Maths for Engineers Course Notes

F1.
7XA1
Maths for Engineers and Scientists 1
Course Notes
F17XA1
Contents
1 Formulae 1–1
1.1 Working with formulae . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1–1
1.2 Units - Beware! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1–2
1.3 Algebraic Fractions and Partial Fractions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1–3
2 Functions: Log and Exponential 2–1

2.1 A reminder about Indices and Exponents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2–1
2.2 Logarithms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2–1
2.3 The Exponential Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2–4
2.4 Hyperbolic Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2–8
3 Application of Linear and Log Functions 3–1

3.1 The Equation of a Straight Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3–1
3.2 Obtaining Formulae from Experimental Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3–2
3.3 Log-Log and Log-Linear Laws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3–4
3.4 Interpolation and Extrapolation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3–6
4 Introduction to Di↵erentiation 4–1

4.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–1
4.2 Derivatives of Common Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–3
4.3 Higher Derivatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–6
4.4 The Chain Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–7
4.5 Product and Quotient Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–8
4.6 Implicit Di↵erentiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–10
4.7 Parametric Di↵erentiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–12
4.8 Curve sketching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–15
4.9 Stationary Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–17
4.10 Related Rates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–19
5 Introduction to Integration 5–1

5.1 Basic Ideas and Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5–1
5.2 Indefinite integrals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5–2
5.3 Definite Integrals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5–4
5.4 Infinite Limits: “Improper” Integrals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5–6
6 Statistics and Probability 6–1

6.1 Statistics: mean, median, variance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6–1
6.2 Probability Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6–4
0–1
F17XA1 : Maths for Engineers and Scientists 1 (i)
6.3 Probability distributions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6–7
7 Vectors 7–1
7.1 Basic Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–1
7.2 Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–5
7.3 Scalar Product . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–8
7.4 Vector Product . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–10
7.5 The Scalar Triple Product . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–13
7.6 Lines in 3D . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–14
7.7 The equation of a plane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–16
F17XA1
Chapter 1: Formulae
Contents
1.1 Working with formulae . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1–1
1.2 Units - Beware! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1–2
1.3 Algebraic Fractions and Partial Fractions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1–3
1.1 Working with formulae

In every science and engineering subject when we want to describe or calculate something we
employ mathematical formulae. We need to be able to extract the information we want from
a given formula by re-arranging it if necessary. Let us look at some examples of formulae from
various subjects:
• One for the physicists, the period T of a pendulum of length L:

s
L
T = 2⇡
g
• One for physicists and engineers – the distance s travelled in a time t with a constant
acceleration a, starting with a velocity u0 :
1
s = u0 t + at2
2
• One to celebrate the lovely Scottish weather. The formula for converting Centigrade (C)
to Fahrenheit (F ) is given by
9C
F = 32 +
5
We take the formulae above as examples and attempt to change the subject of each formula.
q
L
Example 1.1.1. Given that T = 2⇡ g, express L in terms of T, g.
Solution. Get rid of the square root by squaring both sides of the equation.
s !2
L L
T2 = 2⇡ = 4⇡ 2
g g
1–1
F17XA1 : Maths for Engineers and Scientists 1 1–2
multiply both sides by g/4⇡ 2

g g L
2
⇥ T 2 = 2 ⇥ 4⇡ 2
4⇡ 4⇡ g
and cancel out whatever you can to get
gT 2
L=
4⇡ 2
⇤
Example 1.1.2. A particle with initial velocity u0 and constant acceleration a travels a distance
1
s in time t where s = u0 t + at2 . Express u0 in terms of s, a and t.
2
1 2
Solution. Re-arrange to get u0 t = s at . Dividing both sides by t gives
2
1 2
s 2 at s at
u0 = =
t t t 2
⇤
Example 1.1.3. The formula for converting Centigrade (C) to Fahrenheit (F ) is
9C
F = 32 +
5
Express C in terms of F .
9C 5 5(F 32)
Solution. F 32 = · Multiplying each side by gives C = · ⇤
5 9 9
The various manipulations in these examples can be summed up by stating that we must...
Always do the same thing to both sides of the equation.
1.2 Units - Beware!

We haven’t emphasized it very heavily in these notes, but in most applications of mathematics
in science and engineering we must use units. We often have to contend with milli, micro, nano,
... and other variations. In addition, there is often a mixture of measurement systems such as
feet/metres or pounds/kilograms. Errors in converting units have resulted in serious errors:
• In 2001, the Los Angeles Zoo lent a tortoise, to a Exotic Animal Training Centre. The L.A.
Zoo said that the tortoise was big with weight 250. The college thought the zoo meant
250 pounds and built an enclosure to match this. In fact the animal was a 75-year-old
Galapagos tortoise weighing 250 kilograms and it wrecked the enclosure on the first night
in its new home.
• An Air Canada flight was fuelled in Toronto using pounds instead of litres of fuel. The
pilot calculated how much he needed thinking he was getting his fuel in litres and ran
out of fuel about an hour into the flight. He successfully landed the plane safely at a
semi-abandoned airstrip.
• In 2003, the Space Mountain roller coaster at Tokyo Disneyland derailed when an axle
broke just before the end of the ride. The axle fractured because it was smaller than the
designs requirement; the gap between the bearing and the axle was over 1mm - when it
should have been a 0.2mm gap. The error was in converting measurements to the metric
system.
• Many medication errors are due to conversion and calculation errors In 1999, the Institute
for Safe Medication Practices reported an instance where a patient had received 0.5 grams
of Phenobarbital (a sedative) instead of 0.5 grains when the recommendation was misread.
A grain is a unit of measure equal to about 0.065 grams.
• In 1999 NASA lost a Mars orbiter because one team used metric units for a calculation
and the other team used imperial units. This loss cost over 125 million dollars.
1.3 Algebraic Fractions and Partial Fractions

In this section and the next we continue with the theme of manipulating equations and look at
how to put together and pull apart algebraic fractions. First we introduce a bit of terminology.
Polynomials are sums of powers of x like
x3 + 3x2 + 2x + 1
or
x2 + 2x + 3
Algebraic fractions are the ratios of two polynomials like
x3 + 3x2 + 2x + 1
x2 + 2x + 3
If the numerator (top) has a higher power of x than the denominator (bottom) then the fraction
is improper, otherwise it is proper.
Often we are interested in either splitting up fractions or combining them. As we see later,
splitting up algebraic fractions is particularly useful for simplifying integrals and this method is
usually called the method of partial fractions.
2 5
The expression + can be combined into a single fraction by introducing the common
x 1 x+4
denominator (x 1)(x + 4) :
2 5 2(x + 4) + 5(x 1) 7x + 3
+ = = ·
x 1 x+4 (x 1)(x + 4) (x 1)(x + 4)
The method of partial fractions provides a means of performing the reverse operation.
First we describe the simplest case when
(i) The denominator of the fraction can be expressed as a product of two linear factors; for
example (x 1)(x + 4) , as above.
(ii) The numerator is linear; for example 7x + 3 .
7x + 3
Example 1.3.1. Express in terms of partial fractions.
(x 1)(x + 4)
Solution. We start with a guess for how to split up the fraction. Let
7x + 3 A B
= +
(x 1)(x + 4) x 1 x+4
We have to find the values of A and B so the above is true for all x.
Multiplying by (x 1)(x + 4) :
(7x + 3)(x 1)(x + 4) A(x 1)(x + 4) B(x 1)(x + 4)
= +
(x 1)(x + 4) x 1 x+4
Hence
7x + 3 = A(x + 4) + B(x 1) .
We choose values of x to make the term involving A or the term involving B disappear.
Put x = 1 then 7 ⇥ 1 + 3 = A(1 + 4) + 0 .
Thus 10 = 5A so A = 2 .
Put x = 4 then 7 ⇥ ( 4) + 3 = 0 + B( 4 1) .
Hence 25 = 5B so B = 5 .
7x + 3 2 5
= +
(x 1)(x + 4) x 1 x+4
⇤
2x 1
(2x + 1)(x 3)
Solution. Let
2x 1 A B
= +
(2x + 1)(x 3) 2x + 1 x 3
Multiplying by (2x + 1)(x 3) :
2x 1 = A(x 3) + B(2x + 1) .
Put x = 3 then 6 1 = 0 + B(6 + 1) .

5
Then 5 = 7B so that B = .
7
1
Put x = .
2
1
Then 1 1 = A( 3) so that
2
7A 4
2= and A = ·
2 7
2x 1 4 5
= +
(2x + 1)(x 3) 7(2x + 1) 7(x 3)
⇤
We can also handle the case where there is a repeated bracket such as
10x + 18
(2x + 3)2
by simply making a di↵erent guess, but following the same procedure.
10x + 18
(2x + 3)2
Solution. Let
10x + 18 A B
2
= +
(2x + 3) 2x + 3 (2x + 3)2
and multiply both sides by (2x + 3)2 . Comparing the top lines
10x + 18 = A(2x + 3) + B
so equating the coefficient of x on both sides gives 10 = 2A, i.e. A = 5 and equating the
constants gives 18 = 3A + B, so B = 3. ⇤
We have seen that the choices to make for partial fraction expansions in these cases are of one
of the following forms:
mx + n A B
= +
(px + q)(rx + s) (px + q) (rx + s)
mx + n A B
= +
(px + q)2 (px + q) (px + q)2
where m, n, p, q, r, s are all numbers we are given and we combine the fractions on the right hand
side to find the unknown constants A and B.
When we combine the fractions on the right hand side to find the constants A, B, we may either
choose particular x values and compare the numerators or compare coefficients, i.e. match up x
and constant terms. The same methods work with even higher powers of x in more complicated
partial fractions, such as
mx + n A Bx + C
2
= +
(px + q)(rx + sx + t) (px + q) (rx2 + sx + t)
In this case m, n, p, q, r, s, t are given and we combine the fractions on the right hand side as
before to find A, B, C.
9x + 3
(x 1)(x2 + x + 10)
Solution. Let
9x + 3 A Bx + C
2
= + 2
(x 1)(x + x + 10) x 1 (x + x + 10)
and multiply both sides by (x 1)(x2 + x + 10). Comparing the top lines
9x + 3 = (Bx + C)(x 1) + A(x2 + x + 10).
Put x = 1, then 12 = 12A so A = 1.

Equating the coefficients of x2 , 0 = A + B so B = 1.
Finally, put x = 0, 3 = C + 10A so C = 7.
Hence:
9x + 3 1 7 x
2
= + 2
(x 1)(x + x + 10) x 1 (x + x + 10)
⇤
F17XA1
Chapter 2: Functions: Log and Exponential
Contents
2.1 A reminder about Indices and Exponents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2–1
2.2 Logarithms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2–1
2.3 The Exponential Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2–4
2.4 Hyperbolic Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2–8
2.1 A reminder about Indices and Exponents

Indices are a notation used to represent multiples of the same quantity:
a2 = a ⇥ a b3 = b ⇥ b ⇥ b c1 = c
In an expression such as 26 the base is 2 and the index or power is 6 .

