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Answer»  Following are the four characteristics of an ideal mean:  - It should be defined clearly : The mean should be defined very clearly so that it has only one implication. 
 - It should be simple to understand and simple to compute: The mean should be such that it is simple to understand and simple to compute.
 - It should be based on all the values : An ideal mean should be based on all the values of the series. Without this, this mean will not represent the data-item series correctly. 
 - It should be the least affected by extreme values (maximum/ minimum) : The extremely small and extremely large values of a data-items series should have the least effect on the mean.
  
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