Initial Value
See It in Action
Two examples of the idea done right—and one common look-alike that is not right.
EXAMPLE
EXAMPLE
NON-EXAMPLE
Definition
In the context of exponential functions in Algebra 1, the initial value refers to the starting value of the function when the input variable (usually denoted as x) is 0. This is the y-intercept of the function.
An exponential function is typically written in the form:
Where:
a is the initial value (the value of y when x=0),
b is the base, which determines how the function grows or decays,
x is the exponent (or input).
For example, in the function y=52x, the initial value is 5, because when x=0, the function evaluates to:
Thus, the initial value of this exponential function is 5. This is the starting value of the function before any growth or decay occurs as x changes.