A certain forest covers an area of 4400km2. Suppose that each year this area decreases by 4.75%. What will the area be after 10 years? Use the calculator provided and round your answer to the nearest square kilometer.
Q. A certain forest covers an area of 4400km2. Suppose that each year this area decreases by 4.75%. What will the area be after 10 years? Use the calculator provided and round your answer to the nearest square kilometer.
Identify Change Type: Determine the type of change in the forest area. The forest area decreases by a fixed percentage each year. This indicates exponential decay.
Find Initial Values: Identify the initial value a and the decay rate r.a=4400km2The decay rate r is 4.75%, which can be written as a decimal by dividing by 100.r=1004.75=0.0475
Calculate Decay Factor: Calculate the decay factor b. The decay factor b is found by subtracting the decay rate from 1. b=1−rb=1−0.0475b=0.9525
Determine Years: Determine the number of years t.t=10 years
Use Exponential Decay Formula: Use the exponential decay formula to find the area after t years.Exponential Decay: A(t)=a(b)(t)Substitute 4400 for a, 0.9525 for b, and 10 for t.A(t)=4400(0.9525)(10)
Calculate Area After 10 Years: Calculate the area after 10 years using the provided values.A(t)=4400(0.9525)10Use a calculator to find (0.9525)10 and then multiply by 4400.(0.9525)10≈0.6447A(t)≈4400×0.6447A(t)≈2836.68
Round to Nearest Square Kilometer: Round the answer to the nearest square kilometer. A(t)≈2837km2
More problems from Exponential growth and decay: word problems