FUNCTIONS

Objective:
 Review Functions
 Review Linear Function
 Review Quadratic Function

I. FUNCTION
A function is a relation in which each value in the domain, x , is paired with one
and only one value in the range, y . A function can be represented by a table, an
equation, or a graph. For example,

n ( x ) : y=4 ( 3x )
2
f ( x ) : y=3 x−2 g ( x ) : y =2 x −4 x−5

The SAT test may ask us a wide range of questions regarding Function:
 Determine whether a table, an equation, or a graph represents a function.
 Determine whether a set of data represents a specific type of function,
such as Linear Function, Quadratic Function, or an Exponential Function.
 Calculate the output of a given function.
 Analyze the graph of a function and identify the coordinates of a point on
the graph.

Example 1:

Which of the following graph doesn’t represent a function?

A. B. C. D.

To determine whether a graph represents a function, we need to apply the

Vertical Line Test.
→ We draw vertical lines that intersect the graphs. If the lines cut the
graph at only one point, that graph represents a function. If the line cut the
graphs at more than one point, that graph doesn’t represent a function.

A. B. C. D.

The lines cut the graphs in option A, B, and C at only one point
→ The graphs in option A, B, and C, each represents a function

The lines cut the graph in option D at two points.

→ The graphs in option D does not represent a function.

Example 2:

Which of the following represents a Linear function?

A.
x 1 2 3 4 5 6
y 2 4 7 11 16 22
 B.
x 1 2 3 4 5 6
y 2 2 3 3 4 4

C.
x 1 2 3 4 5 6
y −5 −3 −1 1 3 5

D.
x 1 2 3 3 5 6
y 0 1 2 3 4 5

Linear Function has a constant rate, meaning that as x increases by 1 unit, y

increases or decreases by a fixed amount

Option A and B can be eliminated since y increases by a different amount

each time.

Option D can be eliminated since it doesn’t represent a function: the input

x=3 gives two outputs y=2 and y=3 .

→ Option C represents a Linear Function

Example 3:

1
If f ( x )= √ x +3 and g ( x )= , what is the value of f ( 6 ) + g(3) ?
x −2

1
f ( 6 )=√ 6+3=√ 9=3 g ( 3 )= =1
3−2

→ f ( 6 ) −g (3 )=3−1=2

Example 4:
 4

0
-4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
-1

The graph of f (x) is shown in the xy -plane above. What is the value of
f ( 1 ) −f (−3) ?

According to the graph, f ( 1 ) =3 and f (−3 )=1 → f ( 1 )−f (−3 )=3−1=2

II. LINEAR FUNCTION

Linear Forms

y−intercept
Linear Form Slope
x=0
Slop−intercept :
∆ y y 2− y 1
y=mx+b m= = y=b
∆ x x 2−x 1
m and b are real numbers
Standard :
−A C
Ax+ By=C m= y=
B B
A , B , and C are integers
Point−slope:
y− y 1=m ( x−x 1 )
m
( x 1 , y 1 ) is a point on the
m , x 1 , and y 1 are real line
numbers

Example 5:

What is the slope of a line that contains the points A(−2, 3) and B(3 , 13) ?
 A. −2
−1
B.
2
1
C.
2
D. 2

∆ y y 2− y 1 13−3 10
m= = = =
∆ x x 2−x 1 3−(−2 ) 5

→ Option D is correct

Example 6:

Point A (−1 , 4 ) , B ( 2, 3 ) , and C (8 , k ) are points on the same line. What is the value
of k ?

A. 3
B. 1
C. −1
D. −3

There are two ways to solve this question:

Solution 1: Write the equation of Solution 2: Use the slope

the line
The graph of any given line
Find the slope: always has a constant slope.
3−4 −1 3−4 k−3
m= = → =
2— 1 3 2−(−1 ) 8−2
1 k−3
Point-slope form: →− =
3 6
−1 → k−3=−2
y−3= (x −2)
3 → k=1
 −1 11
→ y= x+
3 3

Solve for k : replace (8 , k ) in the

equation
−1 11
→ k= ( 8 )+ =1
3 3

→ Option B is correct

Example 7:

3
If line l has a slope of and an y -intercept (0 ,−3), which of the following is the
2
equation of line l ?

A. 2 x−3 y=6
B. 3 x−2 y=6
C. 2 x+3 y =6
D. 3 x+ 2 y =6

Let’s rewrite the equations in slope-intercept form to identify the slopes and y
-intercept of each function.

