According to the information in the table, which of the following correctly orders the population of the metro areas from greatest to least?

Options

A. A, B, C, D
B. D, C, B, A
C. A, D, C, B
D. A, D, B, C

Answer

C

Explanation

Difficult: Hard
Category: Problem Solving and Data Analysis/ Statistics and Probability.
Strategic Advice: This is a trickly question because the two numbers given for each metro area (total jobs added and jobs per 1,000 residents) can't be used alone to answer the question. Think concenptually before making calculations.
Getting to the answer: The table shows the number of jobs added in total and the number added per 1,000 residents in each area. You need to set up and solve (using cross-multiplication) a proportion for each metro area that looks like `("new jobs")/(1,000)=("total new job")/("total population")`. The total population is the unknown, so call it p.
Metro A`:(245)/(1,000)=(94,200)/(p) to 245p=94,200,00 to p=384,490`
Metro B:`(375)/(1,000)=(86, 350)/(p) to 375p=86,350,000 to p=230,267`
Metro C:`(250)/(1,000)=(72,600)/(p) to 250p=72,600,000 to p=290,400`
Metro D:`(200)/(1,000)=(66,000)/(p) to 200p=66,000,000 to p=330,000`
Ordering the results from greatest to least gives A, D, C, B, which matches (C).