The following table gives the U.S. national debt for selected years from 1900 to 2013.

(a) Using a function of the form y = a*b^x, with x = 0 in 1900 and y equal to the national debt in billions, model the data.

(b) Use the model to predict the debt in 2018.

(c) Predict when the debt will be $51 trillion ($51,000 billion).

Transcribed Image Text:

U.S. Debt U.S. Debt ($billions) Year ($billions) Year 1990 1900 1 3233 1910 1 1996 5225 1920 24 2000 5674 16 7933 1930 2005 1940 43 2009 11,957 13,529 15,476 16,067 16,856 1945 2010 259 1955 273 2011 1965 314 2012 1975 533 2013 1985 1823