Problem

If a single pane of glass obliterates $3 \%$ of the light passing through it, the percent $p$ of light that passes through $n$ successive panes is given approximately by the function below.
\[
p(n)=100(0.97)^{n}
\]
(a) What percent of light will pass through 5 panes?
(b) What percent of light will pass through 30 panes?
(c) Explain the meaning of the base 0.97 in this problem.
(a) The percent of light that will pass through 5 panes is approximately $\%$. (Round to the nearest whole number as needed.)

Answer

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Answer

\(\boxed{86}\)% (rounded to the nearest whole number) of the light will pass through 5 panes

Steps

Step 1 :Substitute \(n = 5\) into the function \(p(n)\): \(p(5) = 100(0.97)^5\)

Step 2 :Calculate the value: \(p(5) = 100 \times 0.8587340257 \approx 85.87\)

Step 3 :\(\boxed{86}\)% (rounded to the nearest whole number) of the light will pass through 5 panes

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