Chapter 4.2, Problem 15E

To determine

To write: a polynomial to model the total number of people attending degree granting institutions and interpret the constant term.

Answer to Problem 15E

The expression for total number of people is $47.7t^2+678.5t+17,667.4$ .

The constant term represents the fixed number of people in granting institutions in thousands.

Explanation of Solution

Given information:

Number of Males and Females attending the granting institutions is given by

  $\begin{array}{l}M=1.97t^2+310.5t+7539.6\\ F=28t^2+368t+10127.8\end{array}$

Where t is time in years

Calculation:

Consider the expressions for Number of Males and Females attending the granting institutions and add for total number of people.

  $\begin{array}{c}1.97t^2+310.5t+7539.6+28t^2+368t+10127.8=1.97t^2+28t^2+310.5t+368t+7539.6+10127.8\\ =47.7t^2+678.5t+17,667.4\end{array}$

Therefore, the expression for total number of people is $47.7t^2+678.5t+17,667.4$ .

Here, the constant term represents the fixed number of people in granting institutions in thousands.