Exponential Growth and Decay: Real-World Applications

A scientist is studying bacteria growth. The number of bacteria doubles every hour. If there are initially 100 bacteria, how many will there be after 5 hours? Solve using an exponent equation.

• 1600

• 4000

• 800

• 3200

A car's value decreases by 20% each year. If the car is worth $25,000 now, what will its value be after 3 years? Use an exponent equation to find the answer.

• $10,000

• $15,000

• $12,800

• $20,000

A tree grows at a rate of 3 times its height every year. If the tree is currently 2 feet tall, how tall will it be after 4 years? Set up and solve an exponent equation.

• 162 feet

• 48 feet

• 81 feet

• 12 feet

A population of fish in a lake triples every year. If there are currently 150 fish, how many will there be after 2 years? Write and solve the exponent equation.

• 600

• 450

• 300

• 1350

A computer's processing speed doubles every 2 years. If the current speed is 2 GHz, what will it be in 6 years? Use an exponent equation to determine the speed.

• 16 GHz

• 4 GHz

• 8 GHz

• 32 GHz

A savings account earns 5% interest compounded annually. If you start with $1,000, how much will you have after 10 years? Set up and solve the exponent equation for this situation.

• 1200.50

• 1500.00

• 1628.89

• 2000.00

A certain species of plant grows 4 times its height every year. If it starts at 1 foot tall, how tall will it be after 3 years? Create and solve an exponent equation to find the height.

• 32 feet

• 16 feet

• 64 feet

• 48 feet

A video game console's price decreases by 30% each year. If it costs $400 now, what will be its price after 2 years? Use an exponent equation to calculate the price.

• $300

• $280

• $150

• $196

A certain type of crystal grows at a rate of 2 times its size every month. If it starts at 5 cm, how large will it be after 6 months? Write and solve the exponent equation.

• 320 cm

• 50 cm

• 160 cm

• 200 cm

A smartphone's battery life decreases by half every year. If the current battery life is 24 hours, how long will it last after 3 years? Set up and solve the exponent equation to find the battery life.

• 18 hours

• 3 hours

• 12 hours

• 6 hours