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Functions and Models

 Mathematical Models:
A Catalog of Essential Functions
Mathematical Models: A Catalog of Essential Functions

A mathematical model is a mathematical description

(often by means of a function or an equation) of a
real-world phenomenon such as the size of a population,
the demand for a product, the speed of a falling object, the
concentration of a product in a chemical reaction, the life
expectancy of a person at birth, or the cost of emission
reductions.

The purpose of the model is to understand the

phenomenon and perhaps to make predictions about future
behavior.

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Mathematical Models: A Catalog of Essential Functions

Figure 1 illustrates the process of mathematical modeling.

The modeling process

Figure 1

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 Mathematical Models: A Catalog of Essential Functions

A mathematical model is never a completely accurate

representation of a physical situation—it is an idealization. A
good model simplifies reality enough to permit
mathematical calculations but is accurate enough to provide
valuable conclusions.

It is important to realize the limitations of the model. In the

end, Mother Nature has the final say.

There are many different types of functions that can be used

to model relationships observed in the real world. In what
follows, we discuss the behavior and graphs of these
functions and give examples of situations appropriately
modeled by such functions. 5
Linear Models

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 Linear Models
When we say that y is a linear function of x, we mean that
the graph of the function is a line, so we can use the slope-
intercept form of the equation of a line to write a
formula for the function as

y = f (x) = mx + b

where m is the slope of the line and b is the y-intercept.

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 Linear Models
A characteristic feature of linear functions is that they grow
at a constant rate.
For instance, Figure 2 shows a graph of the linear function
f (x) = 3x – 2 and a table of sample values.

Figure 2
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 Linear Models
Notice that whenever x increases by 0.1, the value of f (x)
increases by 0.3.

So f (x) increases three times as fast as x. Thus the slope of

the graph y = 3x – 2, namely 3, can be interpreted as the
rate of change of y with respect to x.

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Example 1
(a) As dry air moves upward, it expands and cools. If the
ground temperature is 20C and the temperature at a
height of 1 km is 10C, express the temperature

T (in °C) as a function of the height h (in kilometers),

assuming that a linear model is appropriate.

(b) Draw the graph of the function in part (a). What does
the slope represent?

(c) What is the temperature at a height of 2.5 km?

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 Example 1(a) – Solution
Because we are assuming that T is a linear function of h,
we can write
T = mh + b
We are given that T = 20 when h = 0, so
20 = m • 0 + b = b
In other words, the y-intercept is b = 20.
We are also given that T = 10 when h = 1, so
10 = m • 1 + 20
The slope of the line is therefore m = 10 – 20 = –10 and the
required linear function is
T = –10h + 20 11
Example 1(b) – Solution
cont’d

The graph is sketched in Figure 3.

The slope is m = –10C/km, and this represents the rate of
change of temperature with respect to height.

Figure 3
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Example 1(c) – Solution
cont’d

At a height of h = 2.5 km, the temperature is

T = –10(2.5) + 20 = –5C

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Linear Models
If there is no physical law or principle to help us
formulate a model, we construct an empirical
model, which is based entirely on collected data.

We seek a curve that “fits” the data in the sense

that it captures the basic trend of the data points.

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Polynomials

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 Polynomials
A function P is called a polynomial if

P (x) = anxn + an –1xn –1 + . . . + a2x2 + a1x + a0

where n is a nonnegative integer and the numbers

a0, a1, a2, . . ., an are constants called the coefficients of
the polynomial.

The domain of any polynomial is If the leading

coefficient an  0, then the degree of the polynomial is n.
For example, the function

is a polynomial of degree 6. 16
Polynomials
A polynomial of degree 1 is of the form P (x) = mx + b and
so it is a linear function.

A polynomial of degree 2 is of the form P (x) = ax2 + bx + c

and is called a quadratic function.

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Polynomials
Its graph is always a parabola obtained by shifting the
parabola y = ax2. The parabola opens upward if a > 0 and
downward if a < 0. (See Figure 7.)

The graphs of quadratic functions are parabolas.

Figure 7
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Polynomials
A polynomial of degree 3 is of the form
P (x) = ax3 + bx2 + cx + d a0
and is called a cubic function. Figure 8 shows the graph
of a cubic function in part (a) and graphs of polynomials of
degrees 4 and 5 in parts (b) and (c).

