A steel beam used in construction weighs 3 metric tons. The building specifications require the weight to be listed in...

1. TRANSLATE the problem information

• Given information:
  • Steel beam weighs 3 metric tons
  • Need weight in pounds
  • Conversion: 1 metric ton = 2,200 pounds

• What this tells us: We need to convert 3 metric tons to pounds using the given conversion factor.

2. INFER the approach

• Since we're converting from a larger unit (metric tons) to a smaller unit (pounds), we expect our answer to be a larger number than 3
• Unit conversion requires multiplying by the conversion factor: \(3 \text{ metric tons} \times 2,200 \text{ pounds/metric ton}\)

3. Calculate the result

• \(3 \times 2,200 = 6,600 \text{ pounds}\)

Answer: D (6,600)

Why Students Usually Falter on This Problem

Most Common Error Path:

Weak INFER skill: Using division instead of multiplication for the conversion

Students sometimes think: "I need to convert tons to pounds, so I should divide by the conversion factor." This leads to \(3 \div 2,200 = 0.00136...\), which doesn't match any answer choice, causing confusion and potentially random guessing.

Second Most Common Error:

Poor TRANSLATE reasoning: Misunderstanding which direction the conversion should go

Students might get confused about the conversion factor and think they need to do something like \(2,200 \div 3 = 733.33\), or multiply \(3 \times 1,000 = 3,000\) (confusing metric tons with regular tons). This may lead them to select Choice B (3,000).

The Bottom Line:

This problem tests whether students understand that converting from larger units to smaller units requires multiplication by the conversion factor, and that they can correctly set up and execute a basic unit conversion.