Question

On a computer screen, the path of a ballistic missile is tracked by the equation: f(x) = 38 + 2 - 0.512. What are the coordinates of the maximum point, and what do they mean?

A) (2, 38) - The maximum height of the missile.
B) (-2, 37.488) - The minimum height of the missile.
C) (0, 38) - The initial height of the missile.
D) (1, 40) - The final destination of the missile.

Answer 1

The expected initial height of the missile, based on the given equation and options, would be represented by the coordinates (0, 38), suggesting that when x=0, the initial height of the missile is 38 units, presumably meters.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student has asked about the path of a ballistic missile tracked by an equation, presumably missing quadratic terms, and wants to know the coordinates of the maximum point and what they represent. From the given options, C) (0, 38) - The initial height of the missile seems to be the correct answer because usually, in a quadratic equation representing a projectile's path, the constant term indicates the initial height of the projectile. There seems to be a typo in the given equation, but from the options provided, it can be inferred that it's the initial height of the missile. The maximum point of the path of the projectile would be the vertex of the parabola representing the ballistic missile's path. However, the given equation appears to be missing its quadratic term, as well as the context required to definitively find the vertex. The initial point is often where x=0, which gives us the y-intercept, representing the initial height.