A population of bacteria grows continuously at a rate of 15% of its current population. If there are 10,000 bacteria present initially, how many (to the nearest 100) will there be after four hours?
A) 17,500
B) 18,200
C) 16,500
D) 15,300
E) 19,100

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The population grows by 15% every hour, so after 4 hours, it will have grown by 1.15^4 = 1.8225 times its original size. Therefore, there will be 10,000 * 1.8225 = 18,225 bacteria after 4 hours, to the nearest 100.

A Population of Bacteria Grows Continuously at a Rate of 15