How to find the volume of a sphere - ISEE Upper Level: Quantitative Reasoning
Card 1 of 64
In terms of
, give the volume, in cubic feet, of a spherical tank with diameter 36 inches.
In terms of , give the volume, in cubic feet, of a spherical tank with diameter 36 inches.
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36 inches =
feet, the diameter of the tank. Half of this, or
feet, is the radius. Set
, substitute in the volume formula, and solve for
:





36 inches = feet, the diameter of the tank. Half of this, or
feet, is the radius. Set
, substitute in the volume formula, and solve for
:
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Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The volume of a sphere with radius 
(b) The volume of a cube with sidelength 
Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The volume of a sphere with radius
(b) The volume of a cube with sidelength
Tap to reveal answer
A sphere with radius
has diameter
and can be inscribed inside a cube of sidelength
. Therefore, the cube in (b) has the greater volume.
A sphere with radius has diameter
and can be inscribed inside a cube of sidelength
. Therefore, the cube in (b) has the greater volume.
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Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The volume of a cube with sidelength
inches.
(b) The volume of a sphere with radius
inches.
Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The volume of a cube with sidelength inches.
(b) The volume of a sphere with radius inches.
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You do not need to calculate the volumes of the figures. All you need to do is observe that a sphere with radius
inches has diameter
inches, and can therefore be inscribed inside the cube with sidelength
inches. This give the cube larger volume, making (a) the greater quantity.
You do not need to calculate the volumes of the figures. All you need to do is observe that a sphere with radius inches has diameter
inches, and can therefore be inscribed inside the cube with sidelength
inches. This give the cube larger volume, making (a) the greater quantity.
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Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The volume of a sphere with diameter one foot
(b) 
Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The volume of a sphere with diameter one foot
(b)
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The radius of the sphere is one half of its diameter of one foot, which is six inches, so substitute
:



cubic inches,
which is greater than
.
The radius of the sphere is one half of its diameter of one foot, which is six inches, so substitute :
cubic inches,
which is greater than .
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is a positive number. Which is the greater quantity?
(A) The volume of a cube with edges of length 
(B) The volume of a sphere with radius 
is a positive number. Which is the greater quantity?
(A) The volume of a cube with edges of length
(B) The volume of a sphere with radius
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No calculation is really needed here, as a sphere with radius
- and, subsequently, diameter
- can be inscribed inside a cube of sidelength
. This makes (A), the volume of the cube, the greater.
No calculation is really needed here, as a sphere with radius - and, subsequently, diameter
- can be inscribed inside a cube of sidelength
. This makes (A), the volume of the cube, the greater.
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Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The radius of a sphere with surface area 
(b) The radius of a sphere with volume 
Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The radius of a sphere with surface area
(b) The radius of a sphere with volume
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The formula for the surface area of a sphere, given its radius
, is

The sphere in (a) has surface area
, so




The formula for the volume of a sphere, given its radius
, is

The sphere in (b) has volume
, so





![r = \sqrt[3]{27} = 3](https://vt-vtwa-assets.varsitytutors.com/vt-vtwa/uploads/formula_image/image/658471/gif.latex)
The radius of both spheres is 3.
The formula for the surface area of a sphere, given its radius , is
The sphere in (a) has surface area , so
The formula for the volume of a sphere, given its radius , is
The sphere in (b) has volume , so
The radius of both spheres is 3.
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In terms of
, give the volume, in cubic inches, of a spherical water tank with a diameter of 20 feet.
In terms of , give the volume, in cubic inches, of a spherical water tank with a diameter of 20 feet.
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20 feet =
inches, the diameter of the tank; half of this, or 120 inches, is the radius. Set
, substitute in the volume formula, and solve for
:



cubic inches
20 feet = inches, the diameter of the tank; half of this, or 120 inches, is the radius. Set
, substitute in the volume formula, and solve for
:
cubic inches
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A sphere has diameter 3 meters. Give its volume in cubic centimeters (leave in terms of
).
A sphere has diameter 3 meters. Give its volume in cubic centimeters (leave in terms of ).
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The diameter of 3 meters is equal to
centimeters; the radius is half this, or 150 centimeters. Substitute
in the volume formula:




cubic centimeters
The diameter of 3 meters is equal to centimeters; the radius is half this, or 150 centimeters. Substitute
in the volume formula:
cubic centimeters
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A spherical buoy has a radius of 5 meters. What is the volume of the buoy?
A spherical buoy has a radius of 5 meters. What is the volume of the buoy?
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A spherical buoy has a radius of 5 meters. What is the volume of the buoy?
To find the volume of a sphere, use the following formula:

All we have to do is plug in 5 meters and simplify:

A spherical buoy has a radius of 5 meters. What is the volume of the buoy?
To find the volume of a sphere, use the following formula:
All we have to do is plug in 5 meters and simplify:
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You have a ball with a radius of 12 cm, what is its volume?
You have a ball with a radius of 12 cm, what is its volume?
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You have a ball with a radius of 12 cm, what is its volume?
The volume of a sphere can be found via the following formula:

We know our radius, so all we need to do is plug in and simplify:

So we have our answer:

You have a ball with a radius of 12 cm, what is its volume?
The volume of a sphere can be found via the following formula:
We know our radius, so all we need to do is plug in and simplify:
So we have our answer:
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You have a wooden ball which you are going to paint. If the radius is 12 inches, what is the volume of the ball?
You have a wooden ball which you are going to paint. If the radius is 12 inches, what is the volume of the ball?
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You have a wooden ball which you are going to paint. If the radius is 12 inches, what is the volume of the ball?
Alright, let's begin with the volume of a sphere formula:

