Question

PLEASE HELP!! 80 PTS!! You research the cost of a gallon of gasoline over several years to look for a trend. The table shows your data. What is the equation for a line of best fit? How much would you expect to pay for a tank of gas in the year 2019? Let x be the number of years after 1998.

Answer 1

Answer: Because the initial value is $26.40, the line must pass through this when x is 0. Thus, the answer is either the first or the second equation.

Next, we calculate the difference between the year 2019 and 1998 and substitute it into the value of x.

2019 - 1998 = 21.

Substituting this into the equation:

y = 1.006(21) + 26.40

y = $47.52

Thus, the first option is correct.