A negative power indicates division by a multiple of the same quantity
2 1 1 1 1 4 1 1
3 = 2
= a = b = = 4
3 9 a b⇥b⇥b⇥b b
The rules for manipulating indices are:
am ⇥ an = am+n
am
= am n
an
(am )n = amn
a0 = 1
These rules apply for all values of m and n .
2.2 Logarithms
Definition
If a and b are positive numbers we can always find x such that ax = b . For example, if a = 10
and b = 100 then x = 2 since 102 = 100 . The number x is called the logarithm of b to base
a , and we write x = loga (b) .
2–1
If b = ax then x = loga (b)
As an example: 1000 = 103 so log10 (1000) = 3 .

If the base of the logarithm of b is 10 then we write log b . On a calculator , logarithms to base
10 are usually denoted by log . The reader should use a calculator to check that
log(2) = 0.301 log(45) = 1.653 log(0.4) = 0.398
which are just stating that
100.301 = 2 101.653 = 45 10 0.398
= 0.4
Most calculators have two di↵erent logarithm functions: base 10 logarithms and logarithms to
base e The letter e stands for the number 2.718281 · · · . On a calculator , logarithms to base
e are usually denoted by ln .
The reader should use the ln button on a calculator to check that
ln(2) = 0.693 ln(10) = 2.303 ln(0.3) = 1.204
which in this case mean
e0.693 = 2 e2.303 = 10 e 1.204
= 0.3
Note that ln A (and log A ) only make sense if A > 0 . Hence, an expression such as ln(3x 15)
will only make sense if 3x 15 > 0 , that is if if x > 5 .
Example 2.2.1. Show that loga 1 = 0 .
Solution. If x = loga 1 then ax = 1 . Since a0 = 1 we have that x = 0 . ⇤
What does the graph of a logarithm look like? We can see that both ln(x) and log(x) look very
similar, going through x = 1 since 100 = e0 = 1.
1.5
Ln (x)
1.0
0.5
Log (x)
1 2 3 4 5
- 0.5
- 1.0
- 1.5
- 2.0
Graph of log(x) and ln(x)

Laws of Logarithms
Below we give the various laws of logarithms and show how to apply them.
Let B and C be positive numbers. Then for any base a :
• loga (BC) = loga (B) + loga (C)

B
• loga C = loga (B) loga (C)
• loga (B n ) = n loga (B)
• loga (1) = 0
Example 2.2.2. Reduce to a single log term :

(a) log(x) + log(x 3) (b) 4 log(2) + 2 log(3) log(12) (c) ln(x2 y) ln(y) + 3 ln(x) .
Solution.
(a) log(x) + log(x 3) = log(x (x 3)) = log(x2 3x) .
(b) 4 log(2) = log(24 ) = log(16) and 2 log(3) = log(9) . So
✓ ◆
16 ⇥ 9
4 log(2) + 2 log(3) log(12) = log(16) + log(9) log(12) = log = log(12) .
12
(c) ln(x2 y) ln(y) + 3 ln(x) = ln(x2 ) + ln(y) ln(y) + ln(x3 ) = ln(x5 ) . ⇤
Example 2.2.3. Find the value of x which satisfies (1.76)x = 2002 .
Solution. Taking logarithms to base 10 of each side of (1.76)x = 2002 gives
log((1.76)x ) = log(2002) .
Using rule 3, x log(1.76) = log(2002) , so that
log(2002) 3.301
x= = = 13.45
log(1.76) 0.2455
Note that we could have taken logarithms to base e to obtain
ln(2002) 7.602
x= = = 13.45
ln(1.76) 0.5653
⇤
2.3 The Exponential Function

We begin by looking at the graph of y = ex . This may also be written as exp(x).
x -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4
ex 0.14 0.37 1 2.72 7.39 20.1 54.6
50
40
30
Exp (x)
20
10
-2 -1 1 2 3 4
Graph of ex or exp(x)
The function y = ex is called the exponential function. On a calculator , the exponential

function is usually written as ex . The reader should use the ex button on a calculator to check
the above table. We can also write ex as exp(x) . The alternative notation exp(x) is is useful
for complicated expressions like exp( 5x2 + 3x) . One feature of ex is that it increases very
rapidly with x, such an increase has passed into common usage as an “exponential increase”.
The usual laws of indices apply to ex so that
e0 = 1 , (ex )2 = e2x , ex ey = ex+y
If y = ex then taking taken logarithms to base e of each side gives
ln(y) = ln(ex ) = x ln(e) = x

since ln(e) = 1 .
This result below is worth remembering:
if y = ex then x = ln y
Now let us consider some examples of manipulating formulae that contain exponentials.
Example 2.3.1. Let f (t) = 3 exp( 5t2 ) . Find f (0) and f (0.4) .
Solution. f (0) = 3e0 = 3 .

When t = 0.4 , 5t2 = 0.8 . Using a calculator f (0.4) = 3e 0.8 = 1.35 . ⇤
Example 2.3.2. Simplify (e4x e 4x )2 .
Solution. (e4x e 4x )2 = (e4x )2 2 e4x e 4x + (e 4x )2 = e8x 2+e 8x . ⇤
Example 2.3.3. Solve for x : 100e 2x = 26.2 .
Solution. e 2x = 0.262 so 2x = ln(0.262) = 1.34 . Hence x = 0.67 . ⇤
As we see in the figure exp(x) is rapidly increasing, similarly exp( x) is rapidly decreasing.
This remains true for expressions such as A exp(kx) (increasing for positive constants A and k)
and A exp( kx) (decreasing for positive constants A and k). It is useful to be able to sketch
the behaviour of various exponential curves since they occur in so many physical problems. Let
us consider a couple of examples.
Example 2.3.4. Sketch the graph of y = 6e 2t for t 0.
Solution. The main points are (a) y = 6 when t = 0 , (b) y ⇡ 0 for large t , (c) y is rapidly
decreasing. The graph is shown below.
6 exp ( - 2 t)
3
0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0
y = 6e 2t
Example 2.3.5. Sketch the graph of y = 7 4e 2t for t 0 . Express t in terms of y .
Solution. The main points are (a) y = 7 4 = 3 when t = 0 , (b) y ⇡ 7 for large t , (c) y is
increasing. The graph is shown below.
y=7 4e 2t so 4e 2t =7 y . Hence
✓ ◆
2t 7 y 7 y
e = and 2t = ln
4 4
Hence ✓ ◆
1 7 y
t= ln
2 4
7 - 4 exp ( - 2 t)
6
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0
y=7 4e 2t
In physical problems where some quantity is decreasing with time or distance exponential func-
tions often appear. An archetypal example of this is radioactive decay, where the exponential
decrease is with time.
Example 2.3.6. A very similar calculation can be used to calculate how air pressure falls o↵
with height. Atmospheric pressure, when measured in atmospheres, varies according to the
height above the earths surface. The formula is
P (h) = exp( Ah)
where A = 0.000016 (i.e.1.6 ⇥ 10 5 ), and h is measured in metres. At sea level h = 0 and P = 1

atmosphere.
Let us tackle some examples and determine the air pressure at:
The summit of Ben Nevis (h = 1344m)
The summit of Everest (h = 8848m)
Heriot-Watt Riccarton campus (h = 90m)

Solution.
The summit of Ben Nevis (h = 1344m)
P (1344) = exp( 0.000016 ⇥ 1344) = exp( 0.021504) = 0.979
The summit of Everest (h = 8848m)
P (8488) = exp( 0.000016 ⇥ 8848) = 0.868
Riccarton campus (h = 90m)
P (90) = exp( 0.000016 ⇥ 90) = 0.998
Example 2.3.7. As a final example of the use of exponential functions we set up an electrical
circuit with a resistor R and capacitor C in series with a direct current source V .
Electrical Circuit
Initially the capacitor is uncharged. When we fully connect the circuit, the charge on the
capacitor varies with time. For our circuit RC = 2, the final charge is 3, and the charge on the
capacitor is given by the formula:
Q(t) = 3 [1 exp( t/2)]
If we plot out Q(t) in this case we see

3.0
2.5 3 [ 1 - exp( - t / 2) ]
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
2 4 6 8
Charge in Electrical Circuit

2.4 Hyperbolic Functions

We’ve seen in the last section how the exponential function ex behaves. In this section we look
at two close functions related to the exponential function, sinh x and cosh x. Note the h’s! We
write sinh x and cosh x as shorthand for the combination of exponentials defined below:
sinh x = 12 (ex e x)
cosh x = 12 (ex + e x)
What do these look like?
20
10
-4 -2 2 4
- 10
- 20
Graph of sinh x
25
20
15
10
-4 -2 2 4
Graph of cosh x
Just as for the trigonometric functions we can define tanh x = sinh x/ cosh x, which appears like
a smooth step:
1.0
0.5
-4 -2 2 4
- 0.5
- 1.0
Graph of tanh x
How do these functions appear? They appear, like sin and cos, as the solutions to many physical
problems. For instance, although it was long thought that a hanging heavy chain or rope hung
in the form of a parabola, it was eventually shown that it is in fact a section of the cosh curve.
The Gateway Arch in St Louis, Missouri, is one of the largest and most elegant catenary arches
in the world. If you conduct an image web-search on the keywords Gateway Arch St Louis you’ll
see many images of this structure. It is 630 feet high and 630 feet wide at ground level. The
formula for its shape is displayed at the base of the arch and is
⇣ x ⌘
y = 757 127.7 cosh
127.7
with y and x both measured in feet.
600
y = 757-127.7 cosh (x/ 127.7)
500
400
300
200
100
- 300 - 200 - 100 100 200 300
Equation of Gateway Arch

Gateway Arch itself
As for the trigonometric functions the hyperbolic functions satisfy various identities, but these
are easy to derive if we consider the definition above in terms of exponentials.
Example 2.4.1. Express sinh 8x in terms of e8x and e 8x .
Solution. From the definition of sinh 8x ,

1
sinh 8x = (e8x e 8x
)
2
⇤
Example 2.4.2. Express 5e4x 7e 4x in terms of cosh 4x and sinh 4x.
Solution. From the definitions of cosh 4x and sinh 4x,

1 1
cosh 4x = (e4x + e 4x
) and sinh 4x = (e4x e 4x
)
2 2
Hence,
1 1
cosh 4x + sinh 4x = (e4x + e 4x
) + (e4x e 4x
) = e4x
2 2
and
1 1 4x
cosh 4x sinh 4x = (e4x + e 4x
) (e e 4x
)=e 4x
2 2
Then
5e4x 7e 4x
= 5(cosh 4x + sinh 4x) 7(cosh 4x sinh 4x) = 2 cosh 4x + 12 sinh 4x
Example 2.4.3. Show that cosh2 x sinh2 x = 1

