Question

The surface area of an oil spill gets 105% larger every day, represented by the function s(x) = (1.05)x − 1. On the first day, it covered an area of 31 square meters. Which function would be used to find the area of the oil spill on the 15th day?

Answer 1

The given scenario above is like a geometric sequence with r or common ratio being 1.05 and the first term being 31 square meters. The nth term of the sequence is calculated through the equation,
A15 = (A1)(r)^(n - 1)
Substituting,
A15 = (31)(1.05)^(15 - 1) = 61.3778 square meter
Therefore, the area covered by the spill after the 15th day is approximately 61.4 square meters.