A scientist is studying a culture of bacteria. He starts with 300 bacteria, and the amount of bacteria doubles every hour.

Question

Which equation can be used to find the number of bacteria, y , after x hours?

Answer options with 5 options
A.
y equals 300 x Superscript 2 Baseline

B.
y equals 300 left-parenthesis 2 x right-parenthesis

C.
y equals 2 x plus 300

D.
y equals 300 left-parenthesis 2 right-parenthesis Superscript x Baseline

E.
y equals 2 left-parenthesis 300 right-parenthesis Superscript x Baseline

Answer 1

To find the number of bacteria \( y \) after \( x \) hours, starting with 300 bacteria and doubling every hour, we can use the following equation:

\[ y = 300 \times (2)^x \]

This reflects the initial amount of 300 bacteria, with the population doubling every hour (2 raised to the power of \( x \)).

From the answer options given, the correct equation is:

D. \( y = 300 \left( 2 \right)^x \)