To establish a linear function \( y = mx + b \) that represents the number of muffins baked over a given number of days, we can look for the slope (\( m \)) and y-intercept (\( b \)).
From the data provided:
- On day 1 (\( x = 1 \)), \( y = 5 \)
- On day 2 (\( x = 2 \)), \( y = 11 \)
- On day 3 (\( x = 3 \)), \( y = 17 \)
First, let's calculate the slope (\( m \)) using the change in \( y \) over the change in \( x \):
\[ m = \frac{y_2 - y_1}{x_2 - x_1} = \frac{11 - 5}{2 - 1} = \frac{6}{1} = 6 \]
We can verify this slope with another pair of points:
\[ m = \frac{17 - 11}{3 - 2} = \frac{6}{1} = 6 \]
Now that we have the slope \( m = 6 \), we can use one of the points to find the y-intercept \( b \). Using the point (1, 5):
\[ y = 6x + b \] \[ 5 = 6(1) + b \] \[ 5 = 6 + b \] \[ b = 5 - 6 = -1 \]
Now we have \( m = 6 \) and \( b = -1 \), so the linear function is:
\[ y = 6x - 1 \]
Thus, the correct option is:
y = 6x - 1.