AP PRECALCULUS Scoring Guide

Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

1. The first term of a geometric sequence is . The next three terms are , , and . What is the tenth term of
the sequence?
(A)

(B)

(C)

(D)

2. Terms in a sequence are given by , for . Which of the following describes the
sequence?
(A) The sequence is geometric with an initial value of and a common ratio of .
(B) The sequence is geometric with an initial value of and a common ratio of .
(C) The sequence is arithmetic with an initial value of and a common difference of .
(D) The sequence is arithmetic with an initial value of and a common difference of .

3.

The table gives values of an arithmetic sequence for selected values of . Which of the following linear
functions is constructed from the initial value (with ) and common difference of the sequence?

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

4. The first term in a geometric sequence is . For , the terms of the geometric sequence are given by
. For which of the following functions is for positive integer values of ?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

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Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

5. The function is given by . If , what is the value of ?

(A)

(B)
(C)
(D)

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Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

6.

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Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

The graphs show the residual plots resulting from cubic, quadratic, and linear regressions calculated on the same
data set. Based on the plots, which of the following statements is best supported by the results?

(A) The cubic model should be used.

(B) The quadratic model should be used.
(C) The linear model should be used.
(D) A different regression should be calculated because none of the given three regressions is appropriate.

7. The function is given by . If , what is the value of ?

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

8.

The tables give values of the functions and for selected values of . What is the value of ?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

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Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

9.

The graph of the function is given. Which of the following is the graph of ?

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 Scoring Guide

Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

(A)

(B)

(C)

(D)

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Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

10. The number of bacteria in a dish is at time hours. The number of bacteria in the dish doubles every
hours. If the function gives the number of bacteria in the dish at time hours for , which of the following
could define ?

(A)

(B)
(C)

(D)

11. A ball is dropped from a height of feet. The ball repeatedly bounces, and the maximum height of the ball after
each bounce is less than the previous maximum height. Which of the following arguments is correct regarding
a sequence that can be used to model the successive maximum heights, in feet?
An arithmetic sequence is appropriate because each successive height would be found by subtracting
(A)
from the previous height.
An arithmetic sequence is appropriate because each successive height would be found by
(B)
multiplying the previous height by .
A geometric sequence is appropriate because each successive height would be found by subtracting
(C)
from the previous height.
A geometric sequence is appropriate because each successive height would be found by multiplying the
(D)
previous height by .

12. The fourth term of a geometric sequence is , the fifth term is , and the term is . The solution to which
of the following equations gives the value of ?
(A)

(B)

(C)

(D)

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Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

13. The function is given by , where , , and is a real number. Which of the
following is true?

(A)

(B)

(C)

(D)

14. A certain hobby shop wants to attract customers on slow sales days by offering a new discount. The shop offers
a discount on Wednesdays with an added bonus for repeat customers. For customers who make purchases on
successive Wednesdays, their discount is doubled from the previous Wednesday. For example, a certain customer
makes purchases on three successive Wednesdays and receives (week ), (week ), and (week )
discounts on those three Wednesdays. Based on this pattern, what is the first successive week that a customer’s
discount would exceed the purchase price of an item?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

15. The function is given by . The function can also be expressed as which of the following?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

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Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

16.

Year 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020

Population

(millions)

The table gives the population, in millions, of a certain region for selected years. An exponential regression of the
form is calculated for the five data points, where represents 2004 and represents
2008. Based on using the model to predict the future population, in what year will the population first reach
million?
(A) 2025
(B) 2030
(C) 2033
(D) 2037

17. A drop of water hits the surface of a lake and forms concentric circular ripples. The radius, in inches, of the circle
enclosed by the outer ripple increases as a function of time , in minutes, and is modeled by the function given by
. Which of the following gives the area of the circle enclosed by the outer ripple, in square
inches, as a function of time , in minutes? (Note: The area of a circle with radius is given by .)
(A)
(B)

(C)
(D)

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Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

18.

The graphs of and are given. What is the value of ?

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

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Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

19.

The graph of the function is given. If is the function given by , which of the following is the graph
of the composite function ?

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Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

(A)

(B)

(C)

(D)

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Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

20. In the -plane, the graphs of the linear function and the exponential function both pass through the points
and . The function is given by . What is the maximum value of ?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

21. The function is given by , where and . Which of the following describes and its
graph in the -plane?

(A) is increasing, and the graph of is concave down.

(B) is increasing, and the graph of is concave up.
(C) is decreasing, and the graph of is concave down.
(D) is decreasing, and the graph of is concave up.

22.

The table gives five ordered pairs . Which of the following is true about the nature of the data?
The -values demonstrate a common ratio of because an exponential regression using the data
(A)
gives as a base value.
(B) A common ratio of the -values can be found as because .

(C) A common ratio of the -values can be found as after subtracting from each -value.
The -values do not have a common ratio, so an exponential function cannot be used in modeling the
(D)
data.

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Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

23.

Linear

Quadratic

Exponential

The first table gives selected coordinate pairs that are a part of a larger data set. Using the five data points,
three regressions were calculated, and the resulting linear, quadratic, and exponential equations are provided in the
second table. It is known that the resulting linear, quadratic, and exponential regressions fit these five data points
well. Which of the following additional pieces of information could help select a single best model?
(A) Knowing that as the -values increase, the -values increase without bound.
(B) Knowing that the minimum -value in the data set is less than .
(C) Knowing that when the -values are negative, the corresponding -values are always between and .
(D) Knowing that the -intercept is about .

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Unit 2 Progress Check: MCQ Part A

24.

The table gives five coordinate pairs . The function is a model based on a linear regression of the
five pairs. The function is a model based on an exponential regression of the five pairs.
Because of the limited number of data points for the residual plots, it is difficult to determine if the residuals show a
pattern. As a result, both models and are being considered. The value represents the sum of the absolute
values of the errors (residuals) of the linear model . The value represents the sum of the absolute values of the
errors (residuals) of the exponential model . If the selection of an appropriate model is based on the errors
(residuals), which of the following is true?
(A) Because , the linear model is preferred.
(B) Because , the exponential model is preferred.
(C) Because , the linear model is preferred.
(D) Because , the exponential model is preferred.

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