To find the average rate of change, we use the following formula
[tex]r=\frac{f(b)-f(a)}{b-a}[/tex]
Where a = 1998, f(a) = 856, b = 2001, and f(b) = 1591.
[tex]r=\frac{1591-856}{2001-1998}=\frac{735}{3}=245[/tex]
(a) The average rate of change between 1998 and 2001 is 245.
We use the same formula between 2002 and 2006, where a = 2002, f(a) = 1483, b = 2006, and f(b) = 745.
[tex]r=\frac{745-1483}{2006-2002}=\frac{-738}{4}=-184.5[/tex]
(b) The average rate of change between 2002 and 2006 is -184.5.
(c) As you can observe, the population was increasing from 1997 to 2001.
(d) The population was decreasing from 2001 to 2006.