Figure 8 19
 Example 4
A ball is dropped from the upper observation deck of the
CN Tower, 450 m above the ground, and its height h above
the ground is recorded at 1-second intervals in Table 2.

Find a model to fit the data

and use the model to predict
the time at which the ball hits
the ground.

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Example 4 – Solution
We draw a scatter plot of the data in Figure 9 and observe
that a linear model is inappropriate.

Scatter plot for a falling ball

Figure 9

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 Example 4 – Solution
cont’d

But it looks as if the data points might lie on a parabola, so

we try a quadratic model instead.

Using a graphing calculator or computer algebra system

(which uses the least squares method), we obtain the
following quadratic model:

h = 449.36 + 0.96t – 4.90t2

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Example 4 – Solution
cont’d

In Figure 10 we plot the graph of Equation 3 together with

the data points and see that the quadratic model gives a
very good fit.

Quadratic model for a falling ball

Figure 10

The ball hits the ground when h = 0, so we solve the

quadratic equation
–4.90t2 + 0.96t + 449.36 = 0
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 Example 4 – Solution
cont’d

The quadratic formula gives

The positive root is t  9.67, so we predict that the ball will

hit the ground after about 9.7 seconds.

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Power Functions

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 Power Functions
A function of the form f (x) = xa, where a is a constant, is
called a power function. We consider several cases.

(i) a = n, where n is a positive integer

The graphs of f (x) = xn for n = 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 are shown in
Figure 11. (These are polynomials with only one term.)

We already know the shape of the graphs of y = x (a line

through the origin with slope 1) and y = x2 (a parabola).

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Power Functions

Graphs of f (x) = xn for n = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Figure 11 27
 Power Functions
The general shape of the graph of f (x) = xn depends on
whether n is even or odd.

If n is even, then f (x) = xn is an even function and its graph

is similar to the parabola y = x2.

If n is odd, then f (x) = xn is an odd function and its graph is

similar to that of y = x3.

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 Power Functions
Notice from Figure 12, however, that as n increases, the
graph of y = xn becomes flatter near 0 and steeper when
| x |  1. (If x is small, then x2 is smaller, x3 is even smaller,
x4 is smaller still, and so on.)

Families of power functions

Figure 12 29
Power Functions
(ii) a = 1/n, where n is a positive integer
The function is a root function. For n =
2 it is the square root function whose domain is [0, )
and whose graph is the upper half of the parabola x = y2.
[See Figure 13(a).]

Graph of root function

Figure 13(a) 30
Power Functions
For other even values of n, the graph of is similar
to that of
For n = 3 we have the cube root function whose
domain is (recall that every real number has a cube root)
and whose graph is shown in Figure 13(b). The graph of

for n odd (n > 3) is similar to that of

Graph of root function

Figure 13(b) 31
Power Functions
(iii) a = –1
The graph of the reciprocal function f (x) = x –1 = 1/x is
shown in Figure 14. Its graph has the equation y = 1/x, or
xy = 1, and is a hyperbola with the coordinate axes as its
asymptotes.

The reciprocal function

Figure 14
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 Power Functions
This function arises in physics and chemistry in connection
with Boyle’s Law, which says that, when the temperature is
constant, the volume V of a gas is inversely proportional to
the pressure P:

where C is a constant.

Thus the graph of V as a

function of P (see Figure 15)
has the same general shape
as the right half of Figure 14. Volume as a function of pressure
at constant temperature
Figure 15 33
Rational Functions

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 Rational Functions
A rational function f is a ratio of two polynomials:

where P and Q are polynomials.

The domain consists of all values
of x such that Q(x)  0.

A simple example of a rational

function is the function f (x) = 1/x,
whose domain is {x | x  0}; this
is the reciprocal function graphed
in Figure 14. The reciprocal function

Figure 14 35
 Rational Functions
The function

is a rational function with domain {x | x  2}. Its graph is

shown in Figure 16.

Figure 16 36
Algebraic Functions

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Algebraic Functions
A function f is called an algebraic function if it can be
constructed using algebraic operations (such as addition,
subtraction, multiplication, division, and taking roots)
starting with polynomials. Any rational function is
automatically an algebraic function.

