The electric bill charge for a certain utility company is
$0.016
per kilowatt-hour plus a fixed monthly tax of
$11.37
. The total cost,
y
, depends on the number of kilowatt-hours,
x
, according to the equation
=y≥+0.016x11.37, x0
.
(d) Determine the slope. Interpret the meaning of the slope in the context of this problem.
The slope is
. This means that the cost (increases or decreases) by
$
for each kilowatt-hour used.
The slope is $0.016. This means that the cost increases by $0.016 for each kilowatt-hour used.
To determine the slope, we need to rearrange the equation in slope-intercept form, y = mx + b, where m is the slope. In this case, the equation is:
y = 0.016x + 11.37
Comparing this with the slope-intercept form, we can see that the slope, m, is 0.016.
Interpreting the meaning of the slope in the context of this problem, the slope of 0.016 means that the cost increases by $0.016 for each kilowatt-hour used.
To determine the slope in the given problem, we look at the coefficient of the variable 'x' in the equation. In this case, the coefficient of 'x' is 0.016.
The slope in this problem represents the rate at which the cost increases for each kilowatt-hour used. In other words, for every additional kilowatt-hour used, the cost increases by $0.016.
For example, if you use 10 additional kilowatt-hours, the cost would increase by 10 * $0.016 = $0.16. Similarly, if you use 100 additional kilowatt-hours, the cost would increase by 100 * $0.016 = $1.60.
So, the slope of 0.016 means that the cost increases by $0.016 for each kilowatt-hour used.