In sporting tournaments, teams are eliminated after they lose. The number of teams in the tournament then decreases by half with each round. If there are 16 teams left after 3 rounds, how many teams started out in the tournament?
[list=1] [*]Read and reread the scenario to identify the known and unknown quantities. [*]Create expressions and equations from the known quantities and variable(s). [*]Substitute the values into the general form of the equation [math]y = ab^x[/math]. [*]Follow the order of operations to solve the problem. [*]Interpret the solution in terms of the context of the problem. [/list]