1. College Algebra Math 130 Amy Jones Lewis

2. Randy’s Raises SCENARIO: This past year Randy Neverworked graduated from a prestigious university where he was heavily recruited by three large companies. Each company proposed very different compensation plans and of course since Randy was a political science major he was perplexed by this turn of events. All Randy was sure of is that he wanted to retire as soon as possible, with sufficient funds to support the lifestyle to which he wanted to become accustomed. (You get the picture!)

3. Four for Fore, Inc., a golf equipment company offered Randy a starting salary of $4,000 per month with a monthly pay raise of $400 if he meets his monthly performance goals. Wow! That sounds like it will be a lot of money! Randy’s Raises Job Offer #1

4. The Square Peg Corp. offered Randy a starting salary of $100 the first month, with an increase to $400 in month 2, to $900 in month 3, $1600 in month 4 and so on, if he meets his monthly performance goals. Hmmm.... Less salary, but some bigger raises. I wonder how that works? Randy’s Raises Job Offer #2

5. The DoubleMint Candy Co. offered Randy a starting salary of $1 the first month, $2 the second month, $4 the third month, $8 the fourth month, and so on if he meets his monthly performance goals. It doesn’t sound like much money…but it is still more than I made in college. Mom and Dad will be sooo happy to have me move back home, even if Mom has to turn her room-sized walk in- closet back into my bedroom. Randy’s Raises Job Offer #3

6. Help Randy decide which job offer to take.  Before doing any calculations, predict which offer will give Randy the greatest amount of money at the end of year 1. Year 2. Year 3. 10 years from now.  In advising Randy, consider both monthly and cumulative earnings given that his major goal is early retirement. Be sure to compare the three offers. Use tables, graphs, diagrams and/or expressions to support your recommendation. Randy’s Raises

7.  For each plan, what patterns did you see in the amount Randy would receive each month?  Create an algebraic equation for the monthly pay based on the number of months worked for each job offer.  Graph the monthly pay for each plan. Randy’s Raises Analyzing the Mathematics

8. Each of these situations is a different type of mathematical relationship. One is linear, one is quadratic and the other is exponential. Determine which is which and explain how you know. Randy’s Raises Analyzing the Mathematics

9. Homework Next Class: Thursday, November 4