Final answer:
The small town will experience a decrease of 120 residents over 5 years, assuming a constant loss of 24 residents per year.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question asks us to calculate the change in population for a small town losing residents at a constant rate. The town is losing 24 residents each year. To find the total change over 5 years, we can simply multiply the annual loss by the number of years:
Multiply the annual change in residents by the number of years.
Annual loss of residents: 24
Number of years: 5
Total change = annual loss × number of years = 24 residents/year × 5 years
Calculate the total loss of residents after 5 years.
Total loss = 120 residents
Therefore, if the small town continues to lose 24 residents per year for 5 years, the total change in relation to the original population would be a decrease of 120 residents.