Question

A doctor is studying heights of newborn babies. The doctor uses 20 inches as a reference point. Babies in the study receive a score to show how close they are to 20 inches.A baby that is 21 inches long receives a score of +1. A baby that is 16 inches long receives a score of -4.NOTE: For your answer to be counted correctly, first enter + or - and then the number.(1 point)A baby that is 18 inches long receives a score of .

Answer 1

To determine the score for a baby that is 18 inches long, we can look at the scale used in the study, which references 20 inches.

- A baby that is 21 inches long (which is +1 inch from the reference of 20 inches) receives a score of +1.
- A baby that is 16 inches long (which is -4 inches from the reference of 20 inches) receives a score of -4.

Now, for a baby that is 18 inches long:

1. The difference from 20 inches is 20 - 18 = 2 inches below the reference.
2. We can see that the score decreases by 1 for every inch below 20 inches; thus, 18 inches is 2 inches below 20 inches.

Based on the pattern, if 20 inches corresponds to a score of 0, then:

- 19 inches would be +0.5 (a decrease of 0.5 for each inch below),
- 18 inches would be a decrease of 2, thus a score of -2.

So, the score for a baby that is 18 inches long is:

**-2**