Hey there!
Simple interest is based on only the original deposit of money, which in this case is $500.
To find 5.6% of 500, we can multiply it by the decimal that represents that part of a whole: 0.056.
[tex]500 \times 0.056 = 28[/tex]
The question asks for how much money is in the account after 8 1/2 years. This means we multiply the interest for 1 year (28) by 8 1/2.
[tex]28 \times 8.5 = 238[/tex]
Lastly, we add the interest to the original deposit.
[tex]500 + 238 = 738[/tex]
The answer is $738.
Hope this helps!