Question

Charlie guesses that his dog weighs 34.5 pounds. The dog actually weighs 32.7 pounds. What is the percent error in Charlie’s guess, to the nearest tenth of a percent? 0.05% 0.5% 5.2% 5.5%

Answer 1

the answer is 5.5 % because 34.5x5.5=32.7

Answer 2

The correct answer is that Charlie made a guess with a 5.2% error.

Explanation:

We have that a % error could be written as

`\% error=(|approx-exact|)/(exact)*100`

where approx is the estimate value that Charlie made, exact is the actual weight of the dog, and approx minus exact should be expressed in absolute value.

Doing this calculation, we have that

`\% error=(|32.7-34.5|)/(34.5)*100=(120)/(23)=5.22`

and taking the result to the nearest tenth of a percent, we actually have the correct answer, wich is 5.2%.