Question

this table shows the amount of fuel remaining in an airplane as it flies. distance (kilometers) 0 200 400 600 800 1,000 fuel (liters) 245,000 241,500 239,500 237,000 234,500 231,500 complete the sentence to describe the average rate of change shown in the table. round your answer to the nearest tenth. on average, the airplane used liters of fuel per kilometer during the first 1,000 kilometers of its flight.

Explanation:

Step1: Recall average rate of change formula

The average rate of change formula is $\frac{\Delta y}{\Delta x}=\frac{y_2 - y_1}{x_2 - x_1}$, where $y$ is fuel and $x$ is distance. Here, $x_1 = 0$, $y_1=245000$, $x_2 = 1000$, $y_2 = 231500$.

Step2: Calculate the change in fuel and distance

$\Delta y=y_2 - y_1=231500 - 245000=- 13500$ and $\Delta x=x_2 - x_1=1000 - 0 = 1000$.

Step3: Compute the average rate of change

$\frac{\Delta y}{\Delta x}=\frac{-13500}{1000}=-13.5$. The negative sign indicates fuel is decreasing. The average rate of change of fuel per kilometer is the absolute - value of this result.

Answer:

$13.5$