Je četrtina več kot tretjina?

New York Timesu je bil konec julija objavljen zanimiv članek o tem, kako smo slabi pri uporabi matematike v vsakdanjem življenju, če nismo pozorni in se odzivamo zgolj po občutku. 

Novinarka opiše zanimiv zaplet v začetku osemdesetih let dvajsetega stoletja, ko je podjetje A&W na trg poslalo boljši, večji in cenejši hamburger kot je bil McDonaldov Quarter Pounder, ki je bil znan po tem, da je tehtal četrtino funta (cca 113 g). Čeprav je bil novi hamburger The Third Pounder po vseh karakteristikah boljši in ob tem še cenejši, ga ljudje niso kupovali. Pomagala ni niti intenzivna reklamna kampanja. Zakaj so bili ljudje tako nespametni?

Kasnejša analiza je pokazala, da se je večini potrošnikov zdelo, da jih želi podjetje A&W z novim produktom ogoljufati. Večina Američanov, vsaj tistih, ki kupujejo hamburgerje, kot kaže ne pozna dobro ulomkov. Prepričani so bili, da je četrtina več kot tretjina, zato se jim je zdela nova ponudba, ki je prišla na trg, slabša od obstoječe McDonaldove.
One of the most vivid arithmetic failings displayed by Americans occurred in the early 1980s, when the A&W restaurant chain released a new hamburger to rival the McDonald’s Quarter Pounder. With a third-pound of beef, the A&W burger had more meat than the Quarter Pounder; in taste tests, customers preferred A&W’s burger. And it was less expensive. A lavish A&W television and radio marketing campaign cited these benefits. Yet instead of leaping at the great value, customers snubbed it.
Only when the company held customer focus groups did it become clear why. The Third Pounder presented the American public with a test in fractions. And we failed. Misunderstanding the value of one-third, customers believed they were being overcharged. Why, they asked the researchers, should they pay the same amount for a third of a pound of meat as they did for a quarter-pound of meat at McDonald’s. The “4” in “¼,” larger than the “3” in “⅓,” led them astray. (Vir: Why Do Americans Stink at Math? - The New York Times)