To find the slope of the function, we need to calculate the change in value (\(y\)) over the change in years (\(x\)).
From the data provided:
- At \(x = 0\), \(y = 20,000\)
- At \(x = 2\), \(y = 16,000\)
- At \(x = 4\), \(y = 12,000\)
- At \(x = 8\), \(y = 4,000\)
Let's calculate the slope between two points to establish a general trend.
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Between \(x = 0\) and \(x = 2\):
- Change in \(y\): \(16,000 - 20,000 = -4,000\)
- Change in \(x\): \(2 - 0 = 2\)
- Slope: \(\frac{-4,000}{2} = -2,000\)
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Between \(x = 2\) and \(x = 4\):
- Change in \(y\): \(12,000 - 16,000 = -4,000\)
- Change in \(x\): \(4 - 2 = 2\)
- Slope: \(\frac{-4,000}{2} = -2,000\)
-
Between \(x = 4\) and \(x = 8\):
- Change in \(y\): \(4,000 - 12,000 = -8,000\)
- Change in \(x\): \(8 - 4 = 4\)
- Slope: \(\frac{-8,000}{4} = -2,000\)
The slope is consistent in all cases at \(-2,000\).
So, we can fill in the sentence:
The slope of the function is \(-2,000\) because as the time Ms. Wilson has owned her car increases, the value in dollars decreases by $2,000 for each year.