On which scale are ratios meaningful, and zero implies absolute absence?

On which scale are ratios meaningful, and zero implies absolute absence?

• A. Ratio Scale
• B. Interval Scale
• C. Ordinal Scale
• D. Nominal Scale

Answer: (A)

On a measurement scale with a true zero, you can talk about both differences and ratios. Zero means there is none of the quantity, so a value of two is exactly twice a value of one. This lets you say things like something weighs twice as much as something else or a distance is twice as long as another. In interval scales, you have meaningful differences between values, but the zero point is arbitrary (for example, 0 degrees Celsius doesn’t mean there is no temperature). Because of that, ratios aren’t intrinsically meaningful: 20°C isn’t really twice as hot as 10°C in a meaningful way. Ordinal scales only preserve order, not the size of differences, so you can say one value is larger than another but not by how much. Ratios don’t make sense there. Nominal scales categorize without any inherent order or magnitude, so ratios and differences are irrelevant. Thus, the scale on which ratios are meaningful and zero indicates absolute absence is the ratio scale.

On a measurement scale with a true zero, you can talk about both differences and ratios. Zero means there is none of the quantity, so a value of two is exactly twice a value of one. This lets you say things like something weighs twice as much as something else or a distance is twice as long as another.

In interval scales, you have meaningful differences between values, but the zero point is arbitrary (for example, 0 degrees Celsius doesn’t mean there is no temperature). Because of that, ratios aren’t intrinsically meaningful: 20°C isn’t really twice as hot as 10°C in a meaningful way.

Ordinal scales only preserve order, not the size of differences, so you can say one value is larger than another but not by how much. Ratios don’t make sense there. Nominal scales categorize without any inherent order or magnitude, so ratios and differences are irrelevant.

Thus, the scale on which ratios are meaningful and zero indicates absolute absence is the ratio scale.