circle at point
. What is the area of the circle?

, and the

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

To find the area of the circle, we need to find its radius.

is a radius of the circle. Since
is
tangent to the circle at point , it follows that
is a right angle and, therefore,
is a
right triangle. The area of
, it follows that
circle is thus

is

, so area of
. Therefore, the circle has radius

which is choice (C).

. Since
, and the area of the

3.)

The rectangular solid above has surface area

the solid?

square feet. What is the volume, in cubic feet, of

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

The surface area of the rectangular solid is the sum of the areas of its six faces. The rectangular
solid has two faces with area
square feet each, two faces with area
square feet each, and
two faces with area

square feet each. Therefore, its surface area is

square

feet. Since the surface area is given to be

square feet, it follows that
, and
. Thus the width of the rectangular solid is feet.
The volume of the solid is given by the product of its length, width, and height. Therefore, the
volume is (
feet)( feet)( feet), or
cubic feet. Thus the correct answer is (C).

4.)

In the figure above, the circle has center

What is the circumference of the circle?

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

and the four shaded semicircles each have area

The circumference of the circle is equal to

, where
is the diameter of the circle. The
diameter of the circle is the sum of the diameters of the four semicircles. The four semicircles have
equal area, so they must also have equal radii. Let be the radius of one of the semicircles. Each of
the four semicircles has area
, so
. Solving for
sum of the diameters of the four semicircles is
diameter
of the circle, and the circumference of the circle is

gives

. Therefore, the
. Thus
is also the
, which is choice (D).

5.)

In the figure above,

is the ratio of the area of

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

is similar to
. The ratio of
to the area of
?

to

is

to

. What

to
to
to
to
to

To compare the areas of

point
and an altitude of

and
, it is helpful to draw an altitude of
from
from point , as shown in the figure above. Then area of

and area of

. It is given that

. So to

find
, you need to find the value of
. You can use the fact that
corresponding altitudes of similar triangles are in the same ratio as corresponding sides to conclude

that

. Alternatively, you could notice that

and share a common angle at

corresponding sides of
and

, respectively, it follows that

are also corresponding sides of

Therefore,
of the area of

each have a right angle

to conclude that they are similar. Since

and

these two triangles is also

and

and

and thus

and

are
. Since

, it follows that the similarity ratio of

. Thus the ratio

to the area of

is

to

, which is choice (C).

Data Analysis, Statistics, and Probability

The following concepts are covered on the test:
Data interpretation (tables and graphs)
Descriptive statistics (mean, median, and mode)
Probability

Measures of Center
An average is a statistic that is used to summarize data. The most common type of average is the
arithmetic mean. The average (arithmetic mean) of a list of n numbers is equal to the sum of the
numbers divided by n.
For example, the mean of 2, 3, 5, 7, and 13 is equal to
.
When the average of a list of n numbers is given, the sum of the numbers can be found. For
example, if the average of six numbers is 12, the sum of these six numbers is 12 x 6, or 72.
The median of a list of numbers is the number in the middle when the numbers are ordered from
greatest to least or from least to greatest. For example, the median of 3, 8, 2, 6, and 9 is 6 because
when the numbers are ordered, 2, 3, 6, 8, 9, the number in the middle is 6. When there is an even
number of values, the median is the same as the mean of the two middle numbers. For example, the
median of 6, 8, 9, 13, 14, and 16 is the mean of 9 and 13, which is 11.
The mode of a list of numbers is the number that occurs most often in the list. For example, 7 is the
mode of 2, 7, 5, 8, 7, and 12. The list 2, 4, 2, 8, 2, 4, 7, 4, 9, and 11 has two modes, 2 and 4.
Note: On the SAT, the use of the word average refers to the arithmetic mean and is indicated by

"average (arithmetic mean)." The exception is when a question involves average speed. Questions
involving median and mode will have those terms stated as part of the question's text.

Probability
Probability refers to the chance that a specific outcome can occur. When outcomes are equally
likely, probability can be found by using the following definition:

For example, if a jar contains 13 red marbles and 7 green marbles, the probability that a marble
selected from the jar at random will be green is

If a particular outcome can never occur, its probability is 0. If an outcome is certain to occur, its
probability is 1. In general, if p is the probability that a specific outcome will occur, values of p fall
in the range 0 p 1. Probability may be expressed as either a decimal, a fraction, or a ratio.

1.)

The bar graph above shows the number of employees at Company

for each of the years from
1996 through 2000. Over which of the following periods was the average rate of increase in the
number of employees at Company
greatest?

(A) From 1996 through 1998

(B) From 1996 through 1999
(C) From 1997 through 1999
(D) From 1998 through 1999
(E) From 1998 through 2000

You can estimate the rate of increase for each of the five choices to find which is the greatest.

From 1996 through 1998, Company

gained roughly

average rate of increase of about

employees per year.

From 1996 through 1999, Company

average rate of increase of about

gained roughly
employees per year.

From 1997 through 1999, Company

average rate of increase of about

gained roughly

employees over
employees over

years, for an
years, for an

employees over

years, for an

employees over

year, for a

employees per year.

From 1998 through 1999, Company

gained roughly
rate of increase of about
employees per year.
From 1998 through 2000, Company
gained roughly
average rate of increase of about
employees per year.

employees over

years, for an

Of the choices, the average rate of increase in the number of employees at Company
greatest for the period from 1998 through 1999.

was

There is also a quicker way to figure out the answer. Choice (D), from 1998 through 1999, is the
single largest yearly increase in the number of employees. Therefore, the average rate of increase
for any other time period must be less than that for this -year period.

2.)

The amount that a plumber charges for a service call that is

hours long is shown in the graph
above. The charges for a service call consist of an initial amount plus a charge for each hour of
work. According to the graph, what is the hourly charge?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

The plumbers charge for hour is the sum of the initial amount and the hourly charge, and the
plumber's charge for hours is the sum of the initial amount and twice the hourly charge. Hence
the hourly charge is equal to the charge for
which is equal to

hours, or

, minus the charge for

hour,

3.)

The scatterplot above shows the area, in square miles, versus the population, in thousands, for six
states. How many of these states have a population under

and an area over

square miles?

(A) One
(B) Two
(C) Three
(D) Four
(E) Five

This is a scatterplot in which each point represents a state. The

square miles, and the

is the population in thousands. For example, the leftmost

and lowest point has approximate coordinates (

the plot is in thousands and that
that have an

). Remember that the population in

is equal to

greater than
less than

thousand. Look for points

and a

. There are three points with an

three points have a

is the area in

less than
greater than

; two of these

4.)

The scatterplot above shows the enrollment in 1980 against the enrollment in 2000 for twenty
colleges. Which of the labeled points represents the college that had the smallest percent increase in
enrollment from 1980 to 2000?

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

This is a scatterplot in which each point represents a college. The

enrollment in 1980, and the
coordinates

is the enrollment in 2000. Point

is the
has approximate

, so the college represented by this point had an enrollment that

increased only
between 1980 and 2000. All the other
labeled points represent colleges with greater percent increases in enrollment.

5.)

At the Cross Street Convenience Store between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. on Friday, a total of
items
were purchased. The graph above shows the distribution of the number of items purchased in each
of five categories. In terms of

, how many more sandwiches than pastries were purchased?

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(E)

Of the

items purchased,

were sandwiches and

to
, and
of
is equal to
sandwiches than pastries were purchased.

. Therefore,

were pastries.

of
, or

is equal
more