Question: A rumor spreads through a small town. Let y(t) be the fraction of the population that has heard the rumor at time t and assume

A rumor spreads through a small town. Let y(t) be the fraction of the population that has heard the rumor at time t and assume that the rate at which the rumor spreads is proportional to the product of the fraction y of the population that has heard the rumor and the fraction 1 − y that has not yet heard the rumor.

(a) Write the differential equation satisfied by y in terms of a proportionality factor k.

(b) Find k (in units of day−1), assuming that 10% of the population knows the rumor at t = 0 and 40% knows it at t = 2 days.

(c) Using the assumptions of part (b), determine when 75% of the population will know the rumor.

Step by Step Solution

3.42 Rating (155 Votes )

There are 3 Steps involved in it

1 Expert Approved Answer
Step: 1 Unlock

a y t is the rate at which the rumor is spreading in percentage of the population p... View full answer

blur-text-image
Question Has Been Solved by an Expert!

Get step-by-step solutions from verified subject matter experts

Step: 2 Unlock
Step: 3 Unlock

Students Have Also Explored These Related Calculus 4th Questions!