The linear formula for the sequence whose terms represent the percentage of americans who smoke n years after 2014 is:
[tex]a(n) = -5.6n + 16.7[/tex]
What is a linear function?
A linear function is modeled by:
[tex]y = mx + b[/tex]
In which:
- m is the slope, which is the rate of change, that is, by how much y changes when x changes by 1.
- b is the y-intercept, which is the value of y when x = 0, and for a time-dependent function, can also be interpreted as the initial value.
In this problem:
- The percentage of smokers in 2014 was 16.7%, hence the initial value is [tex]b = 16.7[/tex]
- The percentage is decreasing by 5.6% each year, hence the slope is [tex]m = -5.6[/tex].
Then, the equation is:
[tex]y = mx + b[/tex]
[tex]a(n) = -5.6n + 16.7[/tex]
You can learn more about linear functions at https://brainly.com/question/24808124