A-Level 9709 – The Ultimate Cheat Sheet

Pure Mathematics 1

Pre-Knowledge

●​ Completing the square

●​ Solving quadratic inequalities
●​ Simultaneous equations

1.1​Quadratics

2
Discriminant: 𝑏 − 4𝑎𝑐 determines the number/nature of roots of a quadratic.

●​ > 0: Two distinct, real roots

●​ = 0: One repeated, real root
●​ < 0: No real roots
1.2​Functions
●​ Function: a one-one mapping or a many-one mapping. However, a many-one mapping is one
that has no inverse.
●​ Domain: Set of input values
●​ Range: Set of output values
●​ One-one function: each input value maps to exactly one unique output value
●​ Inverse function: a function that does the opposite mathematical operations to what the
initial function does

The inverse of a function, graphically, is the original function reflected in the line y=x. What we
are essentially doing is assigning the domain of the function as the range of the inverse, and the
range of the function becomes the domain of the function. Graphical representation:

The horizontal line test is used to test whether the function has an inverse. If any horizontal line,
y=k, intersects the function at more than one point, this means that we have at least two
x-values that map to the same y-value. Hence, this relation is many-one, and so it has no inverse.
 The vertical line test is used to test whether the relation is a function. If any vertical line, x=k,
intersects the graph at more than one point, this means that we have one x-value that maps to at
least two y-values. Hence, this relation is one-many, and so it is not a function.

Graph Transformations

Take the graph of the function y=f(x)

Translations

●​ y=f(x) + a represents a vertical translation of the graph by the vector aj

●​ y=f(x+a) represents a horizontal translation of the graph by the vector -ai

Stretches

●​ y=af(x) is a vertical stretch of the graph by a scale factor a, x-axis invariant. X-axis invariant
means that the x-coordinates of points stay the same, and only the y-coordinates of the
points are multiplied by a.
●​ y=f(ax) is a horizontal stretch of the graph by a scale factor 1/a, y-axis invariant. y-axis
invariant means that the y-coordinates of points stay the same, and only the x-coordinates of
the points are multiplied by 1/a.

*Note: Any asymptotes of f(x) are also translated/stretched. If an asymptote is parallel to the
direction of translation/stretch, however, it will remain unchanged.

Reflections

●​ y=-f(x) is a reflection of the graph in the x-axis, which means that points on the x-axis remain
unchanged
●​ y=f(-x) is a reflection of the graph in the y-axis, which means that points on the y-axis remain
unchanged

*Note: Any asymptotes of f(x) are also reflected. If an asymptote is one of the coordinate axes, or is
perpendicular to the coordinate axis in which the graph is reflected, it will remain unchanged.
1.3​Coordinate Geometry
Coordinate geometry of a circle:

Remember, the radius is r, not r2 - this is a common mistake that many students make when dealing
with equations of circles.

Example:

Question: Write x2-4x+y2+8y=0, in the general form of a circle. Hence, find the radius of the circle,
leaving your answer in exact form.

Answer:

1)​ Begin by completing the square for both x and y:

​ (x-2)2-4+(y+4)2-16= 0

2)​ Rearrange to get all constants on the RHS of the equation

​ (x-2)2+(y+4)2 -20 = 0

​ (x-2)2+(y+4)2= 20

3)​ Square the constant value to obtain the radius.

​ Therefore, the radius is √20 = 2√5

1.4​Circular Measure

Remember to work with RADIANS for this!

Proof of this formula:

In degrees, we know that the formula for arc length is Ө/360 * 2πr.

But, one radian is equal to 180/π radians. So, Ө degrees = 180Ө/π radians. Substituting this in for Ө
above, we obtain:

(180Ө/π)/360 * 2πr = Ө/2π * 2πr = rӨ,

which completes the proof.

CHALLENGE: using similar logic as above, construct your own proof of the equation for the area of a
sector, in radians
1.5​Trigonometry

●​ cosecant is the reciprocal function of sine

●​ secant is the reciprocal function of cosine
●​ cotangent is the reciprocal function of tan

Make note of all vertical lines in the graphs above: they represent asymptotes.

EXACT VALUES
The reason tan(π/2) is undefined is because x = π/2 is an asymptote to the graph of tan(x). In fact,
the general form of an asymptote to the tan(x) graph is x = π/2 ± kπ = (½ + k)π, where k is any
integer.

BASIC TRIG IDENTITIES - used in proof writing and equation solving

1.​ tanθ ≡ sinθ / cosθ

2.​ sin2θ+cos2⁡θ ≡ 1

* The symbol ≡ indicates congruence: the two sides of the equation are always equal for all valid
values of the functions.

