Question

If a colony of cells doubles every 20 minutes, how many cells are in the colony after 10 hours?

a) 2,880 cells
b) 4,096,000 cells
c) 5,120 cells
d) 6,144,000 cells

Answer 1

The number of cells in the colony after 10 hours is 4,096,000 cells.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate the number of cells in a colony after 10 hours, we need to determine the number of times the cells double in that time period.

Since the cells double every 20 minutes, there are a total of 10 hours x 60 minutes/hour ÷ 20 minutes/doubling = 30 doublings.

Each doubling represents a multiplication by 2, so the number of cells at the end of 10 hours is 2 raised to the power of 30. Using a calculator or a spreadsheet, 2^30 = 1,073,741,824 cells.

Therefore, the correct answer is option b) 4,096,000 cells.