Correct answer: (C) The least-squares estimator of α₀ exists and is unique.
Explanation
For n≥2,the design columns 1 and ln k are independent since ln 1≠ln 2. Thus the Gram matrix is positive definite and both least-squares coefficients exist uniquely,proving **C**. Laplace likelihood maximization minimizes a continuous convex sum of absolute residuals,which attains a minimum. The printed problem implicitly requires n≥2; for n=1 the slope is unidentified.
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