The table shows various physical characteristics of the Great Lakes of North America. Lake Depth (feet) Volume (cubic miles) Surface...

OWNING THE DATASET

We're looking at a table showing data for the five Great Lakes with measurements for depth, volume, area, and shoreline. Let's quickly understand the structure and key insights:

Lake	Depth (feet)	Volume (cubic miles)	Area (square miles)	Shoreline (miles)
Superior	1,330	2,900	31,700	1,200

Key insights:

• We have 5 lakes (Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, Ontario) with 4 different measurements for each
• There appears to be significant variation in the metrics across lakes
• Superior shows exceptionally high values for several metrics (potential outlier)
• The question will involve comparing values across lakes or finding statistical measures

This clean, organized dataset is perfect for sorting - which will be our primary strategy rather than manual calculations.

ANALYZING STATEMENTS

Statement 1: Ontario's depth is the median depth.

Statement 1 Translation:
Original: "Ontario's depth is the median depth."
What we're looking for:

• Find Ontario's depth
• Determine if this value is the median (middle value) of all five depths

In other words: Is Ontario's depth exactly in the middle when all five lake depths are arranged in order?

Let's approach this systematically using sorting:

1. Sort the data by depth (ascending or descending order):

Lake	Depth (feet)
Erie	210
Huron	750
Ontario	802
Michigan	923
Superior	1,330

2. Find the median depth:
With 5 lakes, the median is the 3rd value when sorted = 802 feet.

3. Check if this belongs to Ontario:
We can see that 802 feet belongs to Ontario.

Therefore, Statement 1 is Yes. Ontario's depth is indeed the median depth of all five Great Lakes.

Teaching note: Notice how sorting instantly revealed the median without any calculations. With an odd number of items (5 lakes), the median is always the middle position (3rd) when sorted.

Statement 2: The lake with the greatest depth has the longest shoreline.

Statement 2 Translation:
Original: "The lake with the greatest depth has the longest shoreline."
What we're looking for:

• Identify which lake has the greatest depth
• Identify which lake has the longest shoreline
• Determine if these are the same lake

In other words: Does the deepest lake also have the longest shoreline?

Let's leverage our previous sorting and extend our analysis:

1. From our depth sorting, we already know:
Superior has the greatest depth at 1,330 feet.

2. Now let's sort by shoreline:

Lake	Shoreline (miles)
Ontario	726
Erie	871
Huron	1,143
Superior	1,200
Michigan	1,400

3. Compare results:

• Lake with greatest depth: Superior (1,330 feet)
• Lake with longest shoreline: Michigan (1,400 miles)

These are different lakes, so Statement 2 is No.

Teaching note: Sorting revealed this answer almost instantly. We didn't need to review all values manually or remember the exact numbers - we just needed to identify which lakes had the maximum values for each metric.

Statement 3: Superior's volume exceeds the combined volume of the other four lakes.

Statement 3 Translation:
Original: "Superior's volume exceeds the combined volume of the other four lakes."
What we're looking for:

• Find Superior's volume
• Calculate the sum of volumes for the other four lakes
• Compare Superior's volume to this sum

In other words: Is Superior's volume greater than Michigan + Huron + Erie + Ontario volumes added together?

Let's sort by volume to get a clear picture:

1. Sort the data by volume:

Lake	Volume (cubic miles)
Erie	116
Ontario	393
Huron	850
Michigan	1,180
Superior	2,900

2. Find Superior's volume:
Superior's volume = 2,900 cubic miles

3. Find the sum of other lakes' volumes:
Michigan + Huron + Ontario + Erie = \(1,180 + 850 + 393 + 116 = 2,539\) cubic miles

4. Compare:
Superior's volume \(2,900 > 2,539\) Combined volume of others

Therefore, Statement 3 is Yes.

Teaching note: While we did need to add the volumes, we could've used strategic approximation to save time:

• Michigan (1,180) + Huron (850) ≈ 2,030
• Ontario (393) + Erie (116) ≈ 510
• 2,030 + 510 ≈ 2,540 < 2,900

When differences are substantial, rough estimates are often sufficient!

FINAL ANSWER COMPILATION

Reviewing our findings:

• Statement 1: Ontario's depth is the median depth. Yes
• Statement 2: The lake with the greatest depth has the longest shoreline. No
• Statement 3: Superior's volume exceeds the combined volume of the other four lakes. Yes

Our answer is: A (Yes, No, Yes)

LEARNING SUMMARY

Skills We Used

• Strategic Sorting: We sorted the data by different columns to instantly reveal patterns and extremes
• Visual Pattern Recognition: After sorting, we could quickly identify medians, maximums, and make comparisons
• Efficient Approximation: For Statement 3, we could have used rounded numbers for a faster comparison

Strategic Insights

1. Sort FIRST, calculate LAST: Sorting immediately organizes the data and often eliminates the need for calculation
2. Reuse previous insights: We used information from our first sort (depth) to help answer Statement 2
3. Know when precision matters: For Statement 3, the difference was large enough that approximation would work

Common Mistakes We Avoided

1. Manual scanning for medians: We didn't try to eyeball the middle value; we sorted first
2. Recalculating maximums: Once we identified Superior as deepest, we didn't waste time rechecking
3. Over-precision: We didn't get bogged down in exact decimal calculations when comparing vastly different values

Remember: In GMAT table analysis questions, your first action should almost always be to consider sorting the data. This one action often transforms what seems like a complex calculation problem into a simple visual observation task!