Why Estimate?
We don’t always need the exact number.
- “About 500 students in the school” is easier to handle than “487 students”.
Estimation Strategies
- Sampling: Count a small section and multiply.
- Example: Count students in one class (30) and multiply by number of classes (10) .
- Visualizing: Compare to a known quantity.
- Example: A bucket holds 20 liters. A tank looks like it holds 50 buckets. Tank liters.
Exercise
Estimate the number of words in a page:
- Count words in one line ().
- Count lines on the page ().
- Estimate: words.
Tip
Fermi Problems: These are estimation questions like “How many piano tuners are there in Chicago?” or “How many times do you blink in a year?” They rely on chaining logical estimates together.