007A Sample Final 2, Problem 9 Detailed Solution

Spruce budworms are a major pest that defoliate balsam fir. They are preyed upon by birds. A model for the per capita predation rate (percentage of worms that are eaten) is given by

$f(N)={\frac {12N}{81+N^{2}}}$

where  $N$  denotes the density of spruce budworms measured in worms per square meter. Determine where the prediation rate is increasing and where it is decreasing.

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Background Information:
The equation of the tangent line to  $f(x)$  at the point  Failed to parse (MathML with SVG or PNG fallback (recommended for modern browsers and accessibility tools): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle (a,b)}   is
Failed to parse (MathML with SVG or PNG fallback (recommended for modern browsers and accessibility tools): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle y=m(x-a)+b}   where  Failed to parse (MathML with SVG or PNG fallback (recommended for modern browsers and accessibility tools): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle m=f'(a).}

Solution:

Step 1:
We use implicit differentiation to find the derivative of the given curve.
Using the product and chain rule, we get
Failed to parse (MathML with SVG or PNG fallback (recommended for modern browsers and accessibility tools): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle 6x+xy'+y+2yy'=0.}
We rearrange the terms and solve for  Failed to parse (MathML with SVG or PNG fallback (recommended for modern browsers and accessibility tools): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle y'.}
Therefore,
Failed to parse (MathML with SVG or PNG fallback (recommended for modern browsers and accessibility tools): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle xy'+2yy'=-6x-y}
and
Failed to parse (MathML with SVG or PNG fallback (recommended for modern browsers and accessibility tools): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle y'=\frac{-6x-y}{x+2y}.}

Step 2:
Therefore, the slope of the tangent line at the point  Failed to parse (MathML with SVG or PNG fallback (recommended for modern browsers and accessibility tools): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle (1,-2)}   is
Failed to parse (MathML with SVG or PNG fallback (recommended for modern browsers and accessibility tools): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle \begin{array}{rcl} \displaystyle{m} & = & \displaystyle{\frac{-6(1)-(-2)}{1-4}}\\ &&\\ & = & \displaystyle{\frac{4}{3}.} \end{array}}
Hence, the equation of the tangent line to the curve at the point  Failed to parse (MathML with SVG or PNG fallback (recommended for modern browsers and accessibility tools): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle (1,-2)}   is
Failed to parse (MathML with SVG or PNG fallback (recommended for modern browsers and accessibility tools): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle y=\frac{4}{3}(x-1)-2.}

Final Answer:
Failed to parse (MathML with SVG or PNG fallback (recommended for modern browsers and accessibility tools): Invalid response ("Math extension cannot connect to Restbase.") from server "https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/":): {\displaystyle y=\frac{4}{3}(x-1)-2.}

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