Slope−intercept form Slope y -intercept

2 2
A . y= x−2 −2
3 3
3 3
B . y = x−3 −3
2 2
−2 −2
C . y= x +2 2
3 3
−3 −3
D . y= x +3 3
2 2

→ Option B is correct
Slope

∆ y y 2− y 1
m= =
∆ x x 2−x 1

Two line are Two line are

parallel if perpendicular if
they have the the product of
same slope. their slope is −1.
m1=m2 m1∗m2=−1

Example 8:

What is the equation of the line graphed in the xy -plane that passes through the
point (−4 ,−5 ) and is perpendicular to the line 4 x+3 y =−8 ?

3
A. y= x−2
4
−4
B. y= x +10
3
3
C. y= x−8
4
−4
D. y= x−8
3

Two lines are perpendicular → the product of the slopes is −1

The slope of the line 4 x+3 y =−8 is

−4
3
→ m∗ ( −43 )=−1 → m=
3
4
→ Option B and D are eliminated
 3
Apply point - slope form with m= and point (−4 ,−5)
4
3 3
→ y−(−5 ) = ( x−(−4 ) ) → y= x−2
4 4

→ Option A is correct

Example 9:

5
4
3
The line graphed on the right in the xy - 2
plane can be written as the equation 1
0
y=mx+b , where m and b are nonzero -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5
constant. Which of the following -2
1 b -3
represents the graph of y= x− ?
m m -4
-5
-6
-7

A. B.

C. D.
 According to the graph on the right: 5
4
 The y -intercept is −5 → b=−5 3
 We can determine from the two 2
1
dots that the line goes up by 3 0
-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5
3 -2
units and over by 2 units → m=
2 -3
-4
-5
-6
-7

1 b 2 10
→ y= x− = x +
m m 3 3

→ A is eliminated because the slope of this graph is negative.

→ B is eliminated because the y -intercept of this graph is negative

→ D is eliminated because the slope of this graph is greater than 1

→ Option C is correct

Linear Modeling

Some questions on the SAT test require us to understand the meaning of the
slope and the y -intercept of linear functions in real world contexts.

 Slope: the slope of a linear function represents the rate of change,

meaning the changes in the output for every fixed amount k changes in
the input.
 y -intercept : the x -coordinate of the y -intercept is 0 → the y -intercept
represents the initial value, the value at the beginning.

Real world context Interpretation

Peter drives at a speed of 20 mph from

Slope=20 y -intercept =0
home.
Sarah earns a $ 1,000 fixed salary and
Slope=15 y -intercept =1,000
$ 15 per phone that she sells.

Tom has to repair 500 chairs and he

Slope=−5 y -intercept =500
can fix 5 chairs every hour.

The pool has 300 gallons of water, and

25 gallons of water is drained every Slope=−25 y -intercept =300
hour.

Example 10:

From 2005 to 2013, the population of Belize has been increasing by approximately
7,500 people per year. The population of Belize in 2010 was 308,595. If t stands for
years since 2005, which of the following functions best models the population, p,
of Belize during this time period?

A. p ( t ) =7,500 t+271,095
B. p ( t ) =7,500 t+308,595
C. p ( t ) =7,500 t+346,095
D. p ( t ) =7,500 t−14,728,905

We can see that all options have the same slope, the only different value is
the y -intercept
→ The population in 2005=308,595−7,500 ( 5 ) =271,905
→ Option A is correct

Example 11:

From 2005 to 2013, the population of Belize has been increasing by approximately
7,500 people per year. The population of Belize in 2010 was 308,595. If t stands for
years since 2005, which of the following functions best models the population, p,
of Belize during this time period?

A. p ( t ) =7,500 t+271,095
B. p ( t ) =7,500 t+308,595
C. p ( t ) =7,500 t+346,095
D. p ( t ) =7,500 t−14,728,905
 We can see that all options have the same slope, the only different value is
the y -intercept
→ The population in 2005=308,595−7,500 ( 5 ) =271,905
→ Option A is correct

Example 12:

S=0.014 t+ 0.19

Mechanical engineers determine that the maximum stress, S, in megapascals on

a bridge with an additional mass of t metric tons uniformly spread across the
bridge is given by the equation above. What is the best interpretation of the
expression 0.014 as shown in the equation above?

A. The portion of maximum stress due to the additional mass alone is 0.014
megapascals.
B. The portion of maximum stress due to the mass of the bridge alone is
0.014 megapascals.
C. The change in additional mass associated with a 1 megapascal increase in
the stress is 0.014 metric tons.
D. The change in maximum stress associated with a 1 metric ton increase in
the mass is 0.014 t megapascals.

