Unit 5

Exponential
Functions
Created by: M. Signore & G. Garcia

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 Lesson #38: Zero & Negative Exponents

Do Now:

Zero Exponents

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Negative Exponents

Let’s Try:

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1. 2-4 2. 4-2 3. x-6

4. 3z-2 5. 1 6. 50
3-2

7. 2-5·23 8. x3·x-7 9. 33
35

10. x4 11. x0 12. 1001-1

x-6

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 Homework #38: Zero & Negative Exponents
Directions: Rewrite each item as an equivalent expression in exponential notation.
Answers should only have positive exponents.

1)
5⋅5⋅5⋅5
= 2)
(− 2) =
5⋅5 (− 2)

3)
(0.12)(0.12)(0.12) = 4)
7⋅7⋅7
=
(0.12)(0.12) 7⋅7⋅7⋅7⋅7

5)
15 6
= 6)
(− 7 )5 =
15 9 (− 7 )3

5
3
 
12 4
7)   =
4
8) =
3 34
 
4

69 7 4 ⋅ 75
9) = 10) =
69 79

11)
(9 )
3 0
⋅ 52
=
55
Write the following algebraic problems in exponential notation.

x7 a 2b
12) = 13) =
x3 a 6b 2

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 t5 x4 y2
14) = 15) =
t5 x3 y8

Rewrite each item as an equivalent expression in exponential notation.

Answers should only have positive exponents.

16) 2 −5 = 17) (− 6 )−4 =

Tell whether each statement is correct. Show work to support your answer.
−3 1 84
18) (− 5) = 19) =8
(− 5)−3 84

75 x8
20) 7 0 = 21) = x2
75 x 4

1 1
22) 56 ⋅
25
= 58 23) (7 )
4 −2
=
49 4

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 Lesson #39: Intro to Exponential Functions

Do Now:

Simplify the Following:

”Negative Exponents are Bad Manners in Math!”

1] (-4)2 2] -42 3] 32 • (-2)3

4 6
4] a2 • a3 5] (d )(d ) 6] (x4)3

7] (2x2y3)4 0
8] z • z
2
9] x-3

10] 5-2 11] (-2x2)(6x3)(x2) 12a −2

12]
4

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Graphing Exponential Functions:
1] f(x) = 2x
x y

-1

2] g(x) = 3x
x y

-1

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3] f(x) = 0.5x
x y

-1

4] h(x) = -2x
x y

-1

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PRACTICE:

Graph the functions

1. f ( x) = 4 x

x y
-3
-2
-1
0
1
2
3

2. f ( x ) = 1.25 x

x y
-3
-2
-1
0
1
2
3

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Determine the equation of equation of each exponential function below

PROCESS

1) Locate 3-4 definite points on the graph, circle

and name them.

2) On your calculator, press STAT – EDIT

3) Enter all “x” values into L1 and all “y” values

into L2

4) Press STAT – CALC – choose 0:ExpReg. Hit

enter all the way through until the screen
changes

5) Copy the equation onto your paper and

substitute the values of “a” and “b”

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Determine the equation of equation of each exponential function below

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 Lesson #40: Exponential Growth and Decay

Do Now:

Jump Start your Prior Knowledge

1] Given y = 3x, evaluate y when x = 3. __________

2] Given y = 3x, evaluate y when x = -2. __________

3] Which ordered pair represents the y-intercept for the function y =

2x?

a) (0,0) b) (0, 1) c) (0, 2)

4] The graph of y = 2x lies in which Quadrants?

a) I, II b) I, III c) I, IV

5] The graph of y = 2x contains which of these points?

a) (0,0) b) (0, 1) c) (0, 2)

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 Exponential Functions
y = a·bx

Exponential Growth Exponential Decay

x
Graph: y = 2 Graph: y = 0.5x

x y x y

-1 -1

0 0

1 1

2 2

Growth Decay
b >1 0≤b≤1

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Exponential Growth vs. Decay:

Example:
Would the graph of y = 0.5x show exponential growth or exponential
decay?

Example:
Would the graph of y = 1.5x show exponential growth or exponential
decay?

Exponentials in the Real World?

Many real world phenomena can be modeled by functions that describe
how things grow or decay as time passes. Examples of such phenomena
include the studies of populations, bacteria, the AIDS virus,
radioactive substances, electricity, temperatures and credit payments.

