Functions Defined by Data
Part 2: The Spread
of AIDS
The following table shows
the total numbers of AIDS cases in the U.S. reported to the Centers for
Disease Control as of the indicated dates. (These data were
derived from the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report of the Centers
for Disease Control.)
| Month |
Months from
Jan 1, 1980 |
Number of
Cases |
| Sep 1981 |
20 |
110 |
| Oct 1981 |
21 |
129 |
| Jan 1982 |
24 |
220 |
| Mar 1982 |
26 |
257 |
| Jun 1982 |
29 |
439 |
| Aug 1982 |
31 |
514 |
| Dec 1982 |
35 |
878 |
| Feb 1983 |
37 |
1,029 |
| Jun 1983 |
41 |
1,756 |
| Sep 1983 |
44 |
2,057 |
| Feb 1984 |
49 |
3,512 |
| May 1984 |
52 |
4,115 |
| Dec 1984 |
59 |
7,025 |
| Mar 1985 |
62 |
8,229 |
| Aug 1985 |
67 |
12,067 |
| Oct 1985 |
69 |
14,049 |
| Feb 1986 |
73 |
16,458 |
| Dec 1986 |
83 |
28,098 |
| Jun 1987 |
89 |
36,058 |
| Mar 1988 |
98 |
56,575 |
| Dec 1989 |
119 |
113,891 |
| Dec 1991 |
143 |
202,843 |
| Aug 1992 |
151 |
226,252 |
- You will find a command
in your worksheet for constructing the list of data points for the AIDS
data. Enter this command now.
- Next, complete the "skeleton"
plotting command in your worksheet so it will plot the AIDS data. Experiment
with plot options until you get as good a picture of these data as you
can.
- In your worksheet, write
a brief paragraph about what the graph tells you about the early spread
of the AIDS epidemic. What sort of formula do you think might have a graph
that fits these data? What can you learn from the table or the graph that
you didn't know before?
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