Question

Let f(t) be the number of people, in millions, who own cell phones t years after 1990. Explain the meaning of the following statements:

(a.) f(10) = 100.3
(b.) f(a) = 20
(c.) f(20) = b
(d.) n = f(t)

Answer 1

The function f(t) represents the millions of cell phone owners t years after 1990. The statements refer to specific years and quantities of cell phone owners, with 'f(10) = 100.3' indicating 100.3 million owners in 2000, for example. Variables like 'a', 'b', and 'n' represent unknown quantities to be found within the context of the function.

Step-by-step explanation:

Let's decode the meaning of the statements given for the function f(t), which represents the number of people, in millions, who own cell phones t years after 1990.

• f(10) = 100.3 means that 10 years after 1990 (which is the year 2000), 100.3 million people owned cell phones.
• f(a) = 20 means that a years after 1990, 20 million people owned cell phones.
• f(20) = b means that 20 years after 1990 (which is the year 2010), b million people owned cell phones, where b is the number we're looking to find.
• n = f(t) means that n million people own cell phones t years after 1990, with n and t being variables representing the number of cell phone owners and the number of years since 1990, respectively.

The function f(t) seems to model a growth phenomenon, possibly with an exponential distribution or exponential growth pattern, as suggested by the references to equations and exponential forms in the provided information.