The SMOG (Simplified Measure of Gobbledygook) readability formula estimates the reading grade level required by a person if he or she is to fully understand the written material assessed.The SMOG formula is defined as SMOG reading grade level where w is the number of words that have three or more syllables that should appear in a sample of 30 sentences.A writer of children's books has decided to write a book that can be fully understood by children at the 7th-grade level.What is the maximum number of words with three or more syllables that should appear in any sample of 30 sentences of the book?
A) 18
B) 20
C) 16
D) 17
E) 19

Question

The SMOG (Simplified Measure of Gobbledygook) readability formula estimates the reading grade level required by a person if he or she is to fully understand the written material assessed.The SMOG formula is defined as SMOG reading grade level  where w is the number of words that have three or more syllables that should appear in a sample of 30 sentences.A writer of children's books has decided to write a book that can be fully understood by children at the 7th-grade level.What is the maximum number of words with three or more syllables that should appear in any sample of 30 sentences of the book?
A) 18 
B) 20 
C) 16 
D) 17 
E) 19

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

To match the target grade level of 7, we need the SMOG reading grade level to be 7. So, we can use the SMOG formula to solve for the maximum number of words with three or more syllables that should appear in any sample of 30 sentences of the book.
SMOG reading grade level = √(w × (30/10)) + 3
7 = √(w × 3) + 3
4 = √(w × 3)
w = 16
Therefore, the maximum number of words with three or more syllables that should appear in any sample of 30 sentences of the book is 16. Hence, the answer is option C.

The SMOG (Simplified Measure of Gobbledygook) Readability Formula Estimates the Reading