Certainly! Let’s walk through the information and deduce the best inference about acidity based on the student's observations.
### Given Information:
1. The student tasted different juices and found:
- Orange juice was the sweetest.
- Lemon and lime juices were the sourest.
2. We have the pH values of four common fruit juices:
| Juice Type | pH |
|------------|----|
| Grapefruit | 3.0 |
| Lemon | 2.5 |
| Lime | 2.5 |
| Orange | 3.5 |
### Observations:
- Sweetest Juice: Orange Juice has a pH of 3.5.
- Sourest Juices: Lemon and Lime Juices both have a pH of 2.5.
### Understanding pH and Acidity:
- The pH scale ranges from 0 to 14, with lower values indicating higher acidity.
- A pH of 7 is neutral (e.g., pure water), values below 7 are acidic, and values above 7 are basic or alkaline.
### Inference From Observations:
- Lemon and Lime Juices: These juices have a pH of 2.5. Since they are the sourest, this indicates high acidity.
- Orange Juice: This juice has a pH of 3.5 and is the sweetest among those tested, indicating lower acidity compared to lemon and lime juices.
### Best Inference About Acidity:
From this data, we can infer that:
- Lower pH values correspond to higher acidity (sour tastes).
- Higher pH values correspond to lower acidity (sweeter tastes).
Therefore, based on the student's taste test and the provided pH values, the best inference is:
Lemon and lime juices, having a pH of 2.5, are the most acidic. Orange juice, with a pH of 3.5, is the least acidic among the juices tested.
This explains why lemon and lime taste the sourest and orange tastes the sweetest. The grapefruit juice, with a pH of 3.0, falls in between these in terms of acidity.
