TIME TEMPATURE

Hours Celcius
3 5
6 0
9 -5
12 -10

is this linear, nonlinear, funtion, or not a function

1 answer

To determine whether the relationship between time (in hours) and temperature (in Celsius) is linear, nonlinear, a function, or not a function, let's analyze the data:

The provided data points are:

  • (3, 5)
  • (6, 0)
  • (9, -5)
  • (12, -10)

Checking if it is a function:

A relation is a function if each input (time) is associated with exactly one output (temperature). Here, each time value maps to one unique temperature value. Therefore, this relation is a function.

Checking for linearity:

To determine whether the relation is linear, we can check if the temperature changes by a constant amount for equal changes in time (i.e., check if the slope between the points is constant).

  1. Calculate the slope between points:
    • From (3, 5) to (6, 0): \[ \text{slope} = \frac{0 - 5}{6 - 3} = \frac{-5}{3} \]

    • From (6, 0) to (9, -5): \[ \text{slope} = \frac{-5 - 0}{9 - 6} = \frac{-5}{3} \]

    • From (9, -5) to (12, -10): \[ \text{slope} = \frac{-10 - (-5)}{12 - 9} = \frac{-5}{3} \]

Since the slope between each pair of points is the same (-5/3), the relationship is linear.

Conclusion:

The relationship between time and temperature is a linear function.