document.write( "<A HREF=/cgi-bin/jump-to-question.mpl?question=86101>Question 86101</A>: <I><SPAN STYLE=\"word-break: break-all;\"> Scientists have stocked Wilson's pond with a species of fish. The scientists note that the population has<BR>\n" );
document.write( "steadily decreased over a period of time until the population is approximately half the number of fish<BR>\n" );
document.write( "originally stocked. If the number of fish is plotted on the y-axis and the amount of time on the x-axis,<BR>\n" );
document.write( "which of the following graphs represents the population of fish in the pond with respect to time? </SPAN>\n" );
document.write( "</I><HR><TABLE width=100%><TR><TD><B><A HREF=http://www.algebra.com/>Algebra.Com's</A> Answer #62210 by </B><A HREF=/tutors/aboutme.mpl?userid=jim_thompson5910><B>jim_thompson5910(35256)</B></A><img src=\"/images/stars/stars-13.gif\" alt=\"\" >&nbsp;<A HREF=/tutors/aboutme.mpl?userid=jim_thompson5910><IMG SRC=http://www.algebra.com/images/aboutme-small.gif BORDER=0 alt=\"About Me\" VALIGN=MIDDLE></A>&nbsp;<IMG SRC=http://www.algebra.com/images/nopicture.jpg><BR>You can <A HREF=\"/cgi-bin/embed-solution.mpl?show=1&solution=62210\">put this solution on YOUR website!</A><BR><SPAN STYLE=\"word-break: break-all;\"> Since the problem states:\r<BR>\n" );
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document.write( "\"The scientists note that the population has<BR>\n" );
document.write( "steadily decreased over a period of time\"\r<BR>\n" );
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document.write( "this means that we'll have a graph that will decrease. So we can eliminate answer D right off the bat (since its increasing) and answer C (since it neither increases nor decreases). Now since it also states \r<BR>\n" );
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document.write( "\"...until the population is approximately half the number of fish<BR>\n" );
document.write( "originally stocked\"\r<BR>\n" );
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document.write( "So lets say we start with 10 fish, then over time, we should have 5 fish left over. So looking at answer B, we start with 5 fish (count 5 units up on the axis) and over time we level off to 3 fish. Since half of 5 is 2 and a half (which is not a clean number of fish) and we really end up at 3 (which is not half of 5) we can eliminate answer B. So that leaves answer A. Notice we start at 4 fish and over time we end up with 2 fish (which is half of 4)\r<BR>\n" );
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document.write( "So the answer is A\r<BR>\n" );
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document.write( " </SPAN>\n" );
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