Here are two more examples:

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Algebraic Functions
The graphs of algebraic functions can assume a variety of
shapes. Figure 17 illustrates some of the possibilities.

Figure 17

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Algebraic Functions
An example of an algebraic function occurs in the theory of
relativity. The mass of a particle with velocity v is

where m0 is the rest mass of the particle and

c = 3.0 x 105 km/s is the speed of light in a vacuum.

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Trigonometric Functions

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Trigonometric Functions
In calculus the convention is that radian measure is always
used (except when otherwise indicated).

For example, when we use the function f (x) = sin x, it is

understood that sin x means the sine of the angle whose
radian measure is x.

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Trigonometric Functions
Thus the graphs of the sine and cosine functions are as
shown in Figure 18.

(a) ƒ (x) = sin x

(b) g (x) = cos x

Figure 18 43
 Trigonometric Functions
Notice that for both the sine and cosine functions the domain
is ( , ) and the range is the closed interval [–1, 1].

Thus, for all values of x, we have

or, in terms of absolute values,

| sin x |  1 | cos x |  1

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 Trigonometric Functions
Also, the zeros of the sine function occur at the integer
multiples of  ; that is,

sin x = 0 when x = n n an integer

An important property of the sine and cosine functions is

that they are periodic functions and have period 2.

This means that, for all values of x,

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 Trigonometric Functions
The tangent function is related to the sine and cosine
functions by the equation

and its graph is shown in

Figure 19. It is undefined
whenever cos x = 0, that is,
when x =  /2, 3 /2, . . . .
y = tan x
Figure 19
Its range is ( , ).
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 Trigonometric Functions

Notice that the tangent function has period  :

tan (x + ) = tan x for all x

The remaining three trigonometric functions (cosecant,

secant, and cotangent) are the reciprocals of the sine,
cosine, and tangent functions.

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Exponential Functions

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Exponential Functions
The exponential functions are the functions of the form
f (x) = ax, where the base a is a positive constant.

The graphs of y = 2x and y = (0.5)x are shown in Figure 20.

In both cases the domain is ( , ) and the range is
(0, ).

(a) y = 2x (b) y = (o.5)x

Figure 20
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Exponential Functions
Exponential functions are useful for modeling many natu
phenomena, such as population growth (if a > 1) and
radioactive decay (if a < 1).

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Logarithmic Functions

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Logarithmic Functions
The logarithmic functions f (x) = logax, where the base
positive constant, are the inverse functions of the expon
functions. Figure 21 shows the graphs of four logarithmic
functions with various bases.

In each case the domain is

(0, ), the range is ( , ),
and the function increases
slowly when x > 1.

Figure 21
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 Example 5
Classify the following functions as one of the types of
functions that we have discussed.

(a) f (x) = 5x

(b) g (x) = x5

(c)

(d) u (t) = 1 – t + 5t 4

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 Example 5 – Solution
(a) f (x) = 5x is an exponential function.
(The x is the exponent.)

(b) g (x) = x5 is a power function. (The x is the base.)

We could also consider it to be a polynomial of degre

(c) is an algebraic function.

(d) u (t) = 1 – t + 5t 4 is a polynomial of degree 4.

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 New Functions from
1.3 Old Functions

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Transformations of Functions

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 Transformations of Functions

By applying certain transformations to the graph of a given

function we can obtain the graphs of certain related
functions.

This will give us the ability to sketch the graphs of many

functions quickly by hand. It will also enable us to write
equations for given graphs.

Let’s first consider translations. If c is a positive

number, then the graph of y = f (x) + c is just the graph of
y = f (x) shifted upward a distance of c units (because ea
y-coordinate is increased by the same number c).
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 Transformations of Functions

Likewise, if g(x) = f (x – c), where c > 0, then the value of

g at x is the same as the value of f at x – c (c units to the left
of x).

Therefore the graph of

y = f (x – c), is just the
graph of y = f (x) shifted
c units to the right
(see Figure 1).

Translating the graph of ƒ

Figure 1
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 Transformations of Functions

Now let’s consider the stretching and reflecting

transformations. If c > 1, then the graph of y = cf (x) is the
graph of y = f (x) stretched by a factor of c in the vertical
direction (because each y-coordinate is multiplied by the
same number c).
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 Transformations of Functions

The graph of y = –f (x) is the graph of y = f (x) reflected about

the x-axis because the point (x, y) is replaced by the
point (x, –y).

