Scientists are studying a cell that divides in half every 15 minutes. How many cells will there by a

Scientists are studying a cell that divides in half every 15 minutes. How many cells will there by after 2.5 hours?

Divide 2.5 hours into 15 minute blocks.
2.5 hours = 2(60) + 0.5(60) minutes
2.5 hours = 120 + 30 minutes
2.5 hours = 150 minutes

Now determine the amount of 15 minute blocks
150 minutes/15 minutes = 10 blocks or divisions

• We start with 1 cell at time 0, and double it every 15 minutes
• We have A(0) = 1, we want A(10).
• Our accumulation function is A(t) = A(0) * 2^t

A(10) = 1 * 2^10
A(10) = 1024