Solution. Since
1 1
cosh x = (ex + e x
) sinh x = (ex e x
)
2 2
we can multiply these out, (remembering that (ex )2 = e2x ) :
1 1
cosh2 x = (ex + e x 2
) = (e2x + 2 + e 2x
)
4 4
1 1
sinh2 x = (ex e x 2
) = (e2x 2+e 2x
)
4 4
so subtracting the two just gives one, as required. ⇤
Example 2.4.4. Show that 1 + 2 sinh2 x = cosh 2x
Solution. Again we go back to the definition in terms of exponentials:
1
sinh2 x = (e2x 2+e 2x
)
4
so
1 1
1 + 2 sinh2 x = 1 + (e2x 2+e 2x
) = (e2x + e 2x
)
2 2
This is just the definition of cosh 2x, which is what we wanted to show. ⇤
Example 2.4.5. We finish this section with one final physical example. The formula for the
velocity of waves in shallow water channel is given by:
✓ ◆
2 6.3d
V = 1.8L tanh
L
where d is the depth of the water and L is the wavelength of the wave.
If d = 0.5m and L = 3.0m what is V ?
Solution. s ✓ ◆
6.3 ⇥ 0.5 p 1
V = 1.8 ⇥ 3 ⇥ tanh = 4.2 = 2.05ms
3.0
⇤
F17XA1
Chapter 3: Application of Linear and Log Functions
Contents
3.1 The Equation of a Straight Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3–1
3.2 Obtaining Formulae from Experimental Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3–2
3.3 Log-Log and Log-Linear Laws . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3–4
3.4 Interpolation and Extrapolation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3–6
3.1 The Equation of a Straight Line

In what follows we will be trying to rearrange formulae and data so that they end up looking like
straight line equations, because in that form it easy to extract any constants from the equations.
First a reminder of what the equation of a straight line is:
10
y = 2 x +1
4
1 2 3 4 5
A straight line
In the figure above we have plotted y = 2x + 1 and we can see that this straight line has slope
2 and hits the vertical axis at 1. In general y = mx + c has slope m and hits the vertical axis
at c.
How exactly did I see that the line had slope two? If I move along some distance in x, say x,
I can see that the line goes up a distance y in y. In this particular case if I move along 2 in x
the line goes up 4 in y. The slope or gradient is defined as
y
slope =
x
so here it is 4/2 = 2. If the line slopes downwards it has a negative slope.
I can get the equation of the line from scratch if I know two points on it. In the figure above the
two crosses are the points (1, 3) and (3, 7) on the line so I can work out the slope straight away
y 7 3
= =2
x 3 1
Now I know that y = 2x + c and to find c I can simply insert one of the sets of points to get c,
e.g. y = 3, x = 1. This gives c = 1 as it should.
3–1
3.2 Obtaining Formulae from Experimental Data

If two variables are believed to be connected , then this idea could be tested by collecting
experimental data. As an example, we might want to investigate how the resistance R of a wire
is related to the temperature of the wire. If we suppose that R and t are related by
R = at + b (3.1)
we could test if (3.1) was true (allowing for experimental error). If (3.1) was true we could then
attempt to find a and b .
Example 3.2.1. Suppose that as a result of an experiment we collected the following data.
t C 10 30 50 70 90
R ⌦ 4.9 5.2 5.8 6.2 6.8
7.0
6.5
6.0
5.5 R=a t +b
5.0
4.5
4.0
3.5
0 20 40 60 80 100
R = at + b
Solution. We plotted this data in Figure 1. From this we see that the points lie approximately
on a straight line. Choosing the ‘best’ line to fit through will not be considered here. For the
rest of the calculation we use points taken from the line (i.e. not from the data). To find a and
b we first note that a is the gradient of the line. Taking for example, the points (30, 5.25) and
(70, 6.25) which lie on the graph, we get that
6.25 5.25 1
a= = = 0.025
70 30 40
To obtain b we choose any point on the line, say (10, 4.75) , and substitute it into (3.1) with
a = 0.025 to get 4.75 = 0.25 + b so that b = 4.5 . ⇤
We are not always fortunate enough to be presented directly with a straight line equation. In
other cases we may have to plot some other combination of the variables in order to see this.
Example 3.2.2. In some experiment suppose we want to test if t and y are related by
y = at2 + b (3.2)
and we have the following data:

t 0 1 2 3 4
y 3.1 4.9 11.2 20.8 34.9
Solution. It would be difficult to see from a plot of this data if (3.2) holds. Also it is not clear
how to find a and b . If we let x = t2 in (3.2) then
y = ax + b (3.3)
which is the equation of a straight line. To test (3.3) we need a new data table.
x = t2 0 1 4 9 16
y 3.1 4.9 11.2 20.8 34.9
From the data plot below we see that to experimental error, (3.3) holds. The number a is the
gradient of the line, so using two points on the line we get
23 3
a= =2
10 0
and since y = 3 when x = 0 we have that b = 3 . Thus y = 2t2 + 3.
40
30
20
10
5 10 15
y= 2t2 +3
Example 3.2.3. In each of the following cases explain how you would reduce each proposed
law connecting x and y to straight line form.
b
(i) y = ax4 + b (ii) y = ax2 + bx (iii) y = ax +
x2
Solution. (i) If we let t = x4 then y = at + b .

Hence if we plot y against x4 we get a straight line.
y
(ii) Let w = . Then w = ax + b .
x
y
If we plot w = against x we get a straight line.
x
b
(iii) From y = ax + x2
we get x2 y = ax3 + b .
Then if w = x2 y and t = x3 we get w = at + b .
If we plot w = x2 y against x3 we get a straight line. ⇤
3.3 Log-Log and Log-Linear Laws

Sometimes it is useful to make a plot of ln y against ln x as we see in the next two examples.
Either we can convert y and x explicitly or plot on “log-log” graph paper.
Example 3.3.1. Explain how you would reduce the formula y = axb to straight line form.
Solution. If y = axb then

ln y = ln(axb ) = ln(a) + ln(xb ) = ln a + b ln x
Let w = ln y and t = ln x . Then w = ln a + bt and if we plot ln y against ln x we get a

straight line. ⇤
Example 3.3.2. As shown in the figure below, a set of experimental results gives a straight line
graph when y is plotted against x3 . The straight line passes through (0, 3) and has a gradient
of 1/2 . Express y in terms of x .
y
6.0
5.5
5.0
4.5
4.0
3.5
3.0
2.5
3
2.0 x
1 2 3 4 5
y = (1/2) x3 + 3
Solution. Put t = x3 so that y = at + b . Then b = 3 and a = 0.5 . Hence

y = (0.5)x3 + 3
⇤
Example 3.3.3. As shown below, a set of experimental results gives a straight line graph when
ln y is plotted against ln x. The straight line passes through (0, 2) and has a gradient of 1/3 .
Express y in terms of x .
lny
4.0
3.5
3.0
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0 lnx
1 2 3 4 5
ln y = (1/3) ln x + 2
Solution. Let w = ln y and t = ln x . Then

t ln x 1
w = at + b = +2= + 2 = ln x 3 + 2
3 3
Hence
1 1 1
y = exp(ln x 3 + 2) = e2 x 3 = (7.4) x 3
A final case we might run across is where x appears as a power, for instance y = ax . Here, if
we take logs we find ln(y) = x ln(a) so it would make sense to plot ln(y) against x, as in the
example below.
Example 3.3.4. A set of experimental results gives a straight line graph when ln y is plotted
against x. The straight line passes through (0, 0) and has a gradient of 1/3 . Express y in
terms of x .
lny
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.0 x
1 2 3 4 5
ln y = (1/3)x
Solution. Let w = ln y . Then

1
w = ln(a)x = x
3
Hence ⇣ 1 ⌘x
x
y = exp( ) = e 3 = (1.3956...)x
3
⇤
3.4 Interpolation and Extrapolation

Sometimes we have not got a formula to give us some function F (x) for any x but rather a table
of values. How do we get F (x) if the exact value of x isn’t in the table?
Example 3.4.1. The velocity of sound in air varies with temperature. The values at di↵erent
temperatures are measured to be:
Air Temp o C 0 10 20 30
Velocity ms 1 331.3 337.3 343.2 349.0
Displaying these data on a graph we see that there is a linear relationship.

Velocity
345
340
335
Temp
5 10 15 20 25 30
Air Velocity vs Temp
What is the velocity of sound at 16o C?
Solution. Simply drawing a straight line on the graph will show that the velocity of sound at
this temperature is 341ms 1 . This process is called interpolation.
⇤
There is a related method called extrapolation in which a graph of a function is extended beyond
the domain of the data points. Let us take the same data as before but extend the axes and the
function beyond our data points:
Velocity
350
340
330
320
310
Temp
- 30 - 20 - 10 10 20 30
Air Velocity vs Temp
Example 3.4.2. What is the velocity of sound at 30o C?
Solution.
If we draw a straight line from Temp = 30, we can use the graph to determine that the velocity
of sound in air at this temperature of is about 316ms 1
⇤
Example 3.4.3. Let us finish this section with a example of using graphical methods against
a real set of measurements for the period of a simple pendulum similar to the one shown below.
Simple Pendulum
The length L of the pendulum is varied and the period T of the oscillation backward and forward
is measured. We list both T and T 2 below. As we shall see, it is the latter which is most useful.
L 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5
T 0.63 0.89 1.10 1.27 1.42 1.55 1.68 1.79 1.90 2.01 2.10 2.20 2.37 2.46 2.54
T2 0.402 0.805 1.207 1.610 2.012 2.415 2.817 3.219 3.622 4.024 4.427 4.829 5.232 5.634 6.036
What is the relation between T and L?
Solution. Plotting T against L isn’t very enlightening:

T
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
L
0.5 1.0 1.5
Simple Pendulum T vs L
Acting on a hunch, we search for a suitable mathematical function which might help us and
we start with the square function. We add another column to our data table and calculate the
squares of the periods. Then we plot a graph of T 2 against L. The graph looks like this:
2
T
L
0.5 1.0 1.5
Simple Pendulum T 2 vs L
So, by plotting this graph, we have found evidence that, for a simple pendulum:
T 2 = kL
And if we go and look in a Mechanics textbook, we will see that the formula for a simple
pendulum is actually: ✓ 2◆
2 4⇡
T = L
g
where g is the acceleration due to gravity: 9.81ms 2
What we have done here is using a graphical method to determine a relation between variables.
Such methods are fundamental in the Physical Sciences Engineering and Social Sciences.
⇤
F17XA1
Chapter 4: Introduction to Di↵erentiation
Contents
4.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–1
4.2 Derivatives of Common Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–3
4.3 Higher Derivatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–6
4.4 The Chain Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–7
4.5 Product and Quotient Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–8
4.6 Implicit Di↵erentiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–10
4.7 Parametric Di↵erentiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–12
4.8 Curve sketching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–15
4.9 Stationary Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–17
4.10 Related Rates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–19
4.1 Introduction
Recall that the gradient of the straight line joining A(x1 , y1 ) to B(x2 , y2 ) is given by
y2 y1
gradient =
x2 x1
For instance, in the straight line graph below y = 3x+2 and we have shown the points A = (1, 5)
and B = (3, 11)
y
14
12 B
10
8
A
6
0 x
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0
y = 3x + 2
If we calculate the gradient

