Question 4 On average, Americans consume 13.9 pounds of ice cream per person over an entire year. Ben loves ice cream, but limits himself to one 2-ounce serving each week. Which of the following statements is correct? Helpful hint: Assume 1 pound of ice cream is equivalent to 16 ounces and there are 52 weeks in a year. Ben consume about the same as the annual average. Ben consumes less than the annual average.

To determine how much ice cream Ben consumes in a year, we first need to calculate his weekly consumption and then multiply that by the number of weeks in a year. 1. **Ben's weekly consumption**: - Ben has a 2-ounce serving each week. 2. **Annual consumption**: - There are 52 weeks in a year, so: \[ \text{Annual consumption} = 2 \text{ ounces/week} \times 52 \text{ weeks/year} = 104 \text{ ounces/year} \] 3. **Convert ounces to pounds**: - Since 1 pound is equivalent to 16 ounces, we convert Ben's annual consumption from ounces to pounds: \[ \text{Annual consumption in pounds} = \frac{104 \text{ ounces}}{16 \text{ ounces/pound}} = 6.5 \text{ pounds/year} \] 4. **Comparison with the average**: - The average American consumes 13.9 pounds of ice cream per year. - Ben consumes 6.5 pounds per year. Now we can compare Ben's consumption to the average: - Ben consumes **less than** the annual average of 13.9 pounds. Therefore, the correct statement is: **Ben consumes less than the annual average.**