Can any two of the given data points in a scatter plot be used to write an equation for a trend​ line? Explain.

Question

Choose the correct answer below.
A.
Yes. Any two of the given data points can be used since every point in the set is valid data.
B.
Yes. Any two of the given data points can be used since the trend line should pass through or nearly pass through all of the data points.
C.
No. The two points must be on the trend line. These points may or may not be given data points.
D.
No. The two points must be data points on the trend line. If the trend line passes through more than two data​ points, any two may be used.
E.
No. The two points must be the first and last data points. Using other points will not yield the correct equation.

Answer 1

The correct answer is:

A. Yes. Any two of the given data points can be used since every point in the set is valid data.

Explanation: Any two points can define a straight line, which means that you can indeed use any two data points from the scatter plot to write an equation for a trend line. While a trend line aims to minimize the distance from all points in a data set, the mathematical concept allows for it to be defined by just two points. However, the resulting line may not accurately represent the trend of all the data points if those points are outliers or do not reflect the overall trend.