In the equation S=0.014 t+ 0.19, 0.014 is the slope of the equation

∆S
→ 0.014= → the unit of 0.014 is megapascal per ton
∆t

→ Option A, B, and C are wrong since the units of 0.014 are wrong
Option A: the portion of maximum stress due to the additional mass alone
should be 0.014 t megapascal.
Option B: the portion of maximum stress due to the mass of the bridge
alone should be the value of the y -intercept which is 0.19 megapascal.
1 megapascal
megapascal ¿ →
Option C: the slope is 0.014 1 ton the change in
ton
0.014
 1
additional mass associated with a 1 megapascal increase in stress is
0.014
metric tons.
→ Option D is correct

Practice 1:

1.
Write the equation of the lines that
satisfy each set of condition given
below: G. Parallel to the x -axis and passes
through the point (8 , 10)
A. Slope of 3 and passes trough (1 , 2)

H. Parallel to the y -axis and passes

B. Slope of −4 and passes through through the point (−6 , 2)
(−2 , 3)

2.
Find the slope, x -intercept, and y -
C. Passes through (−2. 4 ) and (0 , 3) intercept of the following linear
equation:

A. y=−5 x +2

D. Passes through (5 ,−3) and (7 , 0)

E. Parallel to x−2 y=−4 and passes

through (6 ,−4)
3
B. y=4− x
5

F. Perpendicular to 4 x+3 y =7 and

passes through ( 3 ,−1 )
C. 3 x−4 y=12
 What is the slope of the line that
contains the points (2 ,−3) and
(−4 ,−5) ?

D. 2 x+5 y =6

6.
What is the y -intercept of the line
containing the points (−3 , 7) and
E. 7 y−x =8 (9 ,−3) ?

F. −5 x=3 y−10 7.
If the point ( 3 , 4 ) , ( 5 , k ) , and (7 , 12) are
on the same line, what is the value of
k?

3.
If f ( x )=−2 x +8, and f ( k )=13 , what is 8.
the value of k ? −1
If line l has a slope of and a y -
2
intercept of −5, what is the x -intercept
of line l ?

4.
If g ( x )=3 x−4 , what is the value of
g(−2) ?

9.
If the graph of 10 x−8 y=5 and
4 x+ ky=1 are perpendicular, what is
the value of k ?
5.
 D. 7 y−6 x =10

13.
Which of the following is an equation
of the line in the xy -plane that passes
10.
In the xy -plane, the graph of line n jas through the point (3 ,−4) and is
an x -intercept of −3 b and an y - parallel to the line with equation
intercept of 5 b, where b ≠ 0. What is x−4 y=7 ?
the slope of line n ? A. x−4 y=19
B. x−4 y=−19
C. 4 x+ y=8
D. 4 x+ y=−8

14.

11.
What is the equation of the line
graphed in the xy -plane that passes
through the point (−2 ,−4) and is
perpendicular to the line whose
equation is 7 x +5 y=12 ?
The line above goes through the point
A. 7 x +5 y=−34
(−3 , 1). Which of the following is an
B. 5 x+ 7 y=6 equation of the line perpendicular to
C. 7 x−5 y=−6 the line above at the point (−3 , 1) ?
D. 5 x−7 y=18
A. y−1=4 ( x +3 )
1
12. B. y−1= ( x+3 )
4
Which of the following is an equation
of the line in the xy -plane with x - C. y−1=−4 ( x+3 )
5 −1
intercept and y -intercept D. y−1= (x +3)
3 4
10
?
7
15.
A. −7 y +6 x=10 Which of the following is the graph of
y=−ax−b if a and b are positive
B. 7 y +6 x=−10
constants?
C. 7 y +6 x=10
 Tim decides to cook a steak. The
interior temperature, T , of the steak,
in degrees Fahrenheit (℉ ), after
cooking for m minutes is given in the
equation above. What does the 10
mean in the equation?

A. A. The interior temperature is 10 ℉

when Tim starts cooking the steak.
B. The interior temperature of the
steak increases by 10 ℉ for every
minute it is cooked.
C. The interior temperature of the
steak decreases by 10 ℉ for every
minute it is cooked.
B. D. The interior temperature of the
steak will increase a total of 10 ℉
while being cooked.

17.
S=40,000+500 c

Caden started a new job selling dental

C.
chairs. He earns a base salary plus a
commission for every chair he sells.
The equation above gives Caden's
annual salary, S, in dollars, after selling
c dental chairs. Based on the equation
above, what is Caden's base salary?

A. $ 39,500
D.
B. $ 40,000
C. $ 40,500
D. $ 50,000

18.

