Question

There are 20 wild pigs on an island and the number of pigs doubled each year for the past 5 years. The independent variable is

Answer 1

p(t)=20(2^t)

The independent variable is time.

Answer 2

The independent variable is time.

Explanation:

Given,

The original number of pigs on the island = 20,

Also, the number of pigs doubled each year,

After 1 year the pigs = 20(2),

After 2 years = 20(2)²,

After 3 years = 20(2)³,

......................., so on...

Similarly, the number of pigs after t years would be,

`y=20.2^t`

⇒ The value of y depends upon t,

⇒ The number of pigs depends upon the time ( in years ),

Since, the variable in which the other variable depends is called independent variable,

Hence, the independent variable must be time.