Which pair of dates is identical? January 21st, 2011 January 21, 2011 Wednesday, September 18, 2001 Wednesday, September 18, 2001 Tuesday, October 2nd Tuesday. October 2nd 12-01-2011 12-1-2011
The Correct Answer and Explanation is :
The pair of dates that is identical are:
Wednesday, September 18, 2001 and Wednesday, September 18, 2001.
Explanation:
The dates Wednesday, September 18, 2001 and Wednesday, September 18, 2001 are clearly identical in both their written format and their meaning. The repetition of the exact same date confirms that they refer to the same day of the week (Wednesday), the same month (September), and the same year (2001).
To elaborate, dates can be written in various formats, but they refer to the same point in time as long as the information provided is equivalent. While the format might differ (e.g., “January 21st, 2011” vs. “January 21, 2011”), this does not change the date itself. However, in this case, the exact same date is written twice, so they are identical.
Now, let’s consider the other pairs:
- January 21st, 2011 vs. January 21, 2011:
- Both dates are technically the same. The difference lies in the use of “st” in “21st” versus the omission of the ordinal indicator in “21.” The usage of the ordinal number in one form does not change the actual date. However, they are written slightly differently but refer to the same day.
- Tuesday, October 2nd vs. Tuesday, October 2nd:
- Again, these two dates are identical in content, but it’s essential to note that October 2nd (when written in full) could be interpreted with different years, unless a specific year is provided. Without a year, it’s impossible to guarantee that these two dates are identical unless the context confirms that it is the same year.
- 12-01-2011 vs. 12-1-2011:
- This pair uses different date formatting conventions. The first follows a “MM-DD-YYYY” format (December 1, 2011), and the second follows a “M-D-YYYY” format. Despite the formatting difference, the dates refer to the same day.
Therefore, the Wednesday, September 18, 2001 pair is the clearest and most unambiguous match in this case.