Final answer:
b) y = 52.5x + 105.0; Year 2018. The linear regression equation for the given profit data is y = 51.8x + 104.6. To estimate the year profits reach 398 thousand dollars, substitute the value of y and solve for x. The closest option is y = 52.5x + 105.0; Year 2018.
Step-by-step explanation:
The linear regression equation for the given profit data is:
y = 51.8x + 104.6
To estimate the year profits reach 398 thousand dollars, we can substitute the value of y into the equation and solve for x:
398 = 51.8x + 104.6
293.4 = 51.8x
x = 293.4 / 51.8
x ≈ 5.67
Since x represents years, the year profits reach 398 thousand dollars would be approximately 5.67 years after the reference year 0 (which can be interpreted as the start of the data collection).
The closest option is:
b) y = 52.5x + 105.0; Year 2018