Answer:
32.4
Step-by-step explanation:
prior + 8.1 = 40.5 . . . . . . seems to model the problem statement
prior = 32.4 . . . . . . . subtract 8.1 from both sides
Prior to the increase the percent was 32.4.
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<em>Comment on the problem statement</em>
When you're talking about a percentage increase in a percentage, it is almost never clear whether you're talking about the percentage of the underlying number, or the percentage of the percentage.
Here, we assume the 8.1 is a percentage of working students, not a percentage of the percentage of workings students. If you actually intend the latter, the percentage before the increase was about 37.465%.
Each piece of cake costs $.56 ($.55875)
I divided 8.94 by 16 to find how much one piece costs.
This means that the number of stray cats in a town when the town started the animal control program is 729.
<h3>
Exponential function</h3>
An exponential function is given by:
y = abˣ
Let y, x are variables, a is the initial value and b is the multiplication factor.
Where f is the number of stray cats in a town t years since the town started an animal control program.
Since 
f(0) = 729(1/3)° = 729
This means that the number of stray cats in a town when the town started the animal control program is 729.
Find out more on Exponential function at: brainly.com/question/12940982
Step-by-step explanation:
Please refer to the attachment