In a dataset with an even number of values, the median is defined as the average of the two middle numbers.

In a dataset with an even number of values, the median is defined as the average of the two middle numbers.

• A. The maximum value
• B. The average of the two middle numbers
• C. The minimum value
• D. The most frequent value

Answer: (B)

When a dataset has an even number of values, the median is found by first sorting the values and taking the average of the two central values. If there are n values and n is even, the two middle positions are n/2 and n/2 + 1, so the median is (value at position n/2 + value at position n/2 + 1) / 2. For example, with data 1, 3, 5, 7, the middle numbers are 3 and 5, so the median is (3 + 5) / 2 = 4. This definition ensures a central value that represents the dataset when there’s no single middle value. The maximum is the largest value, the minimum is the smallest, and the mode is the most frequent value; none of these reflect the central tendency in an even-sized set the way averaging the two middle numbers does.

When a dataset has an even number of values, the median is found by first sorting the values and taking the average of the two central values. If there are n values and n is even, the two middle positions are n/2 and n/2 + 1, so the median is (value at position n/2 + value at position n/2 + 1) / 2. For example, with data 1, 3, 5, 7, the middle numbers are 3 and 5, so the median is (3 + 5) / 2 = 4. This definition ensures a central value that represents the dataset when there’s no single middle value. The maximum is the largest value, the minimum is the smallest, and the mode is the most frequent value; none of these reflect the central tendency in an even-sized set the way averaging the two middle numbers does.