11 5
gradient = =3
3 1
we find, as expected, 3. Note that the gradient of a straight line is the same at all points on the
line. For a curve on the other hand, the gradient will depend on where we are on the curve.
4–1
The gradient of a curve at a point A is the gradient of the straight line AB which just touches
the curve at A. This is called the tangent to the curve at A . In the figure below we have plotted
the parabola y = x2 and its tangent at A = (1, 1). We have also shown a point C = (2, 4)
further up the curve.
4
C
B
3
x
0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0
-1
Gradient of y = x2 at x = 1
We can find approximations to the gradient of the curve by finding the gradient of the straight
line AC (see above). Although this is clearly too steep here, we’ll get a better approximation
if we take C to lie closer to A. In fact, the closer C gets to A the better the approximation
becomes.
For the parabola here we have y = x2 , so when x = 1 , y = 1 and when x = 2 , y = 4 . Thus
the points A(1, 1) and C(2, 4) are indeed on the curve. We can calculate the gradient of the
straight line AC :
f (2) f (1) 4 1
gradient of AC = = =3
2 1 2 1
To find a better approximation to the gradient of the curve y = x2 , at x = 1 , we consider a

point C closer to the point A . Suppose C1 is the point (1.5, 1.52 ) = (1.5, 2.25) .
1.52 12 2.25 1
gradient of AC1 = = = 2.5
1.5 1 0.5
Now let C2 be the point (1.2, 1.22 ) .
1.22 12 1.44 1
gradient of AC2 = = = 2.2
1.2 1 0.2
Similarly for C3 (1.1, 1.12 ) and C4 (1.01, 1.012 ) :
1.12 12
gradient of AC3 = = 2.1
1.1 1
1.012 12
gradient of AC4 = = 2.01
1.01 1
As the point C gets closer and closer to the point A the gradients of the straight lines get
nearer to 2. This is the gradient of the curve y = f (x) = x2 , at x = 1 .
More generally, for any function y = f (x) , the gradient at x is given by
f (x + h) f (x)
lim
h! 0 h
The notation lim means “ h approaches 0 ” .

h! 0
• The gradient of the curve is written f 0 (x) (pronounced f dash x).
• The process of finding f 0 (x) from f (x) is called di↵erentiation or finding the derivative.
Using formula (4.1) to find the derivative is called di↵erentiating from first principles.
Example 4.1.1. Using the method above find f 0 (x) when f (x) = x2 .
Solution. We write
(x + h)2 x2 x2 + 2hx + h2 x2 2hx + h2
lim = lim = lim = lim (2x + h) = 2x
h! 0 h h! 0 h h! 0 h h! 0
In general we do not di↵erentiate from first principles every time, but rather make use of various
rules which cover many of the most commonly encountered cases. We will now develop these
rules to make the task of di↵erentiating easier.
4.2 Derivatives of Common Functions

Powers
The rule for di↵erentiating f (x) = xn is
if f (x) = xn then f 0 (x) = nxn 1
The rule which tells us how to di↵erentiate sums of functions such as x4 + x2 is :
if h(x) = f (x) + g(x) then h0 (x) = f 0 (x) + g 0 (x)
In words : to di↵erentiate a sum, di↵erentiate each term separately and add.
The next rule tells us how to di↵erentiate constant multiples of a function such as 7x3 . If c is
a constant then
if g(x) = cf (x) then g 0 (x) = cf 0 (x)
Example 4.2.1. Find the derivative of f (x) = x3 + x .
Solution. f (x) is the sum of x3 and x .

The derivative of x3 is 3x2 , and the derivative of x is 1 .
Using equation (4.1), f 0 (x) = 3x2 + 1 . ⇤
Example 4.2.2. Find g 0 (x) if : (a) g(x) = 2x5 , (b) g(x) = 4x(x 7) .
Solution. (a) To di↵erentiate g(x) = 2x5 first di↵erentiate f (x) = x5 to get

f 0 (x) = 5x4 and then multiply by 2: g 0 (x) = ( 2)(5x4 ) = 10x4 .
(b) Multiplying out, f (x) = 4x(x 7) = 4x2 28x . Hence f 0 (x) = 8x 28 . ⇤
Example 4.2.3. Find the gradient of the tangent to f (x) = x3 7x2 + 4x 9 at the point
x = 2.
Solution. The gradient of the tangent at x is f 0 (x) .

Using the above rules, f 0 (x) = 3x2 14x + 4 . The gradient of the tangent at x = 2 is
f 0 (2) = 3(2)2 14(2) + 4 = 12 . ⇤
dy
An alternative notation for the derivative of y = f (x) is ·
dx
If y = f (x) , then the following are all equivalent notations for the derivative:
dy
f 0 (x) y 0 ( read as ‘ y prime ’ or as ‘ y dash ’ )
dx
We can di↵erentiate functions where di↵erent symbols are used, for example :
dy
if y = f (u) = 2u3 7u then = f 0 (u) = 6u2 7.
du
Other common functions
There are formulae for finding the derivatives of many functions such as sin x , cos x , ex and
ln x . Below we give a table with these formulae. Note that the rules for di↵erentiating hyperbolic
functions are in your formulae sheet.
The derivatives of sin x and cos x are simplest when x is measured in radians. For all subse-
quent work on di↵erentiation of sin x and cos x , x will be measured in radians.
In the table below both a and b are constants.
f (x) f 0 (x)
sin(ax + b) a cos(ax + b)
cos(ax + b) a sin(ax + b)
eax aeax
a
ln(ax + b)
ax + b
Example 4.2.4. Find f 0 (x) if : (a) f (x) = 5 sin x (b) f (x) = 3 cos 2x .
Solution. (a) Using the first table with a = 1 , if f (x) = 5 sin x then f 0 (x) = 5 cos x .
(b) Using the first table with a = 2 , if f (x) = 3 cos 2x then f 0 (x) = ( 2)⇥3 sin 2x = 6 sin 2x .
⇤
⇡
Example 4.2.5. If f (x) = 5 sin 4x 8 cos 4x , find f 0 ( ) .
2
Solution. f 0 (x) = 20 cos 4x 8( 4 sin 4x) = 20 cos 4x + 32 sin 4x .

⇡
Then f 0 ( ) = 20 cos 2⇡ + 32 sin 2⇡ = 20 . ⇤
2
Example 4.2.6. An alternating voltage is given by v = v(t) = 80 sin 10t volts where t is the
time in seconds. Find the rate of change of voltage when t = 0.2 .
Solution. The rate of change of voltage at time t is v 0 (t) = 800 cos 10t .
When t = 0.2 , v 0 (t) = v 0 (0.2) = 800 cos 2 = 800( 0.4161) = 333 (Note: use radians).
⇤
Example 4.2.7. Find f 0 (x) if f (x) = 2 ln x x2 .
2
Solution. f (x) = 2 ln x x2 so from the table f 0 (x) = 2x . ⇤
x
V 0
C
Electrical circuit
Example 4.2.8. In the circuit shown above containing a resistor R, a capacitor C and a constant
voltage source V0 , the current I(t) which flows at time t is given by:
✓ ◆
V0 t
I(t) = exp
R RC
Show that
dI(t)
RC = I(t)
dt
Solution. Remembering that V0 , R and C are all constants we have

 ✓ ◆ ✓ ◆  ✓ ◆
d V0 t 1 V0 t
exp = ⇥ exp
dt R RC RC R RC
Multiplying up by RC and using the definition of I(t) then gives the desired result
dI(t)
RC = I(t)
dt
⇤
4.3 Higher Derivatives

For y = f (x) the derivative f 0 (x) measures the gradient of the graph of y . The second
derivative measures how the gradient changes and is calculated by di↵erentiating f 0 (x) .
The following notations are used for the second derivative:
• f 00 (x) read as ‘f double-dash’

d2 y
• read as ‘ dee two y by dee x squared ’
dx2
• y 00 read as ‘ y double-dash ’
Thus if y = f (x) = x4 5x then
dy d2 y
f 0 (x) = = y 0 = 4x3 5 and f 00 (x) = = y 00 = 12x2 .
dx dx2
Example 4.3.1. Find y 00 if y = 6 ln t 4t .
6 6
Solution. y 0 = 4 and y 00 = . ⇤
t t2
Example 4.3.2. Find f 00 (x) if : (a) f (x) = 9 sin 3x , (b) f (x) = 3e 5x .

Solution. (a) If f (x) = 9 sin 3x then f 0 (x) = 27 cos 3x and f 00 (x) = 81 sin 3x .
(b) If f (x) = 3e 5x then f 0 (x) = 15e 5x and f 00 (x) = 75e 5x . ⇤
d2 y
Example 4.3.3. If y = 5 cos 3x show that y satisfies an equation of the form + Ay = 0
dx2
where A is a constant and find A.
dy d2 y
Solution. = 15 sin 3x and = 45 cos 3x . Then
dx dx2
d2 y
+ Ay = 45 cos 3x + 5A cos 3x = (5A 45) cos 3x = 0
dx2
if A = 9 . ⇤
4.4 The Chain Rule

In this section we di↵erentiate functions such as
3x2
(x2 3x + 8)5 , e , sin(5x ⇡) , cos2 x , ln(9x + 2)
Each of these functions can be regarded as the composition of simpler functions :
• if y = f (x) = (x2 3x + 8)5 then y = u5 where u = x2 3x + 8 .
• if y = f (x) = e 3x2 then y = e u where u = 3x2 .
• if y = f (x) = cos2 x then y = u2 where u = cos x .
dy
In each case y = f (x) is a function of u , where u is a function of x . We can find from
dx
dy dy du
= ⇥
dx du dx
This is called the chain rule.
Example 4.4.1. Find the derivative of (x2 3x + 8)5 .
Solution. y = (x2 3x + 8)5 = u5 where u = x2 3x + 8 . Now
dy du
= 5u4 and = 2x 3
du dx
Thus
dy dy du
= ⇥ = 5u4 (2x 3) = 5(2x 3)(x2 3x + 8)4 .
dx du dx
⇤
Note : the final answer should be given in terms of x only.

