Yes, it is.

That's why I left public school once, and when our family income dropped, we gave it a second shot, and just a few years later I left again. It sucks, and I went through one of the top 10 school districts in the nation according to the NY Times a few years back.

" I finished a master's degree in chemistry, but I wouldn't even *want* to do well on this test that is simple to the point of being insulting. "

You wouldn't want to do well on this test because it's too simple...that doesn't even make any sense. What is the matter with you people? And yet it's apparently so simple that Americans and Europeans are failing it?

The anger towards this test is astounding...are you angry because it's revealing how poorly American's and Europeans are educated?

Lol, thanks redhouse. Comments like that tempt me to become a politician, hopefully to change the tempo a bit, not just feed into the pool we have now.

@red - we are in no danger of invading China...it must be fun to be hysterical and concoct overly-dramatic nonsense in order to justify your bizarre beliefs...

Honestly, I'm sure I would have gotten that question wrong when I was 15. Doesn't seem to have impacted me much professionally or personally.

@krell

Holland does pretty well on the text, so that's not it. The fact that it's a stupid test, however, is.

@ krellin

"...are you angry because it's revealing how poorly American's and Europeans are educated?"

I don't think anyone's angry. I also could have sworn that, only the other day, you were praising the American education system. Indeed, looking back it seems you described it as one of the main reasons America was still relevant, calling it...

"an education system that (despite the complaints about how bad it is) produces innovators that keep technology progressing" - krellin 2013

Dare I say the H word?

@Octavious, well he's not wrong, it's clearly creating innovators. They are those 2% or so who got the answer right, it's everyone else that I'm worried about.

@Octavious - It does produce innovation....it also has schools that are abysmal failures. To say the American education system is inconsistent at best would be a massive understatement. It think it is a decent system...it produces/fosters an adequate number of productive geniuses, and keeps enough people stupid that we still have ditch diggers, so it's working. (How's that for jaded)

Anyway, it can always be better, even if it's good, right? Constant improvement is needed. As technology and the knowledge base is always advancing, so too must education.

As for "anger" - I certainly senses a little hostility towards the test by certain commenters. If I was wrong, so be it...but I suspect I'm right.

So Oct - call me a hypocrite if you like - I'm not. It's pathetic that only 2% get that answer right....but that doesn't mean the education system is an utter, complete failure. But to say it is lacking is correct, and to say it succeeds is correct.

If I make dinner and the steak is great, the broccoli is steamed perfectly, but the potatoes are a lumpy disaster, and the pie is good but not great, dinner is a success, but needs improvement. Thus is our education system...it just depends on if you are a potato guy or not.

Lol! Krellin, old chap, you back track and weasel your way out of a losing position like the finest libtard politician :p. I love how "it's revealing how poorly American's and Europeans are educated" and "our youth don't seem to give a shit" becomes "it can always be better, even if it's good" in the blink of an eye. You should apply to be Clinton's campaign manager in the next elections :)

Jesus. She rode 7 kilometers in 15 minutes. Averaging 28 kph. It's easy peasy.

Nobody noticed red's distance computation error?

she didn't ride 6k on the ride back. She rode 3k. So your average was all fucked up and you aren't smarter than a 4th grader. :-)

There are two options here to respond to you, Draug.

1.) The show is "Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader" - not fourth.
2.) 15-year-olds better not be fourth graders or there is no test needed to figure out just how bad the education in this country is.

Octa - I'm not weaseling. Why does the assessent of the education system have to be copmletely black and white to you?

And thank you. I"m proud of my weasel.

Why does China get to be represented by Shanghai? Shouldn't the rural population be factored in too? Or if not, then shouldn't the comparison be on a city level, like Shanghai v. Boston v. Manchester?

@bo - I've never watched the show so sue me. As far as the age, I and most of my friends could solve than problem somewhere around 12 or 13 so 6th or 7th grade, but then I hung with the nerds, geeks, and brainiacs.

http://world.time.com/2013/12/04/china-is-cheating-the-world-student-rankings-system/

It's impossible to ascertain her average speed, as we don't know what speed she travelled for, for example, 1/2 of the way there and the 2nd half of the way there (might have been different speeds.

We can only tell her median speed 28.33 recurring km/h

I am troll btw

I not certain you know what "average" means, Mr. Troll. Stick to eating children.

Oh...wait...that's "Tea Party Conservatives" that eat babies...

I made the following scenario:

Imagine she travels 1 km in 1 minute for the first 2 minutes, then 1 km in 2 minutes, then 1km in 5 minutes. She travels at a speed of 1km/mx2, +0.5 km/m, +0.2km/m. Add these and divide by 4 her average speed is 0.675 km per minute or 40km/h

Then the return journey, say it takes her 3 minutes to travel 1km, then 1 minute to travel 0.5km, a minute to travel 0.1 km and in the last minute she travels 1.4km. Add these up you got 0.33, 0.5, 0.1 and 0.4, average speed 0.583 km/m or 35km/h

Add these 2 divide by the journey and her average speed turns out to be 37.75km/h

Average means the sum of her speeds divide by each moment she is travelling at a certain speed, as speed is not constant you cannot measure an average speed.

UNLESS, which is most often the case, the question TELLS you that she does a certain speed at certain points of the journey.

Or the question should say "Helen travels at a constant speed..."

Maybe Helen travels at 100km/h and just took a long break on each ride :)

@SYcrap:

"Average means the sum of her speeds divide by each moment she is travelling at a certain speed"

Watdafuq?

Synapse ave speed is nothing more than total distance divided by total time. Convert the units however you want but her ave speed was 7km/15min

There is no hidden complexity there. Its the definition of average speed.

SYnapse obviously failed pre-Algebra.

SYnapes - speed is distance over time. Try your equation with that in mind and you will come out to 28 KPH.