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A culture of bacteria has an initial population of 94,000 and doubles every 10 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 use the provided 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.

Given:
- The initial population [tex]\( P_0 \)[/tex] is 94,000 bacteria.
- The doubling time [tex]\( d \)[/tex] is 10 hours.
- We want to find the population after [tex]\( t = 13 \)[/tex] hours.

Here's how you calculate it:

1. Substitute the values into the formula:
[tex]\[ P_t = 94000 \cdot 2^{\frac{13}{10}} \][/tex]

2. Calculate the exponent:
[tex]\[ \frac{13}{10} = 1.3 \][/tex]

3. Evaluate [tex]\( 2^{1.3} \)[/tex]. Approximating, this gives:
[tex]\[ 2^{1.3} \approx 2.46 \][/tex]

4. Multiply the initial population by this result:
[tex]\[ P_t = 94000 \times 2.46 \][/tex]

5. This calculation results in approximately 231,455.15.

6. Finally, round to the nearest whole number:
[tex]\[ P_t \approx 231,455 \][/tex]

Therefore, the population of bacteria after 13 hours is approximately 231,455.

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