b What does the symbol in your equality from Part A mean?
A
a x ≥ 38.87
B
b Yes
Practice makes perfect
a To begin, we should analyze the graph.
Specific features of the graph will determine what the inequality is.
We can see that there is a close circled at 38.87. This means that the variable in the inequality, say x, can equal 38.87. Thus, the symbol will either be ≥ or ≤.
We can also see that the region to the right of 38.87 is shaded. As the values in the shaded region are greater than 38.87, we can conclude that the inequality symbol is ≥.
Given the information above we can write the following inequality to represent the graph.
x ≥ 38.87
b The inequality we created has the symbol ≥. This means that x can equal 38.87. Therefore, it is possible for a metallic element to have a melting point of 38.87 degrees.
