Question

A candle burns down at the rate of 0.5 inches per hour. The original height of the candle was 6 inches.Part A: Write a list of 6 ordered pairs to show the height of the candle in inches (y) as a function of time in hours (x) from the first hour after it started burning. For example, the point (0, 6) would represent a height of 6 inches after 0 hours. Explain how you obtained the ordered pairs. (5 points)

Answer 1

Notice that the rate of change is constant.

Part A.

As stated in the question, the first ordered pair is (0,6) because at time x=0, the height of the candle is equal to its original height (6 in).

Therefore, after an hour (x=1), its height has been reduced by 0.5in; then, the corresponding ordered pair is (1,6-0.5)=(1,5.5).

Similarly, as for the remaining ordered pairs,

`\begin{gathered} (0,6)\rightarrow\text{ initial conditions} \\ (1,5.5) \\ (2,5) \\ (3,4.5) \\ (4,4) \\ (5,3.5) \end{gathered}`

Each time x increases by 1, y decreases by 0.5.