In which year was the difference between the numbers of male and female is second lowest in country E?
Show Hint
Quickly scanning the differences reveals that 2018 ($1.1$) is the smallest. The next smallest is 2019 ($1.6$). Performing mental arithmetic on the decimal values saves valuable time.
Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
To find the required year, we calculate the absolute difference between the male and female populations in country E for each year and then identify which year has the second lowest difference. Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Let us calculate the differences for country E (in thousands) for each year:
1. Year 2015:
- Male = 6.2, Female = 4.2
\[ \text{Difference} = 6.2 - 4.2 = 2.0 \]
2. Year 2016:
- Male = 7.6, Female = 5.5
\[ \text{Difference} = 7.6 - 5.5 = 2.1 \]
3. Year 2017:
- Male = 8.7, Female = 6.8
\[ \text{Difference} = 8.7 - 6.8 = 1.9 \]
4. Year 2018:
- Male = 9.9, Female = 8.8
\[ \text{Difference} = 9.9 - 8.8 = 1.1 \]
5. Year 2019:
- Male = 10.8, Female = 9.2
\[ \text{Difference} = 10.8 - 9.2 = 1.6 \]
Let us arrange these differences in ascending order:
- \(1.1\) (Year 2018) \(\rightarrow\) Lowest difference
- \(1.6\) (Year 2019) \(\rightarrow\) Second lowest difference
- \(1.9\) (Year 2017) \(\rightarrow\) Third lowest difference
- \(2.0\) (Year 2015) \(\rightarrow\) Fourth lowest difference
- \(2.1\) (Year 2016) \(\rightarrow\) Highest difference
The second lowest difference occurs in the year 2019.
This matches Option A. Step 3: Final Answer:
The difference is the second lowest in the year 2019.