Solving trigonometric equations

When solving trigonometric equations, here are some things to consider while solving:

●​ Sketching a graph - will this help you find intersection points, and thus solutions to an
equation? The graph can also help you identify solutions within a range.
●​ Using trigonometric identities (as above)
●​ Getting all terms of the equation in terms of sin and cos, as they can be easier to deal with
than secant and cosecant, for example.
●​ Looking for ‘hidden’ quadratics, i.e. a quadratic equation that is in terms of a trigonometric
function. For e.g: sin2x + 5sinx + 4 = 0. To factorise this, we can let u = sinx. Then, the
equation becomes u2+5u+6 = 0, which can be factorised as (u+4)(u+1) = 0. This gives u=-4
and u=-1. So, sinx = -1 or sinx=-4, but sinx=-4 does not yield any solutions. Hence, sinx = -1,
and from there, we can obtain solutions in the correct range.
●​ Watch out for invalid solutions, like sinx = -4.
●​ If the question involves a function of x or θ, make sure you transform the range first, and
ensure you transform your solutions back again at the end. For example, if we had to solve
2sin(x+π) = -1 in the range 0 < x < π, transform the range to π < x+π < 2π (by adding π to
both sides of the inequality). Then, find all solutions within this new range for x+π, but at the
end, remember to give all of your answers for x only, and this involves reverting back to the
old range by subtracting π from all solutions.
1.6​Series

Example Question

Method to solve

Use the binomial theorem to help in expansion. The binomial theorem states that:

(2+x)6 = 26 + (6C1)25x1 + (6C2)24x2 + …

Since we are only asked to find the first three terms, what we have above is sufficient.

Simplifying each term, we get:

64 + 192x + 240x2

That is the final answer because each term is in its simplest form, and the terms are written in
ascending powers of x.

Arithmetic Progression Geometric Progression

Definition Each term increases or A sequence where each term is

decreases by a constant multiplied by a constant ratio,
difference, d, from the r
previous term

Formula for the nth term a + (n-1)d arn-1

Sum of first n terms n/2 ✕ [2a + (n-1)d)] a(1-rn)/1-r , where r≠1

Sum to infinity a/1-r , where -1<r<1, i.e.|r|< 1

|r|< 1 ensures convergence of
the series

Nature of sequence Linear Exponential

1.7​Differentiation

Differentiation is used to find the instantaneous rate of change, for example, finding the gradient of a
tangent to the curve at a specific point.

NOTATION

Leibniz Lagrange

Function f(x) y

First derivative f’(x) dy/dx

Second derivative f’’(x) d2y/dx2

A stationary point occurs when dy/dx or f’(x) is equal to 0. This stationary point can be either a (local)
minimum or a (local) maximum.
To determine the nature of stationary points,

Use the second derivative test:

1.​ Calculate the second derivative of the function, i.e. find d2y/dx2
2.​ Substitute in the x-value of the stationary point into this.
3.​ If the result is greater than 0, then it is a minimum point.
4.​ If the result is less than 0, then it is a maximum point.
5.​ If the result is 0, then it is a point of inflexion (though knowledge of this is not needed for the
course)

Applications of differentiation

1.​ Tangents: a straight line that touches the curve but doesn’t cross it at that point.

●​ Gradient of a tangent at x=a is given by:

●​ Equation of the tangent at a point (a, b) is given by: y - b = mtangent(x - a)

2.​ Normals: a straight line perpendicular to the tangent at a point.

●​ Gradient of a tangent at x=a is given by: . This is because the

gradient of the normal and tangent are negative reciprocals of each other, since the
normal is perpendicular to the tangent.
●​ Equation of the tangent at a point (a, b) is given by: y - b = mnormal(x - a)

3.​ Rates of change (using the chain rule)

​ ​

For example,
1.8​Integration

Integration is the inverse process of differentiation: finding a function whose derivative is given.

The general rule of integration needed for this paper is when integrating functions of the form
(ax+b)n, where n≠-1:

The ‘+c’ is important to put down as part of the answer. Since differentiation removes constant terms
(because the derivative of a constant is 0), when we integrate, we don’t know what constant might
have been there originally, which is why, to account for that, we add in a ‘+c’ at the end (when
dealing with indefinite integrals)

Definite Integrals
A definite integral evaluates the area under a curve between two limits 𝑎 and 𝑏 that is made with the
x-axis. The fundamental theorem of calculus states that:

, where f’(x) is the derivative of the function and f(x) is the function
we obtain once integrated.

Unlike indefinite integration, ‘+c’ is not needed since it cancels out from the subtraction of f(b)-f(a).
There are 6 main uses of definite integration:

Area

1.​ Area bounded by a curve and the x-axis is given by:

2.​ Area between a curve and a horizontal line 𝑦 = 𝑐:

 3.​ Area between a curve and the y-axis:

4.​ Area between two curves y=f(x) and y=g(x):

Volume of Revolution

5.​ Rotation about the x-axis:

6.​ Rotation about the y-axis:

Key Notes:
●​ Take the absolute value when dealing with areas (you would get a negative area result when
the function being integrated is below the x-axis)
●​ For volume, square the function and multiply by 𝜋 before integrating.