With practice you will be able to use the chain rule without introducing much notation. For
example, in the above y = (x2 3x + 8)5 . We can use the substitution u = x2 3x + 8 , giving
dy
= 5u4 (2x 3) = 5(2x 3)(x2 3x + 8)4 .
dx
Example 4.4.2. Find the derivative of y = e 3x2 .
Solution. y = eu where u = 3x2 . Then
dy dy du 3x2
= ⇥ = 6xeu = 6xe .
dx du dx
⇤
Example 4.4.3. Find the derivative of f (x) = cos2 x .
Solution. y = f (x) = cos2 x = u2 , where u = cos x . Then
dy du
= 2u and = sin x
du dx
dy dy du
Hence f 0 (x) = = ⇥ = 2 cos x sin x . ⇤
dx du dx
4.5 Product and Quotient Rules

Product rule
The function f (x) = x2 e 4x is the product of the functions g(x) = x2 and h(x) = e 4x , that
is f (x) = g(x) h(x) . The product rule is
f 0 (x) = g 0 (x) h(x) + g(x) h0 (x)
The product rule is also written as :
if y = u v then y 0 = u0 v + u v 0 .
Example 4.5.1. Find the derivative of f (x) = x2 e 4x .

Solution. f (x) = g(x) h(x) where g(x) = x2 and h(x) = e 4x .

By the product rule
f 0 (x) = g 0 (x) h(x) + g(x) h0 (x) = 2xe 4x + x2 ( 4e 4x ) = 2xe 4x 4x2 e 4x . ⇤
Example 4.5.2. Find the derivative of f (x) = x2 cos x .
Solution. f (x) = g(x) h(x) where g(x) = x2 and h(x) = cos x .

By the product rule
f 0 (x) = g 0 (x) h(x) + g(x) h0 (x) = 2x cos x x2 sin x. ⇤
Example 4.5.3. Find the derivative of f (x) = x3 ln x .
Solution. f (x) = g(x) h(x) where g(x) = x3 ; and h(x) = ln x . By the product rule
✓ ◆
1
f 0 (x) = g 0 (x) h(x) + g(x) h0 (x) = 3x2 ln x + x3 = 3x2 ln x + x2 ⇤
x
Example 4.5.4. Find f 00 (x) when f (x) = xe 3x .
Solution. Using the product rule, f 0 (x) = e 3x 3xe 3x .

Di↵erentiating again and using the product rule for the second term gives
f 00 (x) = 3e 3x 3e 3x + 9xe 3x = 6e 3x + 9xe 3x . ⇤
Quotient rule
The quotient rule is :
g(x) g 0 (x) h(x) g(x) h0 (x)

if f (x) = then f 0 (x) =
h(x) h2 (x)
The quotient rule rule is also written as :
u u0 v u v 0
if y= then y 0 = ·
v v2
5x + 1
Example 4.5.5. Find the derivative of f (x) = ·
3x + 2
Solution. Using the quotient rule with g(x) = 5x + 1 and h(x) = 3x + 2 ,

5(3x + 2) 3(5x + 1) 15x + 10 15x 3 7
f 0 (x) = 2
= = = 7(3x + 2) 2
·
(3x + 2) (3x + 2)2 (3x + 2)2
⇤
x
Example 4.5.6. Find the derivative of f (x) = ·
x2 +4
Solution. Using the quotient rule with g(x) = x and h(x) = x2 + 4 ,

x2 + 4 2x2 4 x2
f 0 (x) = =
(x2 + 4)2 (x2 + 4)2
⇤
4.6 Implicit Di↵erentiation

If y is a explicit function of x then it is a clearly defined function, for example y = cos x. However,
we can also define functions implicitly. The equation
y 3 + 2xy 5x2 = 0
defines y as a function of x, but it is a bit awkward to disentangle y to give a explicit equation
for y in terms of x.
dy
Suppose we wanted to find dx for the y defined by this equation. We can still do this, without
the e↵ort of solving the equation for y.
Before working out an example we look at some of the techniques to be used. Suppose y = y(x)
and we want to find the derivative of y 2 with respect to x. We let w = y 2 and then by the
chain rule
dw dw dy dy
= ⇥ = 2y
dx dy dx dx
This is the same as saying
d 2 d 2 dy dy
(y ) = (y ) ⇥ = 2y
dx dy dx dx
So the key point to remember is that to di↵erentiate a function of y with respect to x we
dy
di↵erentiate with respect y then multiply by dx . We write this mathematically as
d d dy
(f (y)) = (f (y)) ⇥
dx dy dx
To find the derivative of the expression x3 y 2 we would use the product rule and the above
method to di↵erentiate y 2 .
dy
Example 4.6.1. If y 3 + 2xy 5x2 = 0, find
dx
Solution. Although we don’t know what y is explicitly, we do know that:

d 3 dy
By the chain rule (y ) = 3y 2
dx dx
d dy
By the chain and product rule (2xy) = 2y + 2x
dx dx
d d
By regular di↵erentiation (5x2 ) = 10x and (0) = 0
dx dx
So di↵erentiating the original equation above
d d
y 3 + 2xy 5x2 = (0)
dx dx
dy dy
3y 2 + 2y + 2x 10x = 0
dx dx
dy
which can be solved for to give
dx
dy 10x 2y
= 2
dx 3y + 2x
⇤
dy
Example 4.6.2. If x2 sin y + xy = 0 find .
dx
dy
Solution. Again we take the equation, di↵erentiate using the chain rule and solve for · We
dx
find
d d
x2 sin y + xy = (0)
dx dx
dy dy
2x cos y +x +y =0
dx dx
dy
which may be solved for
dx
dy 2x + y
=
dx cos y x
⇤
d 1 1
Example 4.6.3. Use implicit di↵erentiation to show that sin x= p
dx 1 x2
1
Solution. If y = sin x then x = sin y or x sin y = 0
d d
(x sin y) = (0)
dx dx
dy
1 cos y =0
dx
so
dy 1
=
dx cos y
We can put this into a more familiar form by remembering that cos2 y + sin2 y = 1, so
q p
cos y = 1 sin2 y = 1 x2
and
dy 1
=p
dx 1 x2
⇤
Example 4.6.4. y(t) satisfies the equation y 00 + ky = 0 where k is a constant. Find g 0 (t)
where
2
g(t) = y 0 (t) + k (y(t))2
Solution. To find the derivative of w = (y 0 (t))2 write w = u2 with u = y 0 (t) . Then
dw dw du
= = 2uy 00 = 2y 00 y 0
dt du dt
Similarly, the derivative of k (y(t))2 is 2ky 0 y .

Hence
g 0 (t) = 2y 00 y 0 + 2ky 0 y
Using y 00 = ky
g 0 (t) = 2y 00 y 0 + 2ky 0 y = 2y 0 ( ky) + 2ky 0 y = 0
⇤
In the above example, g(t) is proportional to the energy of the system modelled by the di↵er-
ential equation y 00 + ky = 0 . Since g 0 (t) = 0 , g(t) is a constant which means that energy is
conserved.
4.7 Parametric Di↵erentiation

Often it is easier to get the equation of some curve in parametric form rather than as an explicit
equation relating y and x.
The equation of a circle of radius r, for instance, is x2 + y 2 = r2 , or in parametric form
x = r cos t y = r sin t
where t is the parameter. It can be thought of as a time co-ordinate for motion along the curve
in question.
Suppose that a bicycle is moving in a straight line at constant speed. If we consider a particular
point on a wheel, then this point will trace out a path. After t seconds, the position of the
point is
x = t sin t y = 1 cos t
A picture of the path of the point is shown in Figure 1.
y
2 .0
1 .5
1 .0
0 .5
x
2 4 6 8 10 12
x=t sin t y=1 cos t
dy
In this section we will be finding for a curve given by parametric equations. You should
dx
dy
make sure you know what means in this case. For the above example shown in Figure 1, at
dx
dy
a time t we will be at a certain point on the graph. The gradient is the slope at this point.
dx
When a curve is given by parametric equations x = x(t) ; y = y(t) , we use the chain rule to get
dy dy dt dy 1
= ⇥ = ⇥
dx dt dx dt dx
dt
dy
Example 4.7.1. Let x = t2 + 3 , y = 4t3 . Find .
dx
dx dy
Solution. Since = 2t and = 12t2 ,
dt dt
dy dy 1 12t2
= ⇥ = = 6t
dx dt dx 2t
dt
⇤
dy
Example 4.7.2. Find if x = t sin t and y = 1 cos t .
dx
dx dy
Solution. In this case =1 cos t, = sin t, so
dt dt
dy dy 1 sin t
= ⇥ =
dx dt dx 1 cos t
dt
⇤
Suppose we want to find the second derivative of a curve given by parametric equations x = x(t) ;
dy
y = y(t) . We first need to find dx and then we can use the chain rule again to get
✓ ◆ ✓ ◆ ✓ ◆
dy dy dy
2 d d d
d y dx dx dt dx 1
= = ⇥ = ⇥
dx2 dx dt dx dt dx
dt
d2 y
Example 4.7.3. Find if x = 2t2 and y = t4 8t3 .
dx2
dx dy
Solution. Since = 4t and = 4t3 24t2 ,
dt dt
dy dy 1 4t3 24t2
= ⇥ = = t2 6t
dx dt dx 4t
dt
✓ ◆
dy
d
d2 y dx 1 1 t 3
= ⇥ = (2t 6) ⇥ =
dx 2 dt dx 4t 2t
dt
⇤
4.8 Curve sketching

One application of di↵erentiation is curve-sketching, since it tells us about slopes, in other words
the regions where curves are increasing or decreasing. We will now find these regions in some
examples, then go on to discuss maxima and minima where curves “change direction”.
A function f is increasing on an interval if f (x) increases as x increases. Similarly, f is
decreasing on an interval if f (x) decreases as x increases. In (i) f is increasing for 0 < x < 2 ,
while in (ii) f is decreasing for 0 < x < 2 . In (iii) f is increasing for 0 < x < 1 and is
decreasing for 1 < x < 2 .
y y y
(i) 3.5
(ii)
7 1.4 (iii)
3.0
6 1.2
2.5
5 1.0
2.0
4 0.8
1.5
3 0.6
1.0
2 0.4
1 0.2 0.5
x 0.0 x 0.0 x
0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0
Increasing Function Decreasing Function Both
The derivative f 0 (x) measures the rate at which f (x) increases with respect to x .
• If f 0 (x) > 0 on an interval then f (x) is an increasing function on that interval.
• If f 0 (x) < 0 on an interval then f (x) is a decreasing function on that interval.
Example 4.8.1. If f (x) = 5 x2 , find the intervals in which f (x) is increasing or decreasing.
Solution. f 0 (x) = 2x . Note that 2x > 0 if x < 0 while 2x < 0 if x > 0 .

