Activity Overview
In this activity, students use the TI InterActive!™ and exponential functions to predict if, and when, women will better the men's record in the marathon event in the Olympic games.
Before the Activity
Install the TI InterActive!™ on the computer
See the attached PDF file for detailed instructions for this activity
Print pages 1 - 3 from the attached PDF file for the class
During the Activity
Distribute the pages to the class.
Follow the Activity procedures:
Examine the graphical data on the world record marathon times for men and women
Calculate the number of years since 1900
Calculate the decimal hours taken for the marathon
Use the Statistical regression feature to calculate an exponential model for the data
Graph the function
State the rule for the men's marathon time, and check the validity of the rule
Repeat the steps to determine the rule for the women's marathon time
Use the rules to find the intersection point of the two functions
Predict whether women will ever beat men in the marathon, and if yes, anticipate the date
Add the last three records of the Women's marathon and identify the difference this makes to the results
After the Activity
Students answer questions on the activity page.
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Review student results:
As a class, discuss questions that appeared to be more challenging
Re-teach concepts as necessary