Now, plug in 12 and simplify:

You have a wooden ball which you are going to paint. If the radius is 12 inches, what is the volume of the ball?
Alright, let's begin with the volume of a sphere formula:
Now, plug in 12 and simplify:
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Find the volume of a sphere with a diameter of 6cm.
Find the volume of a sphere with a diameter of 6cm.
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To find the volume of a sphere, we will use the following formula:

where r is the radius of the sphere.
Now, we know the diameter of the sphere is 6cm. We also know that the diameter is two times the radius. Therefore, the radius is 3cm.
Knowing this, we can substitute into the formula. We get



Now, before we continue, we can simplify. The 3 and the 27 can both be divided by 3. We get



To find the volume of a sphere, we will use the following formula:
where r is the radius of the sphere.
Now, we know the diameter of the sphere is 6cm. We also know that the diameter is two times the radius. Therefore, the radius is 3cm.
Knowing this, we can substitute into the formula. We get
Now, before we continue, we can simplify. The 3 and the 27 can both be divided by 3. We get
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Find the volume of a sphere with a diameter of 12in.
Find the volume of a sphere with a diameter of 12in.
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To find the volume of a sphere, we will use the following formula:

where r is the radius of the sphere.
Now, we know the diameter of the sphere is 12in. We also know the diameter is two times the radius. Therefore, the radius is 6in.
Knowing this, we can substitute into the formula. We get


Now, we can simplify before we multiply to make things easier. The 3 and a 6 can both be divided by 3. So, we get



To find the volume of a sphere, we will use the following formula:
where r is the radius of the sphere.
Now, we know the diameter of the sphere is 12in. We also know the diameter is two times the radius. Therefore, the radius is 6in.
Knowing this, we can substitute into the formula. We get
Now, we can simplify before we multiply to make things easier. The 3 and a 6 can both be divided by 3. So, we get
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Find the volume of a sphere with a diameter of 6cm.
Find the volume of a sphere with a diameter of 6cm.
Tap to reveal answer
To find the volume of a sphere, we will use the following formula

where r is the radius of the sphere.
Now, we know the diameter of the sphere is 6cm. We also know the diameter is two times the radius. Therefore, the radius is 3cm.
So, we get







To find the volume of a sphere, we will use the following formula
where r is the radius of the sphere.
Now, we know the diameter of the sphere is 6cm. We also know the diameter is two times the radius. Therefore, the radius is 3cm.
So, we get
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Find the volume of a sphere with a diameter of 18in.
Find the volume of a sphere with a diameter of 18in.
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To find the volume of a sphere, we will use the following formula:

where r is the radius of the sphere.
Now, we know the diameter of the sphere is 18in. We also know the diameter is two times the radius. Therefore, the radius is 9in.
Knowing this, we can substitute into the formula. We get


Now, we can simplify before we multiply to make things easier. The 3 and a 9 can both be divided by 3. So, we get



To find the volume of a sphere, we will use the following formula:
where r is the radius of the sphere.
Now, we know the diameter of the sphere is 18in. We also know the diameter is two times the radius. Therefore, the radius is 9in.
Knowing this, we can substitute into the formula. We get
Now, we can simplify before we multiply to make things easier. The 3 and a 9 can both be divided by 3. So, we get
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Find the volume of a sphere with the radius of
.
Find the volume of a sphere with the radius of .
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Write the formula to find the volume of a sphere.

Substitute the radius into the formula.

Evaluate the equation.

The answer is: 
Write the formula to find the volume of a sphere.
Substitute the radius into the formula.
Evaluate the equation.
The answer is:
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In terms of
, give the volume, in cubic feet, of a spherical tank with diameter 36 inches.
In terms of , give the volume, in cubic feet, of a spherical tank with diameter 36 inches.
Tap to reveal answer
36 inches =
feet, the diameter of the tank. Half of this, or
feet, is the radius. Set
, substitute in the volume formula, and solve for
:





36 inches = feet, the diameter of the tank. Half of this, or
feet, is the radius. Set
, substitute in the volume formula, and solve for
:
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Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The volume of a sphere with radius 
(b) The volume of a cube with sidelength 
Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The volume of a sphere with radius
(b) The volume of a cube with sidelength
Tap to reveal answer
A sphere with radius
has diameter
and can be inscribed inside a cube of sidelength
. Therefore, the cube in (b) has the greater volume.
A sphere with radius has diameter
and can be inscribed inside a cube of sidelength
. Therefore, the cube in (b) has the greater volume.
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Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The volume of a cube with sidelength
inches.
(b) The volume of a sphere with radius
inches.
Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The volume of a cube with sidelength inches.
(b) The volume of a sphere with radius inches.
Tap to reveal answer
You do not need to calculate the volumes of the figures. All you need to do is observe that a sphere with radius
inches has diameter
inches, and can therefore be inscribed inside the cube with sidelength
inches. This give the cube larger volume, making (a) the greater quantity.
You do not need to calculate the volumes of the figures. All you need to do is observe that a sphere with radius inches has diameter
inches, and can therefore be inscribed inside the cube with sidelength
inches. This give the cube larger volume, making (a) the greater quantity.
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Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The volume of a sphere with diameter one foot
(b) 
Which is the greater quantity?
(a) The volume of a sphere with diameter one foot
(b)
Tap to reveal answer
The radius of the sphere is one half of its diameter of one foot, which is six inches, so substitute
:



cubic inches,
which is greater than
.
The radius of the sphere is one half of its diameter of one foot, which is six inches, so substitute :
cubic inches,
which is greater than .
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