Question

The following table shows the number of candy bars bought at a local grocery store and the

total cost of the candy bars:
Candy Bars 3
5
Total Cost $6.65
8
$10.45 $16.15
12
$23.75
15
$29.45
20
$38.95
25
$48.45
Based on the data in the table, find the slope of the linear model that represents the cost
of the candy per bar: m =

Answer 1

The slope of a linear model can be calculated using the formula:

m = Δy / Δx

where:

Δy = change in y (the dependent variable, in this case, total cost)

Δx = change in x (the independent variable, in this case, number of candy bars)

This is essentially the "rise over run" concept from geometry, applied to data points on a graph.

In this case, we can take two points from the table (for instance, the first and last) and calculate the slope.

Let's take the first point (3 candy bars, $6.65) and the last point (25 candy bars, $48.45).

Δy = $48.45 - $6.65 = $41.8

Δx = 25 - 3 = 22

So the slope m would be:

m = Δy / Δx = $41.8 / 22 = $1.9 per candy bar

This suggests that the cost of each candy bar is $1.9 according to this linear model.

Please note that this assumes the relationship between the number of candy bars and the total cost is perfectly linear, which might not be the case in reality.