Monday, October 14, 2019

Calculus: Early Transcendentals, Chapter 4, 4.6, Section 4.6, Problem 28

When c=0 , this is the basic cubic polynomial f(x)=x^3 which has no maximum, or minimum, and has horizontal tangent at x=0. Its graph is given by

There is also an inflection point as the function goes from concave down to concave up.
If c=-k<0 , then the function becomes f(x)=x^3-kx which has roots at x=0 and x=+-\sqrt k . The derivative is f'(x)=3x^2-k , and so we see there are local extrema at x=+-\sqrt{k/3}. The left extrema is a maximum and the right extrema is a minimum. An example of this graph is given by:

In addition to this, we see that the second derivative is f''(x)=6x and so there is an inflection point at x=0 .
Finally, we see that for c>0, there is a root only at x=0 . The derivative is f'(x)=3x^2+c , which never vanishes. Therefore, there is no maximum nor minimum for this function. There is an inflection point at x=0 since the second derivative is also f''(x)=6x . An example of a graph is given below.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Why is the fact that the Americans are helping the Russians important?

In the late author Tom Clancy’s first novel, The Hunt for Red October, the assistance rendered to the Russians by the United States is impor...