Jennifer considered the numbers 4, 24, 44, and 64 and
noticed that they all ended in 4 and that they can be
divided evenly by 4, leaving no remainder. She concluded
that all numbers that end in 4 can be divided
evenly by 4. What type of reasoning did Jennifer use? Is
her conclusion correct? Explain your answer.
See bobpursley's response to this question.
http://www.jiskha.com/display.cgi?id=1263996395
BobPursley's response talks about black men on death row not the solution.
Jennifer used inductive reasoning. Inductive reasoning involves generalizing from a specific set of observations to reach a broader conclusion. In this case, Jennifer observed that all the numbers she considered (4, 24, 44, and 64) ended in 4 and were divisible by 4 without any remainder, and she concluded that all numbers ending in 4 can be divided evenly by 4.
However, her conclusion is not necessarily correct. Inductive reasoning has its limitations because the conclusion is based on a limited number of observations. While Jennifer's observation holds true for the numbers she considered, it may not hold true for all numbers ending in 4. To verify her conclusion, she would need to test a larger set of numbers, including those that are not part of her initial set. This would help determine if the pattern holds true universally.
In this case, Jennifer's conclusion would be correct if she had tested all numbers ending in 4 and found that they are all divisible by 4 without any remainder. But without testing a larger sample of numbers, we cannot definitively say that her conclusion is correct.