This text uses the right triangle approach to college algebra. A graphical perspective, with graphs and coordinates developed in Chapter 2, gives students a visual understanding of concepts. The text may be be used with any graphing utility, or with none at all, with equal ease. Modeling provides students with real-world connections to the problems. Some exercises use real data from the fields of biology, demographics, economics, and ecology. The author is known for his clear writing style and numerous quality exercises and applications.