**As of Fall 2023, Math 0990 is no longer using this module. Students working on an “Incomplete” given prior to Fall 2023 will still need this module.  Some of the content from this module can now be found in other modules of the course.**

Wild rabbits in Australia. The rabbit population grew so quickly in Australia that the event became known as the “rabbit plague.” (credit: Richard Taylor, Flickr)

In [latex]1859[/latex], an Australian landowner named Thomas Austin released [latex]24[/latex] rabbits into the wild for hunting. Because Australia had few predators and ample food, the rabbit population exploded. In fewer than ten years, the rabbit population numbered in the millions.

Uncontrolled population growth, as in the wild rabbits in Australia, is not modeled with linear equations. Instead, it can be modeled with one type of non-linear functions– exponential functions. Equations resulting from those exponential functions can be solved to analyze and make predictions about exponential growth. In this section, we will learn techniques for working with exponential functions as well as a few other non-linear functions.