Calculate S(4,8) and explain it’s meaning in the context of this problem.

Question

1.The sales from a soda pop vending machine are given by S(b,v)= .133bv^2, where b is the number of businesses on the same floor of the building as the machine and v is the number of different kinds of soda in the machine (v for variety).  
 1.Calculate S(4,8) and explain it’s meaning in the context of this problem.
 2.Calculate S (v)(4,8) and explain it’s meaning in the context of this problem.

Answer 1

1. S(4,8)=0.133*4*64=34 approx, meaning for 4 businesses on the same floor as the vending machine and with 8 varieties of soda pop to choose from, there are 34 soda pop sales.

2. S (v)(4,8) has no meaning because S requires two parameters. However, if the parameters in part 1 are reversed we get S(8,4)=17, showing that the vending machine sales depend more on the offer of variety than they do on the number of businesses using them.