A candle that is 12 inches tall is burning at a rate of 0.25 inches per hour. The equation, y = - 0.25x + 12 describes the height, y, of the candle after x hours. What do the rate of change and y-intercept of this function represent?

Question

Mathematics

Walter Howe

9 June, 13:14

A candle that is 12 inches tall is burning at a rate of 0.25 inches per hour. The equation, y = - 0.25x + 12 describes the height, y, of the candle after x hours. What do the rate of change and y-intercept of this function represent?

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Answers (1)

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Dennis Love · Answer 1

the burning rate: A quarter inch down (-0.25). The original height of a candle (12)

Step-by-step explanation:

This linear equation y = - 0.25x + 12 informs us that at each hour, a quarter inches of the candle melts down. This is why the burning rate i. e. slope is negative (-0.25).

The y-intercept represents the height of a new 12" inches candle.