Consider the following MS-Excel spreadsheet in which the population column represents the city's population in millions of people:

	A	B	C	D	E	F
1)	City	State	Population	Haryana	MP	UP
2)	Patiala	Punjab	8.34
3)	Sonipat	Haryana	3.86
4)	Noida	UP	2.71
5)	Indore	MP	2.16
6)	Mandi	HP	1.49
7)	Sagar	MP	1.38
8)	Panipat	Haryana	1.39
9)	Gwalior	MP	1.24

Suppose the formula-IF ($B2-D$1, SA2,0) is entered into cell D2 and then the cell D2 is copied and pasted to D2:F9. How many cells in the range D2:F9 0?

The correct option is 18.

Analysis of the Formula and Typographical Correction:
The formula specified in the question is IF ($B2-D$1, SA2,0). In standard spreadsheet syntax, the characters - (minus) and S are common typographical errors for = (equals) and $ (dollar sign). Thus, the intended logical formula is:
=IF($B2=D$1, $A2, 0)

Understanding Reference Types:
1. $B2 (Mixed Reference): The column is absolute (locked to column B), but the row is relative. When copied across columns, it still references column B. When copied down rows, the row number changes accordingly.
2. D$1 (Mixed Reference): The column is relative, but the row is absolute (locked to row 1). When copied across columns, the column references columns D, E, or F. When copied down, it always references row 1 (which contains the state names "Haryana", "MP", and "UP").
3. $A2 (Mixed Reference): The column is locked to column A (City), while the row number adjusts dynamically as it is copied down.

Cell Evaluation for Range D2:F9:
We evaluate the formula =IF($B[row] = [column]$1, $A[row], 0) for each of the 24 cells in the range D2:F9:

Row 2 (B2 = "Punjab"):
- D2: IF("Punjab" = "Haryana", "Patiala", 0) $\to$ 0
- E2: IF("Punjab" = "MP", "Patiala", 0) $\to$ 0
- F2: IF("Punjab" = "UP", "Patiala", 0) $\to$ 0
(3 cells contain 0)

Row 3 (B3 = "Haryana"):
- D3: IF("Haryana" = "Haryana", "Sonipat", 0) $\to$ "Sonipat"
- E3: IF("Haryana" = "MP", "Sonipat", 0) $\to$ 0
- F3: IF("Haryana" = "UP", "Sonipat", 0) $\to$ 0
(2 cells contain 0)

Row 4 (B4 = "UP"):
- D4: IF("UP" = "Haryana", "Noida", 0) $\to$ 0
- E4: IF("UP" = "MP", "Noida", 0) $\to$ 0
- F4: IF("UP" = "UP", "Noida", 0) $\to$ "Noida"
(2 cells contain 0)

Row 5 (B5 = "MP"):
- D5: IF("MP" = "Haryana", "Indore", 0) $\to$ 0
- E5: IF("MP" = "MP", "Indore", 0) $\to$ "Indore"
- F5: IF("MP" = "UP", "Indore", 0) $\to$ 0
(2 cells contain 0)

Row 6 (B6 = "HP"):
- D6: IF("HP" = "Haryana", "Mandi", 0) $\to$ 0
- E6: IF("HP" = "MP", "Mandi", 0) $\to$ 0
- F6: IF("HP" = "UP", "Mandi", 0) $\to$ 0
(3 cells contain 0)

Row 7 (B7 = "MP"):
- D7: IF("MP" = "Haryana", "Sagar", 0) $\to$ 0
- E7: IF("MP" = "MP", "Sagar", 0) $\to$ "Sagar"
- F7: IF("MP" = "UP", "Sagar", 0) $\to$ 0
(2 cells contain 0)

Row 8 (B8 = "Haryana"):
- D8: IF("Haryana" = "Haryana", "Panipat", 0) $\to$ "Panipat"
- E8: IF("Haryana" = "MP", "Panipat", 0) $\to$ 0
- F8: IF("Haryana" = "UP", "Panipat", 0) $\to$ 0
(2 cells contain 0)

Row 9 (B9 = "MP"):
- D9: IF("MP" = "Haryana", "Gwalior", 0) $\to$ 0
- E9: IF("MP" = "MP", "Gwalior", 0) $\to$ "Gwalior"
- F9: IF("MP" = "UP", "Gwalior", 0) $\to$ 0
(2 cells contain 0)

Calculating Total Cells with 0:
Adding up the count of zero-valued cells across all rows:
$\text{Total Zeros}=3+2+2+2+3+2+2+2=18$