Mary is a scientist studying bacteria in a lab. She observes how bacteria changes over time. Use the following table to answer the three questions below.
Number of Bacteria
Time
10:00am
1,000

10:30am
2,500

11:00am
6,250

11:30am
15,625
the bottom number shows how much bacteria has grown in that time btw /

1) Does this situation model an exponential or linear function? Explain.

2) Does this situation model growth or decay?

3) What is the common difference or ratio?