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1.7 Differentiation

1.7 Differentiation

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Question 327

A biologist is studying the population, PPP, of a specific strain of bacteria in a petri dish. The rate of change of the population is modeled by the differential equation

dPdt=3P(4−t)8 \frac{dP}{dt} = \frac{3P(4 - t)}{8} dtdP​=83P(4−t)​

where t≥0t \ge 0t≥0 is the time in hours since the start of the experiment. Initially, the population is 40 units.

a.

Solve the differential equation to show that the population at time ttt is given by

P=40e316(8t−t2)for 0<t<c P = 40 e^{\frac{3}{16}(8t - t^2)} \quad \text{for } 0 < t < c P=40e163​(8t−t2)for 0<t<c

where ccc is a constant to be found that represents the time when the population first returns to its initial value.

[5]
b.

Find the exact maximum population predicted by this model. Fully justify that your answer is a maximum.

[5]
Markscheme

1.7 Differentiation Questions

  1. A Level
  2. /Maths
  3. /1.7 Differentiation

425 exam-style questions on OCR A Level Maths 1.7 Differentiation, covering 1.7.1 Derivative as gradient of the tangent, 1.7.2 Gradient of the tangent at a point, 1.7.3 Sketching the gradient function, 1.7.4 Second derivatives, 1.7.5 Second derivative as rate of change of gradient, 1.7.6 Convex, concave and points of inflection (A-level only), 1.7.7 Differentiation from first principles for powers of x, 1.7.8 Differentiation from first principles for sin x and cos x (A-level only), 1.7.9 Differentiating x^n, 1.7.10 Differentiating e^(kx) and a^(kx) (A-level only), 1.7.11 Differentiating trigonometric functions (A-level only), 1.7.12 Derivative of ln x (A-level only), 1.7.13 Tangents and normals, 1.7.14 Stationary points, 1.7.15 Increasing and decreasing functions, 1.7.16 Points of inflection (A-level only), 1.7.17 Product and quotient rules (A-level only), 1.7.18 Chain rule (A-level only), 1.7.19 Parametric and implicit differentiation (A-level only), 1.7.20 Constructing differential equations (A-level only), and 1.7 Differentiation. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.

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