Choose the graph that best describes the following:
Temperature of boiling water (Y) left to cool at room temperature as a function of time (X).
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Choose the graph that best describes the following:
Temperature of boiling water (Y) left to cool at room temperature as a function of time (X).
The temperature of boiling water is roughly 100 degrees Celsius.
Room temperature is about 25 degrees.
Therefore, in the correct graph we will see a downward trend which will end above the X-axis (since the room is not frozen, the temperature will not reach 0).
The graph that describes this is graph C.
Is the function in the graph decreasing?
Temperature difference drives cooling rate! When water is very hot (100°C vs 25°C room), it cools quickly. As it gets closer to room temperature, the difference gets smaller, so cooling slows down.
Theoretically, it approaches room temperature but never quite reaches it. However, for practical purposes, it gets very close to 25°C after enough time passes.
The x-axis represents 0°C (freezing point). Since we're at room temperature (about 25°C), the water will never get colder than the surrounding air. The graph should level off above the x-axis.
Look for the curve that drops most rapidly right after time = 0. Boiling water (100°C) has the biggest temperature difference from room temperature, so initial cooling should be very steep.
Then the curve would approach the x-axis (0°C) instead of staying well above it. The final temperature always matches the surrounding environment temperature.
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