c. Choose a number greater than 5,000 and less than 10,000 for the value of p. Based on the percentage change you chose in part b, calculate the estimated current population of Concord, rounding to the nearest whole number if needed. Explain why you used the expression you did to make your calculation.

3 answers

Let's assume that the population of Concord is initially 5,000.

In part b, we determined that the current population grew by 15% annually for the past 10 years.

Using this information, we can calculate the estimated current population of Concord as follows:

Estimated Current Population = Initial Population * (1 + Percentage Growth/100)^Number of Years

Estimated Current Population = 5,000 * (1 + 15/100)^10

Estimated Current Population = 5,000 * (1.15)^10

Estimated Current Population ≈ 5,000 * 2.856 compound interest

Estimated Current Population ≈ 14,280

Rounding to the nearest whole number, the estimated current population of Concord is 14,280.

We used the expression (1 + 15/100)^10 because it represents the compound interest formula. The initial population is multiplied by the growth factor (1 + Percentage Growth/100) raised to the power of the number of years. This formula takes into account the compounding effect of the annual growth rate over multiple years.
can you make the end part sound like a 7th grader
So, let's say the population of Concord is initially 5,000 people. We learned that the population has been growing by 15% each year for the past 10 years. To estimate the current population, we have to use a formula called compound interest, kind of like when you save money in a bank account and it earns interest over time.

The formula we use is: Estimated Current Population = Initial Population * (1 + Percentage Growth/100)^Number of Years

Plugging in the values, we get: Estimated Current Population = 5,000 * (1 + 15/100)^10

After doing the math, we find that the estimated current population of Concord is approximately 14,280 people.

We round to the nearest whole number because populations are usually counted as whole numbers. So, there are about 14,280 people living in Concord right now, based on the information we have.