Hence f (x) is increasing for x < 0 and f (x) is decreasing for x > 0 . ⇤
Example 4.8.2. Find the intervals in which f (x) = 2x3 3x2 is increasing or decreasing.
Solution. f 0 (x) = 6x2 6x = 6x(x 1) . We have to find where f 0 (x) > 0 and f 0 (x) < 0 .
The product of two numbers is positive if both numbers are positive or both numbers are
negative.
Hence f 0 (x) > 0 if either x > 1 (both positive) or x < 0 (both negative).
Thus f (x) is increasing if x > 1 or if x < 0 .
If 0 < x < 1 then x > 0 and x 1 < 0 so f 0 (x) = 6x(x 1) < 0 . Hence f (x) is decreasing
for 0 < x < 1 . ⇤
Example 4.8.3. If a resistor of 3 ohms is connected in parallel with a variable resistor of x

ohms, the resistance R(x) of the combination is given by
3x
R(x) =
x+3
Show that R(x) is an increasing function of x .
Solution. We have to show that R0 (x) > 0 (note that x > 0 ). Using the quotient rule
3(x + 3) 3x 9
R0 (x) = = >0
(x + 3)2 (x + 3)2
Hence R(x) is an increasing function of x as we can verify by plotting out R(x) as below:
R
1.4
1.2
1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0 x
0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0
R(x)
⇤
1
Example 4.8.4. If f (x) = x + , x > 0 , find the intervals in which f (x) is increasing or
x
decreasing.
1 x2 1
Solution. f 0 (x) = 1 = .
x2 x2
Thus f 0 (x) > 0 if x > 1 while f 0 (x) < 0 if x < 1 .
Hence f (x) is increasing for x > 1 and f (x) is decreasing for 0 < x < 1 as we can again verify
by plotting out f (x).
f
x
-2 -1 1 2
-5
f (x)
⇤
4.9 Stationary Points

We often need to find where a curve changes from going up to going down, or vice versa.
In figure 2, f is increasing if x < a and x > b , while for a < x < b , it is decreasing. At the
points x = a and x = b the gradient is zero, that is f 0 (x) = 0 .
100 a
50
x
2 4 6 8 10 12
- 50
b
Stationary Points
In general, if f 0 (c) = 0 then c is a stationary point.

The value of f (x) at a stationary point is called the stationary value. A stationary value may
be a local maximum, a local minimum or a point of inflexion. In figure 2, the stationary point
at x = a is a local maximum while x = b is a local minimum.
In general, the nature of a stationary point at x = c can be found from finding the sign of f 0 (x)
at each side of x = c .
Example 4.9.1. Find the stationary point of f (x) = x2 6x + 3 and determine its nature.
Solution. At stationary points f 0 (x) = 0 . Since f 0 (x) = 2x 6 , we solve 2x 6 = 0 . Thus

x = 3 is the stationary point.
Now f 0 (x) = 2x 6 = 2(x 3) . If x > 3 then f 0 (x) > 0 , while if x < 3 we have that
f 0 (x) < 0 .
Hence f (x) has a local minimum at x = 3 . ⇤
4
Example 4.9.2. Find the stationary point of f (x) = x + , x > 0 and determine its nature.
x
4 x2 4
Solution. f 0 (x) = 1 2
= .
x x2
Thus f 0 (x) = 0 if x2 4 = 0 so that x = 2 is the stationary point.
If x > 2 then f 0 (x) > 0 , while if x < 2 we have f 0 (x) < 0 . Hence f (x) has a local minimum
at x = 2 . ⇤
Example 4.9.3. For f (x) = 2x3 6 x , find the stationary points of f and the nature of each
stationary point. Find also the intervals on which f is increasing or decreasing.
Solution. f (x) = 2x3 6 x , so f 0 (x) = 6x2 6 = 6(x2 1) . If x is a stationary point then

f 0 (x) = 0 , that is x2 = 1 so x = ±1.
To find the nature of each stationary point we
• Write down the x values at and on either side of the stationary point.
• Write down the sign of f 0 (x) in each x range.
x x< 1 x= 1 1<x<1 x=1 x>1

f 0 (x) >0 0 <0 0 >0
From the table, x = 1 is a local maximum and x = 1 is a local minimum.

Also, f (x) is decreasing when 1 < x < 1 and f (x) is increasing when x < 1 or x > 1 . ⇤
An alternative method, often called the second derivative test, for determining the nature of
stationary points involves f 00 (x). Remember at the stationary point x = c you have f 0 (c) = 0.
The nature of a stationary point at x = c can usually be determined from the sign of f 00 (c).
• If f 00 (c) > 0 then x = c is a local minimum.
• If f 00 (c) < 0 then x = c is a local maximum.
• If f 00 (c) = 0 then you need to use the first derivative test to determine the nature of x = c.
As an example let f (x) = e3x 3ex . Then
f 0 (x) = 3e3x 3ex and f 00 (x) = 9e3x 3ex
Then f 0 (0) = 3 3 = 0 so that x = 0 is a stationary point. Also
f 00 (0) = 9 3=6>0
so that x = 0 is a local minimum.
Example 4.9.4. Sketch f (x) = x3 x2 x+1
Solution. It is useful to see what happens when x ! ±1. We can see that for x ! +1,
f (x) ! +1 too, since the x3 term is largest. Similarly as x ! 1, f (x) ! 1. In the middle
we can look at f 0 (x) to find maxima and minima. f 0 (x) = 3x2 2x 1 = (3x + 1)(x 1), so
there are extrema at x = 1/3 and x = 1. Since f 00 (x) = 6x 2, f 00 ( 1/3) = 4 and this is a
maximum, f 00 (1) = 4 and this is a minimum. If we were feeling clever we could also note that
f ( 1) = 0 and f (1) = 0. All of this information is enough to construct the graph of f (x).
x
-2 -1 1 2 3
-5
A Sketch of the curve x3 x2 x+1
4.10 Related Rates

A final, practical, application of di↵erentiation. Questions of this nature are an application of
the chain rule:
dx dy
Example 4.10.1. Let y = x2 . If = 5 , find when x = 3 .
dt dt
Solution. We use the chain rule

dy dy dx
= ⇥
dt dx dt
dy dy dy
Since = 2x , we have that = 10x . When x = 3 , = 30 . ⇤
dx dt dt
Example 4.10.2. The length of the sides of a square are changing. The area of the square is
increasing at a rate 16 cm2 per hour. At what rate is the length of each side increasing, when
the length is 4 .
Solution. Let x be the length of a side of the square and let y be the area.
Both x and y depend on the time t and y = x2 .
dy dx
We are given that = 16 . We have to find when x = 4 .
dt dt
dy dy dy dx
Using = 2x and the chain rule = ⇥ we have that
dx dt dx dt
dx dx
16 = 2x =8 when x = 4 .
dt dt
dx
Hence = 2 , that is, the length is increasing at 2 cm per hour when x = 4 . ⇤
dt
Example 4.10.3. Water is dropping into a circular puddle at a uniform rate of 1 cm3 per
second . The depth of the puddle remains constant at 0.1 cm . When the radius of the puddle
is 5 cm, find (a) the rate of increase of the radius, (b) the rate of increase of the area, (c) the
rate of increase of the circumference, of the puddle.
Solution. Let r be the radius of the puddle, V the volume, A the area, and C the circum-
ference. We have that
⇡r2
V = A = ⇡r2 C = 2⇡r
10
dV dr
We are given that = 1 . We first have to find when r = 5 .
dt dt
dV 2⇡r
Using the chain rule and = we have that
dr 10
dV 2⇡r dr
= .
dt 10 dt
dV dr 5 dr 1
Since = 1 , we obtain = . Putting r = 5 gives = .
dt dt ⇡r dt ⇡
dA
To find we use A = ⇡r2 and the chain rule to obtain
dt
dA dr 1
= 2⇡r = 10⇡ = 10 when r = 5.
dt dt ⇡
dC
Finally to find we use C = 2⇡r and the chain rule to obtain
dt
dC dr 1
= 2⇡ = 2⇡ = 2 when r = 5.
dt dt ⇡
⇤
F17XA1
Chapter 5: Introduction to Integration
Contents
5.1 Basic Ideas and Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5–1
5.2 Indefinite integrals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5–2
5.3 Definite Integrals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5–4
5.4 Infinite Limits: “Improper” Integrals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5–6
5.1 Basic Ideas and Definitions

One way of thinking of integration is that it is the reverse of di↵erentiation. The derivative of
x2 + C (where C is a constant) is 2x, so the integral of 2x is x2 + C. This is written as
Z
2x dx = x2 + C
which is read as “the integral of 2xdx”.

R
In general f (x)dx means “find the integral of f (x)”, that is find F (x) such that
dF (x)
= f (x)
dx
thus Z
3x2 dx = x3 + C
since di↵erentiating x3 + C gives 3x2 . Note that C can be any number in these examples since
di↵erentiating a constant gives zero. In general if
dF (x)
= f (x)
dx
then Z
f (x) dx = F (x) + C
where the arbitrary constant C is called the constant of integration.

We can use our knowledge of di↵erentiation to find rules for integration. For instance, we know
that
d n+1
x = (n + 1)xn
dx
so (as long as n 6= 1) Z
xn+1
xn dx = +C
n+1
An integral like this with no limit is called an indefinite integral.
5–1
5.2 Indefinite integrals

We can read any table of di↵erentials backwards (remembering to add in C) to get such indefinite
integrals. This gives us, for instance, the basic indefinite integrals on the formula sheet. We
have the derivatives:
Standard Derivatives
f (x) f 0 (x)
xn nxn 1
sin(ax + b) a cos(ax + b)
cos(ax + b) a sin(ax + b)
eax aeax
a
ln(ax + b)
ax + b
so, “reading the table backwards” gives
Standard Integrals
Z
f (x) f (x) dx
xn+1
xn +C n 6= 1
(n + 1)
1
sin(ax + b) a cos(ax + b) + C
1
cos(ax + b) a sin(ax + b) + C
1 x
eax ae +C
1 1
ln(ax + b) + C
ax + b a
It is easy to string indefinite integrals together, given their reciprocal relation with di↵erentiation.
Firstly, numbers may be taken outside the integral sign. In other words:
Z Z
Ef (x)dx = E f (x)dx (5.1)
where E is some constant number.
We can also divide integrals when what we are integrating, called the integrand, is a sum
Z Z Z
f (x) + g(x) dx = f (x)dx + g(x)dx (5.2)
A final useful property is that indefinite integrals also satisfy:
✓Z ◆
d
f (x)dx = f (x)
dx
which is just restating that integration is the reverse of di↵erentiation. If I di↵erentiate an

integral I get back to where I started.
Example 5.2.1. Integrate

1
+ 2x
x
with respect to x.
Solution. The question is asking us to determine the indefinite integral

