Given the following information,

Cell A1=30

Cell A2= blank (no value in cell)

Cell A3= MAX(A1,A2)

What is the value in cell A3?

Question

Given the following information,

Cell A1=30

Cell A2= blank (no value in cell)

Cell A3= MAX(A1,A2)

What is the value in cell A3?

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

In this problem, we are evaluating the function MAX with two inputs: A1 and A2, where A1 = 30 and A2 is blank.

Option 1: #NUM! — This would indicate a numerical error or invalid argument. Since MAX is being applied to numeric inputs (one of which is 30, and the other is blank), Excel does not produce a #NUM! error in this situation. Therefore this option is incorrect.

Option 2: 30 — This is the plausible outcome. MAX returns the largest numeric value among its arguments. With A1 = 30 and A2 being blank, A2 is not adding any larger number, so the maximum is 30. Blank cells are ignored by MAX in terms of providing comparison values, so 30 is the correct result here.

Option 3: Blank — Claiming the result is blank would mean that MAX somehow yields no value. However, since at least one input (A1) is a numeric value (30), the function will return a numeric result rather than leaving the cell blank. Therefore this option is incorrect.

Option 4: 0 — Interpreting a blank cell as 0 could lead to thinking the maximum is max(30, 0) = 30, which happens to still be 30, but this option as the literal result would be flawed if the function were returning 0. In standard Excel behavior, MAX uses the numeric values present and blank cells are not treated as 0 for the purpose of producing a separate 0 result; the actual result is 30, not 0. Thus this option is not correct for the shown inputs.

Overall, reasoning through the function behavior shows that the maximum of 30 and a blank cell yields 30, making the second option the accurate one among the given choices.

CSE 2111 AU2025 (10550) Carmen Quiz 2 - Chapter 2 - Basic Functions & Cell Addressing

Given the following information, Cell A1=30 Cell A2= blank (no value in cell) Cell A3= MAX(A1,A2) What is the value in cell A3?

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