(See Figure 2 and the

following chart, where the
results of other stretching,
shrinking, and reflecting
transformations are also
given.)
Stretching and reflecting the graph of f
Figure 2 60
Transformations of Functions

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Transformations of Functions
Figure 3 illustrates these stretching transformations when
applied to the cosine function with c = 2.

Figure 3

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Transformations of Functions

For instance, in order to get the graph of y = 2 cos x we

multiply the y-coordinate of each point on the graph of
y = cos x by 2.

This means that the graph of y = cos x gets stretched

vertically by a factor of 2.

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Example 1

Given the graph of use transformations to graph

and

Solution:
The graph of the square root function , is shown in
Figure 4(a).

Figure 4 64
 Example 1 – Solution
cont’
d

Figure 4

In the other parts of the figure we sketch by

shifting 2 units downward, by shifting 2 units to
the right, by reflecting about the x-axis,
by stretching vertically by a factor of 2, and by
reflecting about the y-axis. 65
 Transformations of Functions

Another transformation of some interest is taking the

absolute value of a function. If y = | f (x) |, then according to
the definition of absolute value, y = f (x) when f (x) ≥ 0 and
y = –f (x) when f (x) < 0.

This tells us how to get the graph of y = | f (x) | from the graph
of y = f (x) : The part of the graph that lies above the x-axis
remains the same; the part that lies below the x-axis is
reflected about the x-axis.

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Combinations of Functions

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 Combinations of Functions
Two functions f and g can be combined to form new
functions f + g, f – g, fg, and f/g in a manner similar to the
way we add, subtract, multiply, and divide real numbers.
The sum and difference functions are defined by
(f + g)(x) = f (x) + g (x) (f – g)(x) = f (x) – g (x)
If the domain of f is A and the domain of g is B, then the
domain of f + g is the intersection A ∩ B because both
f (x) and g(x) have to be defined.
For example, the domain of is A = [0, ) and the
domain of is B = ( , 2], so the domain of
is A ∩ B = [0, 2].
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 Combinations of Functions

Similarly, the product and quotient functions are defined by

The domain of fg is A ∩ B, but we can’t divide by 0 and so

the domain of f/g is {x  A ∩ B | g(x)  0}.

For instance, if f (x) = x2 and g (x) = x – 1, then the domain of

the rational function (f/g)(x) = x2/(x – 1) is {x | x  1},
or ( , 1) U (1, ).

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 Combinations of Functions

There is another way of combining two functions to obtain a

new function. For example, suppose that y = f (u) =
and u = g (x) = x2 + 1.

Since y is a function of u and u is, in turn, a function of x, it

follows that y is ultimately a function of x. We compute
this by substitution:

y = f (u) = f (g (x)) = f (x2 + 1) =

The procedure is called composition because the new

function is composed of the two given functions f and g.
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 Combinations of Functions
In general, given any two functions f and g, we start with a
number x in the domain of g and find its image g (x). If this
number g (x) is in the domain of f, then we can calculate the
value of f (g (x)).

The result is a new function h (x) = f (g (x)) obtained by

substituting g into f. It is called the composition
(or composite) of f and g and is denoted by f  g (“f circle g ”).

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 Combinations of Functions

The domain of f  g is the set of all x in the domain of g such

that g (x) is in the domain of f.

In other words, (f  g)(x) is

defined whenever both
g (x) and f (g (x)) are defined.

Figure 11 shows how to

picture f  g in terms of machines.
The f  g machine is composed of
the g machine (first) and then
the f machine.
Figure 11
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 Example 6

If f (x) = x2 and g (x) = x – 3, find the composite functions

f  g and g  f.

Solution:
We have
= f (x – 3) = (x – 3)2
(f  g)(x) = f (g (x))
= g (x2) = x2 – 3

(g  f)(x) = g (f (x))

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 Combinations of Functions

Remember, the notation f  g means that the function g is

applied first and then f is applied second. In Example 6,
f  g is the function that first subtracts 3 and then squares;
g  f is the function that first squares and then subtracts 3.

It is possible to take the composition of three or more

functions. For instance, the composite function f  g  h is
found by first applying h, then g, and then f as follows:

(f  g  h)(x) = f (g (h (x)))

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