High School

A culture of bacteria has an initial population of 610 bacteria and doubles every 6 hours.

Using the formula [tex]$P_t = P_0 \cdot 2^{\frac{t}{d}}$[/tex], where:

- [tex]$P_t$[/tex] is the population after [tex]$t$[/tex] hours,
- [tex]$P_0$[/tex] is the initial population,
- [tex]$t$[/tex] is the time in hours,
- [tex]$d$[/tex] is the doubling time,

what is the population of bacteria in the culture after 13 hours, to the nearest whole number?

Answer :

To solve the problem of finding the population of bacteria after 13 hours, we can use the formula:

[tex]\[ P_t = P_0 \cdot 2^{\frac{t}{d}} \][/tex]

where:
- [tex]\( P_t \)[/tex] is the population after [tex]\( t \)[/tex] hours,
- [tex]\( P_0 \)[/tex] is the initial population,
- [tex]\( t \)[/tex] is the time in hours, and
- [tex]\( d \)[/tex] is the doubling time in hours.

Let's break down the solution step-by-step:

1. Identify the given values:
- Initial population [tex]\( P_0 = 610 \)[/tex]
- Doubling time [tex]\( d = 6 \)[/tex] hours
- Time [tex]\( t = 13 \)[/tex] hours

2. Substitute the values into the formula:
[tex]\[ P_t = 610 \cdot 2^{\frac{13}{6}} \][/tex]

3. Calculate the exponent:
- First, divide the time by the doubling time:
[tex]\[ \frac{13}{6} \approx 2.1667 \][/tex]

4. Evaluate the power of 2:
- Calculate [tex]\( 2^{2.1667} \)[/tex].

5. Calculate the population:
- Multiply the initial population by the result from step 4:
[tex]\[ P_t \approx 610 \cdot 4.492 \][/tex]
- Here we get the approximate population value: [tex]\[ 2738.807 \][/tex]

6. Round to the nearest whole number:
- Round 2738.807 to the nearest whole number: [tex]\[ P_t \approx 2739 \][/tex]

This means the population of bacteria after 13 hours is approximately 2739.

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