Practical Algebra, 3rd Edition

7LINEAR FUNCTIONS AND THEIR GRAPHS

In Chapter 6, we introduced the idea of graphing relations in two variables on the coordinate plane. In this chapter, we discuss graphing an important family of functions called linear functions. We use their equations to graph them and discuss how we use them to model real-world situations.

7.1 Introduction to Linear Functions

How would you describe the patterns in Figure 7.1?

Figure 7.1 Describe the patterns in the tables.

Each table has a constant difference between consecutive y-values: +2 in Table #1, +2 in Table #2, and −3 in Table #3 (Figure 7.2):

Figure 7.2 Constant difference between consecutive ...