gmatnmein2010 wrote:A certain quantity is measured on two different scales, the R-scale and the S-scale, that are related linearly. Measurements on the R-scale of 6 and 24 correspond to measurements on the S-scale of 30 and 60, respectively. What measurement on the R-scale corresponds to a measurement of 100 on the S-scale?
(A) 20
(B) 36
(C) 48
(D) 60
(E) 84
R-scale and S-scale are related linearly,
Let value on R-scale = x and value on S-scale = y to give the points (6, 30) and (24, 60).
slope of the line connecting them = m=(60 - 30) / (24 - 6)= 5/3
Now that you have the slope you can use the point-slope form of a linear equation: y - y1 = m(x - x1) where m = slope. So,
y - 60 = 5/3(x - 24)
y = (5/3)x - 40 + 60
y = (5/3)x + 20
Now that you have the equation, plug in 100 for y since 100 is the S-scale value you want to find:
(5/3)x + 20 = 100 -->x = 48
So, the R-scale value
is 48, or answer C.