Garbage. The formal name for garbage is "municipal solid waste." Here is a breakdown of the materials that made up American municipal solid waste:

(a) Add the weights and the percents for the nine materials given, including "Other." Each entry, including the total, is separately rounded to the nearest tenth. Therefore, the sum and the total may differ slightly because of roundoff error.

(b) Make a bar graph of the percents. The graph gives a clearer picture of the main contributors to garbage if you order the bars from tallest to shortest.

(c) If you use software, also make a pie chart of the percents. Comparing the two graphs, notice that it is easier to see the small differences among "Food scraps," "Plastics," and "Yard trimmings" in the bar graph.