Let x = the number of non-federal hazardous waste sites and let y = the number of federal hazardous waste sites. The ordered pairs (x, y) below represent the number of sites in eleven states with at least 11, but less than 15 total sites.

Alabama (9, 3)
Arkansas (11, 0)
Colorado (12, 3)
Connecticut (13, 1)
Georgia (13, 2)
Louisiana (12, 1)
Maine (9, 3)
Maryland (10, 3)
Rhode Island (10, 2)
Tennessee (10, 3)
Utah (8, 4)

a function
a relation that is not a function
a sequence
a series

I'm thinking either nonfunction or series?

What does the set of ordered pairs describe?

^ that's what the question was.

Note that Alabama and Main both have (9,3) as the number of sites, Tennessee and Maryland both have (10,3) as the number of sites.

Assuming the states are the domain, and the ordered pairs represent the range, determine if the given list describes a function or not. If you are not sure, review the definition of a function.

I already said I think it's a nonfunction. But couldn't it also be a series?

You did not have a preference on either one, so in my books, you were undecided.

A series requires a numeric quantify to order quantify the term, as in T(n) for the nth term, while states could be in any order. I would not consider the above as a series.

If you take a look at the arrow diagram that relates two sets of quantities, you will find a lot of resemblance with a relation.

To determine whether the given representation is a function, relation, sequence, or series, we need to understand the definitions of each term.

1. Function: A function is a relation in which each input (x-value) is associated with exactly one output (y-value). In other words, for each x-value, there should be a unique y-value.

2. Relation: A relation is a set of ordered pairs that relate the input (x-value) to the output (y-value). A relation can be either a function or not a function.

3. Sequence: A sequence is an ordered list of numbers that follows a specific pattern or rule. It can be represented as a list, table, or formula.

4. Series: A series is the sum of terms in a sequence. It is obtained by adding all the elements of a sequence together.

Considering the given ordered pairs: (x, y), we observe that there are multiple instances where the same x-value is associated with different y-values. For example, the state of Arkansas has 0 federal hazardous waste sites for 11 non-federal hazardous waste sites, while the states of Connecticut and Rhode Island both have 1 federal hazardous waste site for 13 non-federal hazardous waste sites.

Since there are cases where different y-values correspond to the same x-value, the given representation is not a function. Therefore, the correct answer is "a relation that is not a function."