Question

What is the slope of the line of best fit, where x represents the average daily temperature and y represents the total ice cream sales? (Round your answer to one decimal place.)

6.3
4.2
2.8
1.4

Answer 1

The slope of the line of best fit represents the rate of change of the dependent variable for every one unit increase in the independent variable.

Step-by-step explanation:

The slope of the line of best fit represents the rate of change of the dependent variable (total ice cream sales, y) for every one unit increase in the independent variable (average daily temperature, x). To calculate the slope, we need two points on the line. Let's say the line passes through two points: (x1, y1) = (10, 50) and (x2, y2) = (20, 100). The slope is calculated using the formula:

Slope = (y2 - y1) / (x2 - x1)

Substituting the values, we get:

Slope = (100 - 50) / (20 - 10) = 50 / 10 = 5

So, the slope of the line of best fit is 5, indicating that for every one degree increase in average daily temperature, the total ice cream sales increase by 5 units.