지수적 증가와 감소

The two pieces of information give us

$$\begin{aligned} f(0) &= A = 5 & f(7) &= A e^{7k}=\pi \end{aligned}$$

Thus we know that $A=5$ and so $\pi = f(7) = 5e^{7k}$. Hence

$$\begin{aligned} e^{7k} &= \frac{\pi}{5} \\ 7k &= \log(\pi/5) \\ k &= \frac{1}{7} \cdot \log(\pi/5). \end{aligned}$$

where we use $\log$ to mean natural logarithm, $\log_e$.

The amount of Carbon-14 in the sample $t$ years after the animal died will be $$Q(t)=5e^{-kt}$$ for some constant $k$ (where 5 is the amount of Carbon-14 in the sample at time $t=0$). So, the answer we're looking for is $Q(10000)$. We need to replace $k$ with an actual number to evaluate $Q(10000)$, and the key to doing this is the half-life. The text tells us that the half-life of Carbon-14 is 5730 years, so we know:

$$\begin{aligned} Q(5730)&=\frac{5}{2}\\ 5e^{-k\cdot5730}&=\frac{5}{2}\\ \left(e^{-k}\right)^{5730}&=\frac{1}{2}\\ e^{-k}&=\sqrt[5730]{\frac{1}{2}}=2^{-\tfrac{1}{5730}} \\ \text{So:} \\ Q(t)&=5\left(e^{-k}\right)^t\\ &=5\cdot2^{-\tfrac{t}{5730}} \\ \text{Now, we can evaluate:} \\ Q(10000)&=5\cdot 2^{-\tfrac{10000}{5730}}\approx 1.5~\mu g \end{aligned}$$

Remark: after $2(5730)=11,460$ years, the sample will have been sitting for two half-lives, so its remaining Carbon-14 will be a quarter of its original amount, or $1.25$ $\mu$g. It makes sense that at 10,000 years, the sample will contain slightly more Carbon-14 than at 11,460 years. Indeed, 1.5 is slightly larger than 1.25, so our answer seems plausible.

It's a good habit to look for ways to quickly check whether your answer seems plausible, since a small algebra error can easily turn into a big error in your solution.

Let 100 years ago be the time $t=0$. Then if $Q(t)$ is the amount of Radium-226 in the sample, $Q(0)=1$, and

$$\begin{aligned} Q(t)&=e^{-kt} \\ \text{for some positive constant $k$. When $t=100$, the amount of Radium-226 left is 0.9576 grams, so} \\ 0.9576=Q(100)&=e^{-k\cdot 100}=\left(e^{-k}\right)^{100}\\ e^{-k}&=0.9576^{\tfrac{1}{100}}\\ \text{This tells us} \\ Q(t)&=0.9576^{\tfrac{t}{100}} \\ \text{So, if half the original amount of Radium-226 is left,} \\ \frac{1}{2}&=0.9576^{\tfrac{t}{100}}\\ \log\left(\frac{1}{2}\right)&=\log\left(0.9576^{\tfrac{t}{100}}\right)\\ -\log 2&=\frac{t}{100}\log(0.9576)\\ t&=-100\frac{\log 2}{\log 0.9576}\approx 1600 \end{aligned}$$

So, the half life of Radium-226 is about 1600 years.

According to the Malthusian Model, if the ship wrecked at year $t=0$ and 2 rats washed up on the island, then $t$ years after the wreck, the population of rats will be

$$\begin{aligned} P(t)&=2e^{bt} \\ \text{for some constant $b$. We want to get rid of this extraneous variable $b$, so we use the given information. If 1928 is $a$ years after the wreck:} \\ 1000=P(a)&=2e^{ba}\\ 1500=P(a+1)&=2e^{b(a+1)}=2e^{ba}e^b \\ \text{So,} \\ (1000)\left(e^b\right)&=\left(2e^{ba}\right)\left(e^b\right)=1500 \\ \text{Which tells us} \\ e^b&=\frac{1500}{1000}=1.5 \\ \text{Now, our model is complete:} \\ P(t)&=2\left(e^b\right)^t=2\cdot1.5^t \\ \text{Since $P(a)=1000$, we can find $a$:} \\ 1000=P(a)&=2\cdot1.5^a\\ 500&=1.5^a\\ \log(500)&=\log\left(1.5^a\right)=a\log(1.5)\\ a&=\frac{\log(500)}{\log(1.5)}\approx 15.3 \end{aligned}$$

So, the year 1928 was about 15.3 years after the shipwreck. Since we aren't given a month when the rats reached exactly 1000 in number, that puts the shipwreck at the year 1912 or 1913.