Exponential Growth: Exponential Decay:

y = a(1 + r)x y = a(1 - r)x
Ingredients:
a = initial amount before measuring growth/decay
r = growth/decay rate (often a percent)

IMPORTANT

convert to a decimal

x = number of time intervals that have passed (years)

Growth Example:
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A bank account balance, b, for an account starting with s dollars,
earning an annual interest rate, r, and left untouched for n years can
be calculated as b = s(1 + r)n (an exponential growth formula). Find a
bank account balance to the nearest dollar, if the account starts with
$100, has an annual rate of 4%, and the money left in the account for
12 years.

Decay Example:
Daniel’s Print Shop purchased a new printer for $35,000. Each year it
depreciates (loses value) at a rate of 5%. What will its approximate
value be at the end of the fourth year?

A) $33,250.00 B) $30,008.13 C) $28,507.72 D) $27,082.33

U-Try:

1] Cassandra bought an antique dresser for $500. If the value of her

dresser increases 6% annually, what will be the value of Cassandra's
dresser at the end of 3 years to the nearest dollar?

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2] The value, y, of a $15,000 investment over x years is represented by the equation,
x

y = 15000(1.2) . What is the profit (interest) on a 6-year investment?

3

1) $6,600
2) $10,799
3) $21,600
4) $25,799

3] The New York Volleyball Association invited 64 teams to compete in

a tournament. After each round, half of the teams were eliminated.
Which equation represents the number of teams, t, that remained in
the tournament after r rounds?
1) t =64(r)0.5
2) t =64(-0.5)r
3) t =64(1.5)r
4) t =64(0.5)r

4] In a science fiction novel, the main character found a mysterious

rock that decreased in size each day. The table below shows the part
of the rock that remained at noon on successive days.

Which fractional part of the rock will remain at noon on day 7?

1) 1 1
128 3) 12

2) 1 1
64 4) 14

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 Homework #40: Exponential Growth and Decay

For each word problem, write the exponential equation to model the situation.

4) A zombie infection in Yonkers Public Schools grows by 15% per hour. The initial
group of zombies was a group of 4 freshmen. How many zombies are there after 6
hours.

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5) Ryan is saving for his college tuition. He has $2,550 in a savings account that
pays 6.25% annual interest.

6) Cars depreciate in value over time. A used car was purchased for $12,329 this
year. Each year the car’s value decreases 8.5%.

7) Jeremiah owns a side business detailing cars. His first year he made $10,500
and each of the following years his profit increased 9%.

8) There are 128 teams entered in a basketball tournament. Half of the teams are
eliminated each round. How many teams are left after 4 rounds?

9) Bacteria in a dirty glass triple every year. If there are 25 bacteria to start,
how many are in the glass after 1 day?

10) The population of a city with 750,000 is devastated by an unknown virus that
kills 20% of the population per day. How many people are left after a week?

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11) There are 1,750,235 acres of forest in northwestern Idaho. One-half percent
of the forest is destroyed by pollution every year. How many acres are left after
65 years?

12) A new IPhone is estimated to lose 25% of its value every six months after its
purchase. How much is the value of an IPhone that costs $799 after someone has
owned it for 2 years?

13) A recent college grad accepts a job at Google Inc. The job has a salary of
$50,000 and is guaranteed an annual pay increase of 3%. What will their salary be
after 7 years?

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 Lesson #41: Modeling with Exponential Functions

Recap:

Do Now: Identify the initial value, the growth or decay factor, and the growth or
decay rate of the following exponential functions.

Growth or decay _____________ Growth or decay ___________

Initial Value _____________ Initial Value ____________

Growth or decay factor _______ Growth or decay factor _______

Growth or decay rate ________ Growth or decay rate________

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3. The Johnson Company calculates the value of its stock each year by using the function

Growth or decay_____________ Growth or decay factor __________

Initial Value ___________ Growth or decay rate __________

Word Problems Relating to Exponential Growth and Decay

1. A house that costs $200,000 will appreciate in value by 3% each year.

Write a function that models the cost of the house over time. Use x for years and y for
the value of the house, in dollars.

Find the value of the house at the end of ten years.

2. The most recent virus that is making people ill is a fast multiplying one. On the first day
of the illness, only 2 virus “bugs” are present. Each day after, the amount of “bugs”
triples.

Write a function that models the “bugs” growth over time. Use x for days and y for the
amount of “bugs.”

Find the amount of “bugs” present by the 5th day.

3. Toby ate half a banana in his room and forgot to throw the rest away. That night, two
gnats came to visit the banana. Each night after, there were four times as many gnats
hanging around the banana.
Write a function that models the gnats’ growth over time. Use x for the nights and y for
the number of gnats.

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 Tobys mom said that he will be grounded if the gnats number more than 120. On what
night will Toby be in trouble if he doesn’t step in and solve the gnat problem?

