How Does a Differential Equation Model Disease Spread?

[Natasha1]

The spread of a disease in a community is modeled by the following differential equation:

dy/dx = 0.2y - 0.02x where y is the number of infected individuals in thousands, and x the time in days.

2) Solve the equation, using the linear 1st order method, given that initially there are 1000 infected individuals?

How do I do that?

 

[HallsofIvy]

How about doing what you were told to do? Since the problem says "using the linear 1st order method", I presume that you are expected to learn that there is a simple way (in fact, a formula) for finding an integrating factor for the differential equation. Check your textbook for that formula.

 

[Curious3141]

http://www.ucl.ac.uk/Mathematics/geomath/level2/deqn/de8.html