Modeling Chicago's Population Decline: Predicted 2030 Population

TLDR; Chicago's declining population is modeled using an exponential function to predict a population of 630,000 by 2030.

📉 Population Decline

The population of Chicago in 2010 was 2.7 million, but it is declining at a rate of 7% per year.

An exponential function is used to model the population decline, where the base, b, is equal to one plus the growth or decay rate r as a decimal.

For a declining population, the value of r will be negative.

The exponential function to model the population decline is p(t) = 2.7 * 0.93^t, where t represents the number of years after 2010.

📊 Prediction for 2030

To predict the population in 2030, the value of t, representing the number of years after 2010, is determined.

For 2030, t is equal to 20.

Evaluating p(20) using the exponential function, the predicted population for 2030 is approximately 630,000, assuming the current decline rate continues.

🧮 Exponential Function Summary

The exponential function p(t) = 2.7 * 0.93^t models the population of Chicago based on the number of years after 2010.

The predicted population for 2030, if the decline continues at the current rate, is 630,000.