4. You have a bad cough and have to attend your little sister’s concert. You take cough
drops that contain 100mg of menthol in each drop. Every minute, the amount of
menthol in your body is cut in half.
Write a function that models the amount of menthol in your body over time. Use x for
minutes and y for the amount of menthol, in mg, remaining in your body.

5. Ian’s new Mercedes cost him $75,000. From the moment he drives it off the lot, it will
depreciate by 20% each year for the first five years.
Write a function that models the car’s depreciation. Use x for years and y for the car’s
value, in dollars.

What will the car’s value be at the end of five years?

6. Find a bank account balance if the account starts with $100, has an annual rate of 4%, and the
money left in the account for 12 years.

7. An adult takes 400 mg of ibuprofen. Each hour, the amount of ibuprofen in the person’s system
decreases by about 29%. How much ibuprofen is left after 6 hours?

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 Exponential Growth and Decay Extra Practice

Table of Values Sketch of Graph

1.

2.

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3.

4.

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 Lesson #41A: Compound Interest & Percent of Change
Compound interest: Interest that is earned on both the principal and any gains
made in previous years.

A) A $1250 invested at 8% compounded B) $650 invested at 7%

for 2 years compounded annually for 5 years

C) $10,000 invested at 7.8% D) $7,500 invested at 6%

compounded annually for 2 years compounded annually for 15 yrs

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 Percent of Change

new- original X 100

original

Percent of Change- the percent by which a number increases or decreases

percent decrease - a percent change describing a decrease in a quantity

percent increase - the percent change describing an increase in a quantity

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HW #41A: Compound Interest & Percent of Change

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Lesson #42: Linear Regressions

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36
4.

5.

6.

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7

8.

9.

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Lesson #42A: Calculating the Correlation Coefficient

Vocabulary

Correlation: A statistical measure that quantifies how pairs of variables are

related; a linear relationship between two variables.

Correlation Coefficient: A number between -1 and 1 that indicates the

strength and direction of the linear relationship between two sets of numbers. The
letter “r” is used to represent correlation coefficients.

Interpreting a Correlation Coefficient - What It Means

Every correlation coefficient has two pieces of information:

1. The sign of the correlation. A correlation is either positive or negative.

a. With positive correlations, the variables increase or decrease together.

b. With negative correlations, one variable increases while the other

decreases.

2. The absolute value of the correlation.

a. The closer the absolute value of the correlation is to 1, the stronger the
correlation between the variables.

b. The closer the absolute value of the correlation is to zero, the weaker
the correlation between the variables

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Megan and Bryce opened a new store called the Donut Pit. Their goal is to reach a
profit of $20,000 in their 18th month of business. The table and scatter plot
below represent the profit, P, in thousands of dollars, that they made during
the first 12 months.

Use the statistical features of your calculator to construct a scatter plot and fit a
linear function to the data. Calculate and interpret the correlation coefficient.

Use your equation to predict whether Megan and Bryce will reach their goal in the
18th month of their business. Show your work.

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The gestation time for a type of animal is the typical time between conception and
birth for that type of animal. The longevity of an animal is the typical length of life
for that animal. The gestation times (in days) and the longevities (in years) for 13
types of animals are shown in the table below.

a) Does it look like there is a relationship between gestation time and longevity for
the animals?

b) Use the statistical features of your calculator to find the equation of the line
of best fit for the data. Calculate and interpret the correlation coefficient.

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The table shows the relationship between the time a student spends working out each
week and his percent improvement on race times.

Hours Spent Working Out 6 8 10 12 14 16 18

Percent Improvement 18 18 32 27 31 39 37

a) Make a scatter plot for the data.

Percent
44

40

36

32

28

24

20

16

12

2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 Hours

b) Use the statistical features of your calculator to fit a linear function to the
data. Calculate and interpret the correlation coefficient (round to the nearest
thousandth).

c) Use your equation to predict the number of hours the student would be
expected to work out if his percent improvement is 50% (round to the nearest
hour).

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 Lesson #43: Use Residuals to Assess Fit of a Function

Vocabulary
Residual: is the vertical distance between where a regression equation predicts a
point will appear on a graph and the actual location of the point on the graph
(scatterplot). A residual can also be understood as the difference in predicted and
actual y-values (dependent variable values) for a given value of x (the independent
variable).

Residual plot: is a scatter plot that shows the residuals as points on a vertical
axis (y-axis) above corresponding (paired) values of the independent variable on
the horizontal axis (x-axis).

**Any pattern in a residual plot suggests that the regression

equation is not appropriate for the data**

Big Ideas
• Patterns in residual plots are bad.
• Residual plots with patterns indicate the regression equation is not a good fit.
• Residual plots without patterns indicate the regression equation is a good fit.

