The mean age of 15 pupils in a class is 14.2 years. One new pupil joined the class and the mean changed to 14.1 years. Calculate the age of the new pupil.

The mean age of 15 pupils in a class is 14.2 years. One new pupil joined the class and the mean changed to 14.1 years. Calculate the age of the new pupil.

Answer Details

Let's use the formula for the mean (average) of a set of numbers: \[\text{mean} = \frac{\text{sum of all numbers}}{\text{number of numbers}}\] Let the age of the new pupil be x. Before the new pupil joined the class, the sum of ages of the 15 pupils would be: \[15 \times 14.2 = 213\] After the new pupil joined the class, the sum of ages of the 16 pupils would be: \[15 \times 14.2 + x = 213 + x\] We know that the new mean is 14.1, so we can set up an equation: \[\frac{15 \times 14.2 + x}{16} = 14.1\] Multiplying both sides by 16, we get: \[15 \times 14.2 + x = 16 \times 14.1\] Simplifying the left side, we get: \[213 + x = 225.6\] Subtracting 213 from both sides, we get: \[x = 12.6\] Therefore, the age of the new pupil is 12.6 years. Answer: (b) 12.6 years.