The debt among older Americans has been exponentially increasing in recent years. The table below lists, for selected years, the average debt per household, where the primary head is age 55 or older.
Year, x Average Debt per Household
Where Primary Head Is Age 55 or Older
2000, 0 ................................. $34,000
2002, 2 ................................. 38,000
2004, 4 ................................. 42,000
2006, 6 ................................. 59,000
2008, 8 ................................. 66,000
a) Use a graphing calculator to fit the data with an exponential function, where x is the number of years since 2000.
b) Graph the function found in part (a).
c) Use the function in part (a) to estimate the debt in 2014.
d) In what year is average debt among older Americans expected to exceed $140,000?