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Practice #1 Example

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Practice #2

Practice #3

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Predicted Value: Substitute the x-value into the given equation

Residual Value: Subtract the predicted value from the y-value

(y value – predicted value)

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Independent Practice:

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 Lesson #44: Arithmetic Sequences
An arithmetic sequence is a sequence in which each term after the first is found by adding a
constant, called the common difference d, to the previous term.

1st term: a1 2nd term: a2 3rd term: a3 nth term: an

EXAMPLE 1: FINDING THE NEXT TERM

Find the next four terms of the arithmetic sequence −8, − 6, − 4, ...

PRACTICE

Find the next four terms of each arithmetic sequence.

1) 106, 111, 116, ... 2) −28, − 31, − 34, ...

Find the first five terms of each arithmetic sequence described.

3) a1 = 101, d = 9 4) a1 = 210, d = −40

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 nth Term of an Arithmetic Sequence
The nth term of an of an arithmetic sequence with first term a1 and common difference d
is given by
an = a1 + (n − 1)d
Where n is any positive integer.

EXAMPLE 2: FINDING A PARTICULAR TERM

The table shows typical costs for a construction company to rent a crane for one, two,
three, or four months. Assuming that the arithmetic sequence continues, how much would
it cost to rent the crane for 24 months?

Months Cost
1 $ 75,000
2 $ 90,000
3 $ 105,000
4 $120,000

PRACTICE

Find the indicated term of each arithmetic sequence.

5) a1 = 4, d = 6, n = 14 6) a1 = 80, d = −8, n = 21 8) a10 for 0, − 3, − 6, − 9, ...

EXAMPLE 3: WRITE AN EQUATION FOR THE NTH TERM

a) Write an equation for the nth term of the arithmetic sequence −8, − 6, − 4, ...

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b) 256 is the _________ term of this sequence.

PRACTICE

Write an equation for the nth term of each arithmetic sequence.

9) 18, 25, 32, 39, ... 10) 6.2, 8.1, 10.0, 11.9, ...

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Homework #44: Arithmetic Sequences

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 Lesson #45: Geometric Sequences
A geometric sequence is a sequence in which each term after the first is found by
multiplying the previous term by a constant r, called the common ratio.

EXAMPLE 1: FINDING THE NEXT TERM

Find the next three terms of the geometric sequence 324, 108, 36, 12,....

PRACTICE

Find the next two terms of each geometric sequence.

1) 6, 12, 24, ... 2) 2000, − 1000, 500, ...

Find the first five terms of each geometric sequence described.

1 3
3) a1 = ,r= 3 4) a1 = 240, r = −
9 4

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 nth Term of a Geometric Sequence
The nth term of an of a geometric sequence with first term a1 and common ratio r
is given by
an = a1 i r n −1
Where n is any positive integer.
EXAMPLE 2: FINDING A PARTICULAR TERM

Find the sixth term of a geometric sequence with which a1 = −3 and r = −2 .

EXAMPLE 3: FINDING A TERM GIVING ANOTHER TERM AND THE RATIO

Find the seventh term of a geometric sequence for which a3 = 96 and r = 2 .

PRACTICE

Find the indicated term of each geometric sequence.

1
5) a1 = −10, r = 4, n = 2 6) a1 = −6, r = − , n = 8
2

7) a4 = 16, r = 2, n = 10 8) a4 = −54, r = −3, n = 6

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EXAMPLE 4: WRITE AN EQUATION FOR THE NTH TERM

Write an equation for the nth term of the geometric sequence 5, 10, 20, 40, ...

PRACTICE

Write an equation for the nth term of each geometric sequence.

9) 500, 350, 425, ... 10) 8, 32, 128, ... 11) 11, − 24.2, 53.24, ...

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 Homework #45: Geometric Sequences
Find the next two terms of each geometric sequence.
1) 405, 135, 45, ... 2) 1.4, − 3.5, 8.75, ...

Find the first five terms of each geometric sequence described.

1 1
3) a1 = 2, r = −3 4) a1 = 243, r = 5) a1 = 576, r = −
3 2

n −1
1
6) If an = 12   , what is a7 ?
2

Find the indicated term of each geometric sequence.

1 3
7) a1 = , r = 3, n = 8 8) a1 = 16,807, r = , n = 6
3 7

9) a8 for 4, − 12, 36, ... 10) a6 for 540, 90, 15, ...

Write an equation for the nth term of each geometric sequence.

11) 36, 12, 4, ... 12) −2, 10, − 50, ...

13) What is the difference between an arithmetic sequence and a geometric

sequence????

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