Five hundred real numbers have an average of zero. How many of them can be negative, at most?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B
Explanation
Given:
Total real numbers = 500
Average = 0
By the formula:
Average = (Sum of numbers) / (Number of numbers)
0 = (Sum of numbers) / 500
Sum of numbers = 0
If all 500 numbers are negative, the sum will be negative (not possible).
A maximum of 499 numbers can be negative and 1 number can be positive so that the total sum is 0.