Question

ratios seem so harmless when presented in math classes, 2 fish is to 3 bunnies as 8 fish is to 12 bunnies. in the real world we run into difficult tables of information like the one below. test your quantitative literacy skills and see if you can answer the following questions. good luck!
table 2.1 taming the river
number of courses taken during freshman and sophomore year
(standardized cohort of 1,000 students)

1. what does the number 541 mean in the first column?
2. compute the ratio of english to art classes for each column, and scale the ratios so that the second quantity is 1. round to 2 decimal places.

Explanation:

Step1: Identify the values for English and Art classes

For Whites: English = 1567, Art (Art and Art History) = 541
For Asians: English = 1414, Art = 459
For Latinos: English = 1536, Art = 505
For Blacks: English = 1589, Art = 291

Step2: Calculate the ratio for each group

Whites

Ratio = $\frac{1567}{541}\approx 2.8965$
Rounded to 2 decimal places: $2.90$

Asians

Ratio = $\frac{1414}{459}\approx 3.0806$
Rounded to 2 decimal places: $3.08$

Latinos

Ratio = $\frac{1536}{505}\approx 3.0416$
Rounded to 2 decimal places: $3.04$

Blacks

Ratio = $\frac{1589}{291}\approx 5.4605$
Rounded to 2 decimal places: $5.46$

Answer:

• Whites: $2.90$
• Asians: $3.08$
• Latinos: $3.04$
• Blacks: $5.46$