Z ⇣ ⌘
1
+ 2x dx.
x
Now
Z ⇣ ⌘ Z Z
1 1
+ 2x dx = dx + 2xdx
x x
Z Z
1
= dx + 2 xdx
x
x2
= ln(x) + 2 + C Using table
2
= ln(x) + x2 + C.
⇤
Some further examples of indefinite integrals along these lines are:
Z
8x2
(3 + 8x) dx = 3x + + C = 3x + 4x2 + C
2
Z ✓ ◆ Z
18 x3 18x 3 x3
5 x2 + dx = 5 x2 + 18x 4
dx = 5x + C = 5x 6x 3
+C
x4 3 3 3
Z 5x
5x sin 7x 2e
cos 7x + 2e dx = +C
7 5
Z ✓ ◆
6
4 sin 2t dt = 2 ln(3t 5) + 2 cos 2t + C
3t 5
Integration is used in physical problems to calculate the amount of work done by a variable
force. For a constant force W ork = F orce ⇥ Distance, but we need to carry out an integration
for a variable force, such as that in the next example.
Example 5.2.2. Two electric charges with charge q1 and q2 respectively are separated by a
distance r in a vacuum and f (r) is the force exerted. Coulomb’s inverse square law states
q1 q2
f (r) =
4⇡✏0 r2
where ✏0 is a constant. Integrate f (r) with respect to r.
Solution.
Z Z
q1 q2
f (r)dr = dr
4⇡✏0 r2
Z
q1 q2 1
= dr
4⇡✏0 r2
q1 q2 1
= +C
4⇡✏0 r
⇤
5.3 Definite Integrals

The second way of think of integrals is as of the area under a curve which leads to the idea of a
definite integral, one with limits. When we look at integrals as areas under a curve, there were
natural limits a and b to the integral.
Z b
Area = f (x)dx
a
The right hand side of this equation is read as “The integral between a and b of f (x) dx”.
Calculating areas such areas is easy if f (x) is made up of horizontal lines and we have only
rectangles.
Example 5.3.1. If f (x) is given by the following piecewise constant function

8
>
<19 0  x < 2
f (x) = 10 2  x < 8
>
:
19 8  x  10
whose the graph looks like
r
20
15
10
0 x
2 4 6 8 10
A Piecewise constant function

what is Z 10
f (x)dx ?
0
Solution. We can simply calculate the area of the rectangles in the figure to get the area under
the curve Z 10
f (x)dx = 19 ⇥ 2 + 10 ⇥ 6 + 19 ⇥ 2 = 136
0
⇤
How does the area under a curve way of thinking of integration work if f (x) isn’t a collection of
straight lines? We simply pretend that a curve f (x) is a collection of (very short) straight lines.
The area under the curve is then approximated by the area of the rectangles as shown below.
The thinner the rectangles, the better the approximation.
6
graph
of f (x)
A
AU
-x
a b
We treat limits by using the Fundamental theorem of calculus. This states that the definite
integral is given by
Z b
f (x) dx = F (b) F (a)
a
where F (x) is a function such that
d
F (x) = f (x)
dx
We can still use the table of integrals but now we have to slot in the limits a and b to get the
final answer, which will be a number now instead of a function. Note too that the unknown
constant C disappears in such definite integrals.
R6
Example 5.3.2. Evaluate the definite integral 4 3x2 dx.
Solution. The Fundamental Theorem of Calculus tells us that

Z b
f (x)dx = F (b) F (a)
a
dF (x)
where, as above, = f (x). We can use the table of standard indefinite integrals to see
dx
d 3
that x = 3x2 so
dx Z 6
3x2 dx = [x3 ]64 = 63 43 = 216 64 = 152
4
The notation [F (x)]ba is shorthand for F (b) F (a). ⇤
Example 5.3.3. Let (

ex 2x<0
f (x) = 3
x +1 0x2
R2
Evaluate 2 f (x)dx.
Solution. Recall that for a  b  c we have

Z c Z b Z c
f (x)dx = f (x)dx + f (x)dx
a a b
So here we can split the integral as

Z 2 Z 0 Z 2
f (x)dx = f (x)dx + f (x)dx
2 2 0
Z 0 Z 2
x
= e dx + (x3 + 1)dx
2 0
= [ex ]0 2 + [x4 /4 + x]20
= (e0 e 2
) + ((24 /4 + 2) (04 /4 + 0)) = 1 e 2
+6
3x2 .
R1 3x2
Example 5.3.4. Let F (x) = e Find F 0 (x) and use this result to find 0 xe dx.
Solution. By the Chain Rule (see the example in Section 3.4) we have F 0 (x) = 6xe 3x2 .
It follows that the indefinite integral of xe 3x2 is F (x)/6 and

Z " #2
1
e 3x2 1 e 3
3x2
xe dx = =
0 6 6 6
0
5.4 Infinite Limits: “Improper” Integrals

We define
Z 1 Z b
f (x)dx = lim f (x)dx
a b!1 a
Z 1
In other words, an integral of the form f (x) dx can be calculated by applying the following
a
steps:
Z b
• Calculate f (x)dx (which will depend on b).
a
• Determine what happens as b ! 1.
The same, of course, applies for a lower limit too.
Example 5.4.1. Evaluate Z 1

1
dx
1 x2
.
Solution. For any positive number b we have

Z b
1 1
dx = [ 1/x]b1 = ( 1)
1 x2 b
As b gets larger and larger, 1/b gets smaller and smaller, so we say that 1/b tends to zero as b
tends to infinity and write 1/b ! 0 as b ! 1. Thus as b tends to infinity 1 1b tends to 1. Thus
Z 1 Z b
1 1 1
dx = lim dx = lim 1 = 1.
1 x2 b!1 1 x2 b!1 b
⇤
R1
Example 5.4.2. Explain why the integral 0 2xdx does not make sense.
Solution. Here we have Z b

2xdx = [x2 ]b0 = b2
0
So as b tends to infinity so does b2 , which means the integral is not a finite number. ⇤
F17XA1
Chapter 6: Statistics and Probability
Contents
6.1 Statistics: mean, median, variance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6–1
6.2 Probability Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6–4
6.3 Probability distributions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6–7
6.1 Statistics: mean, median, variance

Statistics is concerned with the collection and analysis of data. Data consists of observations
of one or more variables. Variables can be either discrete or continuous. Discrete variables
are those that take a fixed set of values, for example the number of people living in a house.
A continuous variable can in principle take any value within a given range, for example the
temperature of some component. Continuous variables usually arise from measurements.
Measures of location: mean and median
Measures of location measure the average value (in some sense) of the observations of our
variable. We describe the two most useful measures—the mean and the median.
Throughout this section, let n be the number of observations and let x1 , x2 , . . . , xn be their
individual values.
The mean, denoted by x, is defined as
n
1X 1
x= xi = (sum of observations)
n n
i=1
For a simple example, suppose that we have the 6 observations:
5 7 8 1 9 12
then the mean is just

5 + 7 + 8 + 1 + 9 + 12 42
= =7
6 6
The median, of a set of numbers is found by listing all of the numbers in ascending order and
selecting the number that is half way along the list. When there is an even number of values in
the list, the median is the mean of the two middle values. Thus, we rank the observations in
ascending order and the median is the observation of rank (n + 1)/2. In our simple example we
rank the observations in order of size
1, 5, 7, 8, 9, 12
and take the “3.5th” observation, i.e. between 7 and 8, so the median is (7 + 8)/2 = 7.5
6–1
The mean is typically a more efficient measure of location for symmetrically distributed data.
The median is more resistant, i.e. una↵ected by unusual observations.
• If a constant a is added to all data, then both the mean and the median increase by a.
• If all data are multiplied by b, then both the mean and the median are multiplied by b.
Other measures for the average
There are other measures for the average of a data set.

The Mode of the data set is the value which occurs with greatest frequency, i.e. the most common
number in the data set. The mode may not exist; and even if it exists, it may not be unique.
Measures of spread - standard deviation
Standard deviation: Let n be the number of observations and let x1 , x2 , . . . , xn be their

individual values. Further let x̄ denote their mean, i.e.
n
1X
x̄ = xi
n
i=1
The standard deviation is defined as the square root of the sample variance 2 where
n
X
2 1 ⇥ ⇤
= (xi x̄)2 .
n 1
i=1
For the simple example:

5 7 8 1 9 12
Then x̄ = 7 and so
2 1 ⇥ ⇤
= (5 7)2 + (7 7)2 + (8 7)2 + (1 7)2 + (9 7)2 + (12 7)2 = 14
6 1
p
Thus the standard deviation = 14 = 3.74.
It is often easier to use the equivalent formula
2 !2 3
n
X n
X
2 1 4 1 5
= x2i xi
n 1 n
i=1 i=1
Back to the simple example: Using the alternative formula for 2 we have
n
X n
X
(x2i ) 2 2 2
= 5 + 7 + 8 + 1 + 9 + 12 = 364 2 2 2
and xi = 42
i=1 i=1
Thus 
2 1 422 70
= 364 = = 14
5 6 5
as before, so that we again obtain = 3.74.
Frequency Tables
If we have a lot of data working out the mean and variance rapidly becomes prohibitive. A
useful trick is to group the data using a frequency table.
Tyre tread depth was measured during roadside checks by the transport police. The results are
tabulated below for 100 cars:
Tyre tread depth (in mm) xi Frequency fi
1.6 12
Example 6.1.1. 1.8 22
2.0 26
2.2 40
(a) Calculate the mean tyre tread depth
(b) Calculate the standard deviation of the tyre tread depth
(c) State the mode of tyre tread depth measurements
Solution.
(a) We calculate the mean as: P

i xi fi
x̄ = P
fi
which is given here by
1.6 ⇥ 12 + 1.8 ⇥ 22 + 2.0 ⇥ 26 + 2.2 ⇥ 40 198.8
x̄ = = = 1.988mm
12 + 22 + 26 + 40 100
(b) We calculate the standard deviation as:

Pn
f (x x̄)2
2
= i=1Pn i i
( i=1 fi ) 1
It is perhaps easiest to write extra columns in the table above for (xi x̄)2 to calculate
this (and even x̄ in (a)):
xi fi fi xi (xi x̄)2 fi (xi x̄)2

1.6 12 19.2 0.1505 1.8065
1.8 22 39.6 0.0353 0.7776
2.0 26 52 0.0001 0.0037
2.2 40 88 0.0449 1.7978
Totals 100 198.8 4.3855
so we find
2 4.3855
= = 0.0443, = 0.21
99
(c) The mode is the most common measurement, so looking at the table this is 2.2mm
⇤
6.2 Probability Theory

