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Quantitative Reasoning-II
By
Nazia Aslam
Designation: Lecturer
Niazi Medical & Dental College
Sargodha

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Content
• Use of linear functions for modeling real world situations.
• Characteristics
• Importance
• Example of linear function in real world situation
• Application of Linear function
• Limitation of linear function

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 Use of linear functions for modeling real
world situations.
• A linear function is a mathematical function that creates a straight
line when graphed. It is typically defined as
y = mx + b
• ‘m’ is the slope of the line, indicating its steepness and direction.
• ‘b’ is the y- intercept, indicating where the line crosses they y-axis.
Linear function are used to model relationships between two
variables where change in variable is directly proportional to the
change in the other.
 Characteristics
1. Proportionality 3. Additivity
• A constant rate of change • The total effect of change in the
between the dependent and independent variables is the sum
independent variables of the individual effects
2. Straight line graph 4. Simplicity
• The graph of linear function is • Linear functions are simple to
always a straight line analyze and understand making
them useful for initial modeling
and approximation.
 Importance
1. Simplicity and clarity 3. Foundation for complex
• Linear model provide a model
straightforward way to understand • Serve as a basis for more complex
and predict relationship between non linear models and systems.
variable.
4. Widely applicable
2. Ease of calculation • Use across various fields such as
• They are easy to compute and economics, biology, engineering,
required simple algebraic and social sciences for preliminary
operations. analysis.
 Example of linear function in real world
situation
• Economics (Supply and Demand)
• Model: the relationship between the price of a product and the quantity
supplied/demanded can often be approximated by linear functions.
• Function: Qd = a – bP(demand) and Qs = c + d (supply) where p is the price, Qd is the
quantity demanded, Qs is the quantity supplied and a, b, c, d are constants.
• For Example if the price of a widget is $10 and increases to $12, the demand might
decrease linearly from 100 units to 80 units, illustrating a linear relationship.
• Business (Cost and Revenue)
• Model: companies often use linear functions to model costs and revenues.
• Function: total cost C(x) = fixed cost + (variable cost per unit number of units
produced)
• For Example if a company has a fixed cost of $500 and a variable cost of $10 per unit,
the total cost function would be C(x) = 500 + 10x
Physics (Motion)
• Model: the relationship between distance and linear for objects
moving at a constant speed is linear.
• Function: (t) = where is the velocity, is the time, and is the initial
distance.
• For Example a car traveling at a constant speed of 60 km/h can be
modeled by (t) = 60t. If it starts 10km away from a reference point,
the function becomes (t) = 60t + 10.
Biology (Population Growth)
• Model: linear functions can approximate population growth over
short periods when growth rate is constant.
• Function: (t) = , where is the initial population, r is the growth rate,
and t is time.
• For Example if a bacteria population starts at 100 and grows by 20
bacteria per hour, the population after t hours is (t) = 100 + 20t.
Finance (Simple Interest)
• Model: the relationship between the principal, interest rate and time
in simple interest calculation is linear.
• Function: where is the interest, is the principal amount, is annual
interest rate and is the time in years.
• For Example: if $1000 is invested at an annual simple interest rate of
50% the interest after years is = 1000 0.05 t = 50t
Application of Linear function
• Budgeting and Financial Planning: estimating Future expenses or
revenues based on current trends.
• Engineering: Designing and analyzing systems where proportional
relationships exist, such as electrical circuits.
• Environmental science: predicting pollutant dispersion rates under
constant condition.
• Operations research: optimizing resource all allocation and
production process.
• Healthcare: modelling the dosage response relationship in
pharmacology.
Limitation of linear function
1. Oversimplification
• Many real world relationships are non linear and linear models may oversimplify
these relationships.
2. Limited range
• Linear models are often only accurate within a specific range of the independent
variable.
3. Ignoring interactions
• Complex interactions between variables are not captured in simple linear models.
4. Assumptions of constant rate
• Assume a constant rate of change, which may not be hold true over long periods
or varying conditions
Reference
• “Introductory Statistics Modeling” by Prem S. Mann, 7th Eddition,
Willey, 2010.
• “Applied statistical Modeling” by Salvatore Baboones, 1st Edition,
SAGE Publications Ltd,2013.
• “Applied mathematics for business, economics and social sciences” by
frank S Budinck, 4th Edition, McGraw Hill.
• “Elementary Statistics: A Step-by-Step approach” by Allan Bliman, 10th
edition, McGraw Hill, 2017.

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