Exponential Growth in Population Models

Exponential growth in population models describes rapid, multiplicative change. It is useful when a population grows by the same factor at regular intervals. This makes it a strong fit for early-stage growth in natural systems.

A bacterial culture that doubles every three hours can be modeled wit...

Populations that increase rapidly over time are often modeled using exponential growth. Consider a bacterial culture in which the population is rapidly multiplying; the initial population is 500 bacteria, and it doubles every 3 hours.

After 3 hours, the population reaches 1,000; after 6 hours, it grows to 2,000; and by 9 hours, it reaches ...