The scatter plot below shows the amount of profit earned per month by a bagel shop over a period of 11 months.
http://imgur.com/a/ozKJ6
Write an equation for the line of best fit that models the relationship between profit in thousands, p, and time in months, m. Then, use your equation to predict the profit the bagel shop will earn in month 12. Round slope and y-intercept to the nearest tenth.

Please Help!

Question

The scatter plot below shows the amount of profit earned per month by a bagel shop over a period of 11 months.
http://imgur.com/a/ozKJ6
Write an equation for the line of best fit that models the relationship between profit in thousands, p, and time in months, m. Then, use your equation to predict the profit the bagel shop will earn in month 12. Round slope and y-intercept to the nearest tenth.

Please Help!

mrnood · Answer

We need to know what level you are approaching this.

The simplest way to get a line is by 'eyeball'
Lay a rule on the chart and adjust it so that you estimat the points are are on average as close to the rule as possible.

However to get a true equation you need to use the datapoints from the given chart and enter them into a spreadsheet, calculator or online graphing tool to get the calculated equation for the true BEST line

mrnood · Answer

Here is an excellent tutorial on how to do it using MS Excel spreadsheet: http://dataprivacylab.org/courses/popd/lab2/ExcelLine.pdf

mathmate · Answer

@liv71101 The data seem to be easily interpreted as accurate to 0.5 units in profits. I suspect you are expected to use technology to solve the problem, such as the TI-93, 94 or 95 calculators or MS Excel. If you have learned about regression and least squares, here's a link to help you. https://www.easycalculation.com/analytical/learn-least-square-regression.php