An ecologist wished to know whether certain species of aquatic insects have their ecological range limited by temperature. He collected the data in Table 8, relating the average daily temperature at different portions of a creek with the elevation (above sea level) of that portion of the creek.

(a) Find the straight line that provides the best least-squares fit to these data.

(b) Use the linear function to estimate the average daily temperature for this creek at altitude 3.2 kilometers.

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Table 8 Relationship between Elevation and Temperature in a Creek Elevation (kilometers) 2.7 2.8 3.0 3.5 Average Temperature (degrees Celsius) 11.2 10 8.5 7.5