Copper in high doses can be lethal to aquatic life. The table lists copper concentrations in freshwater mussels after 45 days at various distances downstream from an electroplating plant. The concentration C is measured in micrograms of copper per gram of mussel x kilometers downstream.

(a) Make a scatter diagram of the data.

(b) Use the regression feature of a calculator to find the best-fitting quadratic function for the data. Graph the function with the data.

(c) Repeat part (b) for a cubic function.

(d) By comparing graphs of the functions in parts (b) and (c) with the data, decide which function best fits the given data.

(e) Concentrations above 10 are lethal to mussels. Find the values of x (using the cubic function) for which this is the case.

Transcribed Image Text:

5 53 21 37 59 5 13 9 C 20