Tell whether the data collected is continuous or discrete.
Rose recycles aluminum cans each week. She records the total number of cans she recycles each week.
Jackson is at a crab race. He records the distance traveled by his pet crab each minute.
If you can only have whole numbers, it is discrete. If you can have partial values, it is continuous.
Answer for yourself.
Discrete
To determine whether the data collected is continuous or discrete, we need to understand the nature of the collected information in each scenario.
In the case of Rose recycling aluminum cans each week, she records the total number of cans she recycles each week. The total number of cans, in this case, would be a discrete quantity. Discrete data is made up of distinct, separate values, such as whole numbers. The number of cans recycled cannot be a fractional or continuous value. Therefore, the data collected by Rose is discrete.
In the case of Jackson observing his pet crab at a race, he records the distance traveled by the crab each minute. The distance traveled by the crab would be a continuous quantity. Continuous data represents measurements that can take any value within a given range. In this case, the distance traveled by the crab could take on fractional or continuous values, such as 3.25 meters or 4.67 meters. Therefore, the data collected by Jackson is continuous.
In summary:
- The data collected by Rose (total number of cans recycled) is discrete.
- The data collected by Jackson (distance traveled by the crab) is continuous.