Rate of Change

Usefulness in real life

Rate of change can be found everywhere.

Rate of change can be used to determine trends in data.

Rate of change can describe the pitch of a roof. In some climates, the pitch is very important. For instance, in snowy climates, the steeper the pitch the better because home owners want the snow to drift off rather than build up.

Engineers will use the term “grade” when discussing the rate of change of a road. Keep this in mind when you are in areas that display signs like the one below. Grade is usually represented by a percent.

A 10% grade means that for every run of 100 units (probably feet) there is a rise of 8 units.

Rate of change =

%10100

10

Can you see the importance of rate of change in every day life? Consider the situations presented below: