1. An engineer conducts an experiment and records the following observations:
Observation, k Xk Yk
1 2 0.3
2 4 0.7
3 6 0.75
Assuming that the recorded data obeys an equation of the form, $y = 1 - x^a$, the engineer would like to predict the value of y for x = 9. Using a least squares curve fitting technique, estimate a. Then find the predicted value of y for x = 9.