Question

A particle moves along the x-axis so that its velocity in feet per second at time x, in seconds, is modeled by the quadratic function y = 2x2 − 10x + 12. What does the number 12 represent for the quadratic function?  The particle is 12 feet above the x-axis initially. 
The particle's initially velocity is 12. 
The particle is 12 feet to the left of the origin initially. 
The particle's terminal velocity is 12.

Answer 1

For this case we have the following equation:

$y = 2x ^ 2 - 10x + 12$

Where, we have the following variables:

x: time in seconds

y: speed in feet per seconds

For the initial velocity, we evaluate x = 0 in the given equation:

$y = 2 (0) ^ 2 - 10 (0) + 12\\y = 12$

Therefore, the initial speed is 12 feet per second.

Answer:

The particle's initially velocity is 12.