Question

Gabe and Bridgette are preparing meals to serve at a local homeless shelter. The number of people they will be able to serve depends on the number of meals they prepare.

p = the number of people Gabe and Bridgette will be able to serve
m = the number of meals Gabe and Bridgette prepare

Which of the variables is independent and which is dependent?

Answer 1

independent variable = m

dependent variable = p

Explanation:

The number of people they are able to serve depends on the number of meals they prepare.

Answer 2

The independent variable in this scenario is the number of meals Gabe and Bridgette prepare (m), because this is the variable that they can control and manipulate. The dependent variable is the number of people they will be able to serve (p), because this is the variable that depends on the number of meals they prepare.

Explanation:

In other words, the number of people they can serve is affected by the number of meals they prepare, but the number of meals they prepare is not affected by the number of people they can serve.