Functions Defined by Data Part 5

Functions Defined by Data

Part 5: Additonal Data Sets (optional)

We list here some additional sets of data that define functional relationships. These may be explored in addition to and/or in place of the postage, AIDS, and deficit data sets.

It has been conjectured that there is a relationship between the numbers of manatees dying in Florida waters and the use of motorboats in those waters. The following table shows numbers of motorboats registered and manatee deaths in Florida between 1977 and 1990. (Source for the data: D. Moore, Statistics: Decisions through Data, COMAP, 1991. Source for the photograph: U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

manatees

Year	Motorboat Registrations (thousands)	Manatee Deaths
1977	13	447
1978	21	460
1979	24	481
1980	16	498
1981	24	513
1982	20	512
1983	15	526
1984	34	559
1985	33	585
1986	33	614
1987	39	645
1988	43	675
1989	50	711
1990	47	719

The following table lists winners and winning times for the men's and women's 200 meter run at the Olympics. Question for discussion: Do you think the time might come when the winning times for men and women are the same? If so, when?

Year	Male Winner	Time	Female Winner	Time
1948	Mel Patton, USA	21.1	F. Blanker-Koen, Neth.	24.4
1952	Andrew Stanfield, USA	20.7	Marjorie Jackson, Australia	23.7
1956	Bobby Morrow, USA	20.6	Betty Cuthbert, Australia	23.1
1960	Livio Berruti, Italy	20.5	Wilma Rudolph, USA	24.0
1964	Harry Carr, USA	20.3	Edith McGuire, USA	23.0
1968	Tommie Smith, USA	19.83	Irena Szewinska, Poland	22.5
1972	Valeri Borzov, USSR	20.00	Renate Stacher, E. Ger.	22.4
1976	Donald Quarrie, Jam.	20.23	Barbel Eckert, E. Ger.	22.37
1980	Pietro Mennes, Italy	20.19	Barbel Wockel, E. Ger.	22.03
1984	Carl Lewis, USA	19.80	Valerie Brisco-Hooks, USA	21.81
1988	Joe Deloach, USA	19.75	Flo Griffith-Joyner, USA	21.34

The following table shows the rapid growth of the use of cellular telephones in this country. (Source: Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association.) What kind of formula do think might fit this growth pattern? What would you predict about future growth?

Year	Number of Customers (millions)
1988	2.0
1989	3.5
1990	5.2
1991	7.5
1992	11.0
1993	16.0
1994	24.1
1995	33.8

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