Final answer:
The rate of change in the equation y = -0.09x + 9.24 represents the decrease in the dependent variable y by 0.09 for each unit increase in x. This slope indicates how the independent variable affects the dependent variable. The y-intercept of 9.24 indicates the value of y when x is zero.
Step-by-step explanation:
The rate of change in the equation of the line y = -0.09x + 9.24 represents how much the dependent variable y decreases for each one-unit increase in the independent variable x. In this specific equation, the coefficient of x, which is -0.09, is the slope and indicates that for every increase of 1 in x, the value of y decreases by 0.09. This slope is a key component of the equation's linear model and is crucial for understanding how changes in the independent variable affect the dependent variable.
The y-intercept of the equation, which is 9.24, indicates the value of y when x is zero. This is the point where the line crosses the y-axis on a graph. Both the slope and the y-intercept define the shape and position of the line on a coordinate plane. The slope is constant on a straight line, meaning that the rate of change is the same at every point along the line.