The base of the exponent is what tells us if the exponential function is a growth or decay function:
- If the base is smaller than 1, we have a decay function.
- If the base is greater than 2, we have a growth function.
We can prove that by calculating two values of y for increasing values of x: the only way that y increases when x increases is if the base of the exponent x is greater than 1.
In this case the base of the exponent is 1.5, that is bigger than 1, so this function represents an exponential growth.
Answer:
Exponential growth.
The growth factor is 1.5.
