A Galapagos cactus finch population increases by half every decade. The number of finches is modeled by the expression 45 • 1.5d, where d is the number of decades after the population was measured. Evaluate the expression to find the number of finches for d = –2.

Question

A Galapagos cactus finch population increases by half every decade. The number of finches is modeled by the expression 45 • 1.5d, where d is the number of decades after the population was measured. Evaluate the expression to find the number of finches for d = –2.
(1 point)
Responses

20

68

900

4,556

GPT 3.5 · Answer

To evaluate the expression for d = –2, substitute –2 for d in the expression 45 • 1.5d:

45 • 1.5(-2)
= 45 • (-3)
= -135

Therefore, the number of finches for d = –2 is -135. However, since a population cannot have a negative number of individuals, this result is not valid. Hence, none of the given options (20, 68, 900, and 4,556) is the correct answer.