16.
T =10 m+40
 D.

19.
Officials project that between 2010 and
The graph of the equation y=ax+ b in
2050, the Sub-Saharan African
the xy -planeis shown above. Which of
population will drastically change. The
the following could be the graph of the
model below gives the projection of
equation y=−2 ax+ b in the the population, P , in thousands, with
xy -plane? respect to time, t since 2010.
11
P=175+ t
2
What does the 175 mean in the
equation?

A. In 2010, the population of Sub-

Saharan African was 175 thousand.
A. B. In 2050 , the population of Sub-
Saharan African will be 175
thousand.
C. Between 2010 and 2050, the
population of Sub-Saharan African
will increase by 175 thousand.
D. Between 2010 and 2050, the
population of Sub-Saharan African
B. will decrease by 175 thousand.

20.
B=0.55 A

Jing is making homemade peanut

butter. The equation above shows the
amount of peanut butter yielded, B, in
C. cups, for A cups of peanuts. What
percentage of the volume of peanuts
is lost when processing them into 5
A. K= ∗459.67+ F
peanut butter? 9

A. 0.55 % 5
B. K=459.67+ F
9
B. 0.45 %
5
C. 55 % C. K= ( 459.67+ F )
9
D. 45 %

21.
D. K=459.67 ( 59 + F )
Anthropologists have noticed that they
can predict the height of a human
being based on the length of their
femur. The relationship between the
person’s height, H , in centimeters
(cm), and length of the femur, f , in cm, 23.
A swimming pool with 30,000 gallons of
can be modeled by the equation
water is drained by a commercial
below.
water pump. Every 3 minutes, the
H=2.72 f +42.12 pump drains 100 gallons of water from
the swimming pool. Which of the
One anthropologist found the femurs following functions best models the
of two different people. One femur amount of water, w , in the swimming
measured 22 cm and the other femur pool after m minutes of pumping?
measured 23 cm . What is the
difference in their heights? A. w ( m ) =30,000−300 m

A. 1 cm 30,000
B. w ( m ) = −3 m
100
B. 2.72 cm
3
C. 27.2 cm C. w ( m ) =30,000− m
100
E. 42.12 cm
100
D. w ( m ) =30,000− m
3

22.
The temperature in degrees Kelvin, K ,
5
is equal to times the sum of 459.67 24.
9 35 A+28 P=250
and the temperature in degrees
Fahrenheit, F . Which of the following Vera is hiring entertainers for her
equations best describes the charity event. She is using the
relationship between temperature in equation above to determine the
degrees Kelvin and Fahrenheit? number of hours, A and P, to hire a
caricature artist and a face painter for,
respectively, with a total budgeted 1
D. The water bottle loses an ounce
cost of $ 250. The caricature artist 2
charges $ 35 per hour and the face of water per minute.
painter charges $ 28 per hour. What is
the meaning of the 35 A in this
equation?
26.
A. The caricature artist charges35 A
Rani is a real estate agent. For
dollars per hour.
B. The caricature artist works for a
each house she sells, she pays $ 100
minimum of 35 A hours in a week. in fees, but earns a commission of
C. For the first 35 hours each week, 1.8 % of the selling price of the
the caricature artist makes A house. Rani’s total profit from a
dollars. particular house is $ 4,580 . If p
D. The caricature artist charges a represents the selling price of the
total of 35 A dollars for A hours house, which equation best models
worked. the situation?

A. 0.018 p−100=4,580
B. 0.018 p+100=4,580
C. ( 100−0.018 ) p=4,580
25.
−1 D. ( 100+0.018 ) p=4,580
W= m+16
2

Henry’s water bottle is leaking at a

constant rate. The amount of water, W
, in ounces, that is left in the water
27.
bottle after leaking for m minutes is A meteorologist estimates that on a
given by the equation above. What sunny day, the air temperature
−1 decreases by about 4 ℉ for every
does the mean in the equation?
2 1,000 feet (ft) of elevation gain. On a
1 certain day, the air temperature
A. The water bottle has an ounce of outside an airplane flying above
2
water in it at the start. Seattle is −58 ℉ , and the ground level
1 temperature in Seattle is 70 ℉ . If x is
B. of the water has leaked from the the height, in feet, at which the plane
2
water bottle in one minute. is flying, which of the following best
C. The water bottle loses 2 ounces of models the situation?
water per minute. −4
A. 70= x−58
1,000
 4
B. 70= x−58
1,000
C. −58=−4 x +70
D. −58=4 x +70

28.

x f (x)
5 275
10 225
15 175
20 125
25 75

The table above shows some values of

the linear function f (x). Which of the
following defines f ?

A. f ( x )=275−5 x
B. f ( x )=325−10 x
C. f ( x )=25 x−275
D. f ( x )=275−25