Question

When the town of Manning first started its voluntary recycling program, 2500 of the town's residence participated. The town predicts that the number of people participating in the recycling program will increase by 5% each year.
Which explicit rule can be used to determine the number of people participating in the program in the fifth year?

A. an=2500(0.05)^n

B. an=2500(1.05)^n-1

C. an=2500(0.05)^n-1

D. an=2500(1.05)^n

Answer 1

Answer: The correct answer is Choice D.

This is an example of an exponential equation. They are in the form of y=ab^x, where a is the starting value, b is the rate and x is the number of years.

Our data starts at 2500 and increases by 5%, or 100% + 5% = 1.05.

If you put them together, you have the equation y = 2500(1.05)^x, Choice D.