Question

A fifth number, $n,$ is added to the set of numbers $\{3, 6, 9, 10\}$ to make the mean of the set of five numbers equal to its median. The number of possible values for $n$ is

$1$

$2$

$3$

$4$

more than $4$

Solution:

The five numbers have sum $28 + n$ and mean $\dfrac{28 + n}{5}.$ The median is the middle value when sorted, which is $6,$ $n,$ or $9$ depending on the size of $n.$

If the median is $6$ : $\dfrac{28 + n}{5} = 6$ gives $n = 2,$ which is indeed less than $6.$ If the median is $n$ : $\dfrac{28 + n}{5} = n$ gives $n = 7,$ which is between $6$ and $9.$ If the median is $9$ : $\dfrac{28 + n}{5} = 9$ gives $n = 17,$ which is indeed greater than $9.$

Each case yields a valid value, so $n$ can be $2,$ $7,$ or $17$ — three possible values.

Thus, the correct answer is C .

1988 AMC 8 Problem 21

Solution:

Problem 21 in Other Years