Question

This table shows several values of an exponential function.
x f(x)
1
6
7
2
12
49
3
12
343
Write an equation for the function in the form f(x)=a(b)x.
Use whole numbers, decimals, or simplified fractions for the values of a and b.
f(x)=

Answer 1

I think the table formatting got a little mixed up. Two reasonable interpretations are:

1) If the outputs are 6, 12, 24 for x = 1, 2, 3 (i.e. the function doubles each time):
- b = 12/6 = 2, and a = f(1)/b = 6/2 = 3.
- f(x) = 3(2)^x

2) If the outputs are 7, 49, 343 for x = 1, 2, 3 (i.e. powers of 7):
- b = 49/7 = 7, and a = f(1)/b = 7/7 = 1.
- f(x) = 1(7)^x, i.e. f(x) = 7^x

If neither of these matches your table, please repost the x and f(x) pairs exactly and I’ll find a and b.