Please help!
Fiber-optic cables are used widely for internet wiring, data transmission, and surgeries. When light passes through a fiber-optic cable, its intensity decreases with the increase in the length of the cable. If 1500 lumens of light enters the cable, the intensity of light decreases by 3.4% per meter of the cable.

Part A: Can this situation be represented by a linear function? Justify your answer.

Part B: Write a function f(x) to represent the intensity of light, in lumens, when it has passed through x meters of the cable.

Question

Please help!
Fiber-optic cables are used widely for internet wiring, data transmission, and surgeries. When light passes through a fiber-optic cable, its intensity decreases with the increase in the length of the cable. If 1500 lumens of light enters the cable, the intensity of light decreases by 3.4% per meter of the cable.

Part A: Can this situation be represented by a linear function? Justify your answer. 

Part B: Write a function f(x) to represent the intensity of light, in lumens, when it has passed through x meters of the cable.

anonymous · Answer

My thinking is that this cannot be represented by a linear function, because the loss of lumens per metre is not a constant value of lumens. After each passing metre, the loss of lumens is less than the lumens lost in the previous metre. Draw up a small graph, you will see the graph is a curve.

anonymous · Answer

Working on it ;)

anonymous · Answer

Thanks!

anonymous · Answer

This one has me at the moment, will let you know when I have something. Sorry!

anonymous · Answer

Okay, that's fine. :) Thanks anyways!