The aim is to construct mathematical models of physical situations (experiments) involving
randomness, and to calculate probabilities of events of interest. The probability P (E) of an
event E is a number representing how likely E is to occur, with P (E) = 0 if E cannot occur,
and P (E) = 1 if E is certain to occur.
To define a probability model, we need to list the individual possible outcomes of the experiment
and assign a probability to each, conforming to the above interpretation. Thus these probabilities
should be non-negative and sum to one. In the special case where all outcomes are considered
equally likely, all should be assigned the same probability.
• Roll a fair die:

outcome : 1 2 3 4 5 6
probability : 16 1
6
1
6
1
6
1
6
1
6
[Since die is fair, all outcomes are equally likely. Since the probabilities must sum to one,
each must be 16 .]
• Toss a fair coin twice:
outcome : HH HT TH TT
1 1 1 1
probability : 4 4 4 4
Note: in saying that the four possible outcomes are all equally probable we are actually
making an extra assumption that the two tosses are ‘independent’ – see next section.
• Test reliability of a component:
outcome : working not working

probability : 0.9 0.1
[Here we suppose that the component works 90% of the time.]
An event E is a set of outcomes. The probability P (E) of the event E is the sum of the
probabilities of these outcomes.
Example 6.2.1. Let A be the event that a die shows at most 4 and let B be the event that the
die shows an even number. Find P (A) and P (B).
Solution. We have that A = {1, 2, 3, 4} and B = {2, 4, 6}. Hence

1 1 1 1
P (A) = 6 + 6 + 6 + 6 = 23 . and P (B) = 1
6 + 1
6 + 1
6 = 12 .
Example 6.2.2. In a series of repeated measurements, the number of radioactive particles

emitted over a fixed time interval is recorded:
outcome: 0 1 2 3 4 5 6
(no. of particles)
probability: 0.368 0.368 0.184 0.061 0.015 0.003 0.001
Let D be the event that at most 2 particles are emitted. What is P (D)?
Solution.
D = {0, 1, 2} and P (D) = 0.368 + 0.368 + 0.184 = 0.920.
⇤
Probability Rules
For any event A, the probability of A not happening is
P (not A) = 1 P (A)
As an example, let A be the event that a die shows at most 4. Then from the example above,
P (A) = 2/3 and P (not A) = 1 2/3 = 1/3. Note that the event ’not A’ is that the die shows
at least 5.
The event ‘A or B’ is the event that either A, or B, or both, occurs, i.e. the set of outcomes
which are in at least one of the events. If A be the event that a die shows at most 4 and B is
the event that the die shows an even number then
5
A or B = {1, 2, 3, 4, 6} and P (A or B) =
6
The event ‘A and B’ is the event that both A and B occur, i.e. the set of outcomes in both
events. For the example above,
1
A and B = {2, 4} and P (A and B) =
3
Two events are mutually exclusive (or disjoint) if they cannot both occur simultaneously, i.e.
they contain no outcomes in common. For the example of rolling a die, if A = {1, 2, 3, 4},
B = {2, 4, 6}, and C = {6}, then A and the event C are mutually exclusive. The event A and
the event B are not mutually exclusive.
In general, if the events E and F are mutually exclusive, then
P (E or F ) = P (E) + P (F ).
while if the events E and F are mutually exclusive, then
P (E and F ) = 0.
In the above example, the events A and C are mutually exclusive, and so
2 1 5
P (A or C) = P (A) + P (C) = + =
3 6 6
(as can also be seen directly since A or C = {1, 2, 3, 4, 6}).
For any two events A and B,
P (A or B) = P (A) + P (B) P (A and B).
We need to subtract the term P (A and B), since otherwise the events A and B would be counted
twice.
Example 6.2.3. For the example of the die with A = {1, 2, 3, 4} and B = {2, 4, 6}, find
P (A or B).
Solution. We have P (A) = 32 , P (B) = 12 , P (A and B) = 13 , and so

2 1 1 5
P (A or B) = P (A) + P (B) P (A and B) = + =
3 2 3 6
This can also be seen directly as the event A or B = {1, 2, 3, 4, 6}. ⇤
Example 6.2.4. Outside work on an oil platform cannot proceed if it is either too wet or too
windy. The probability of the event A that work is cancelled because it is too wet is 0.3, and the
probability of the event B that work is cancelled because it is too windy is 0.2. The probability
of the event A and B that it is simultaneously both too wet and too windy is 0.1. Find the
probability that work can proceed.
Solution. The event that it is either too wet or too windy is A or B and we have
P (A or B) = P (A) + P (B) P (A and B) = 0.3 + 0.2 0.1 = 0.4.
The event C that work can proceed is the same as the event A or B not occurring. Hence, the
probability that work can proceed is given by
P (C) = 1 P (A or B) = 1 0.4 = 0.6
Independent events
Frequently an experiment consists of a number of subexperiments (or trials), such that the result
of each does not influence the outcome of any of the others. Such subexperiments are said to
be (statistically) independent.
If the events E1 , . . . , Ek are such that each is determined by a separate subexperiment, and these
subexperiments are independent, then E1 , . . . , Ek are said to be independent and
P (E1 and E2 and . . . and Ek ) = P (E1 )P (E2 )...P (Ek ).
Example 6.2.5. A computer is defective with probability 14 and a second computer is inde-
1
pendently defective with probability 10 . Find the probability that at least one computer is
working.
Solution. Let A be the event that the first computer is defective, B the event that the second
computer is defective. Then A and B are independent, and so
1
P (neither computer working) = P (A and B) = P (A)P (B) =
40
Hence
39
P (at least one working) = 1 P (neither working) =
40
⇤
Tree Diagrams
Another useful visual aid for probability problems is the use of tree diagrams to list all possible
outcomes. Often these greatly simplify problems that involve combining various probabilities.
Example 6.2.6. A plant has three synthesis reactors- A,B and C - all of which produce urea.
Urea is produced in discrete batches, each of 100 kg. Reactor A produces 60% of the total
volume, Reactors B and C 25% and 15% respectively. The failure rate of the three Reactors
also varies: 5% of the production by Reactor A has unacceptable levels of contamination. The
failure rate for Reactors B and C are 2% and 6%. Calculate the probability that a batch picked
at random is
(a) from Reactor B
(b) from Reactor A and acceptable
(c) from Reactor C and unacceptable
(d) acceptable
Solution. The tree diagram for the three reactors in this plant looks like this:
100%
A B C
60% 25% 15%
3%(U) 57%(A) 0.5%(U) 24.5%(A) 0.9%(U) 14.1%(A)

Tree Diagram
We use a tree-diagram to display all this information. The answers can be read o↵ directly from
this:
(a) The probability is 0.25 or 25%.
(b) 0.57
(c) 0.009
(d) .57 + .245 + .141 = 0.956
6.3 Probability distributions

Consider an example, in which the IQ of a random sample of 10 people was recorded as follows.
76, 80, 86, 92, 97, 97, 102, 105, 112, 122.
We could construct a frequency table of these results and plot this data on a histogram. Suppose
we collect a much bigger data set, and plot histograms of the IQ for a random sample of sizes
(i) 10, (ii) 100 and (iii) 10000 people.
6 30 1500
5 25
4 20 1000
Frequency
Frequency
Frequency
3 15
2 10 500
1 5
0 0 0
59.5 79.5 99.5 119.5 139.5 69.5 79.5 89.5 99.5 109.5 119.5 129.5 139.5 40 60 80 100 120 140 160
IQ score IQ score IQ score
Histograms formed for (i), (ii) and (iii) above.
In the above series of plots, as the number of samples increase and the width of the interval is
decreased, the line connecting the tops of the rectangles (the frequency polygon) more closely
resemble a smooth curve. We can also notice how the majority of samples are distributed around
the sample mean. When the variable is continuous we can conveniently represent the structure
of the data set by a probability distribution, or more precisely a probability density function.
0.025
0.02
0.015
P(X)
0.01
0.005
0
0 50 a 100 b 150 200
IQ score, X
Probability density function P (X) plotted against the variable value X.
All probability density functions P (X) have the following properties:
• the function is never negative, i.e. P (X) 0;
• the total area under the function is equal to 1;
• the probability that the variable X lies between two given values, say a and b, is given by
the area under the curve between X = a and X = b.
The Normal distribution (or Gaussian distribution)
A common probability density function which represents random continuous data is called the
Normal distribution (or Gaussian distribution). The Normal distribution is given by
✓ ◆
1 (x x)2
P (x) = p exp 2
2⇡ 2
The constant parameters x and are the mean and standard deviation, respectively, for the
Normal distribution, which is denoted N (x, ). This function looks like the function P(X) in
the IQ example above. (In fact that function is N (100, 20).)
Note: natural variability in samples, such as in studies involving weight, height or other forms
of continuous measurement typically leads to a normal distribution. In fact the Central Limit
Theorem says that data sets involving continuous measurement will eventually form a normal
distribution as the sample size increases.
Standard Normal distribution
As stated earlier, given a probability distribution for some variable, we can find the probability
of the variable lying between two values by finding the area under the distribution function lying
between those two values.
For example, if we know that the height of a population is normally distributed with mean x
and standard deviation , then to find the proportion of the population with a height less than
some value, h, we can calculate the area under the normal distribution curve up to h along the
horizontal axis.
How do we find out the area under a normal curve?
This is done using distribution tables, found in the appendices of statistics books (and included
with these course notes). It is impossible to print a table for every possible normal distribution
(i.e. any mean and standard deviation), however we only need to use the table for the Standard
normal distribution, which is the normal distribution with mean 0 and standard deviation 1.
This is because any normally distributed variable X, with mean µ and standard deviation ,
can be related to a new variable z which has a standard normal distribution, according to the
formula
X x
z= .
In particular the area under the original normal distribution curve up to some value X = A is
equal to the area under the Standard Normal distribution curve up to the value
A x
Az = ,
this means that
Prob(X < A) = Prob(z < Az ) ,
Standard Normal distribution tables
Standard normal distribution tables may quote the area under the Standard Normal distribution
curve in a variety of ways — see figure below.
Standard normal distribution Standard normal distribution

0.5 0.5
0.4 0.4
B
0.3 0.3
A
P(X)
P(X)
0.2 0.2
0.1 0.1
0 0
−6 −4 −2 0 2 4 6 −6 −4 −2 0 2 4 6
X X
Standard normal distribution Standard normal distribution

0.5 0.5
0.4 0.4
0.3 0.3 D
P(X)
P(X)
C
0.2 0.2
0.1 0.1
0 0
−6 −4 −2 0 2 4 6 −6 −4 −2 0 2 4 6
X X
Standard Normal distribution tables could quote any of the areas shown, though the first case
is the most common (and used on the tables given out with this module).
We can relate the areas in the above figure:

1
A⌘B+ ⌘1 C and D ⌘ 2C .
2
Standard Normal Cumulative Probability Table
Cumulative probabilities for POSITIVE z-values are shown in the following table:
z 0.00 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.06 0.07 0.08 0.09
0.0 0.5000 0.5040 0.5080 0.5120 0.5160 0.5199 0.5239 0.5279 0.5319 0.5359
0.1 0.5398 0.5438 0.5478 0.5517 0.5557 0.5596 0.5636 0.5675 0.5714 0.5753
0.2 0.5793 0.5832 0.5871 0.5910 0.5948 0.5987 0.6026 0.6064 0.6103 0.6141
0.3 0.6179 0.6217 0.6255 0.6293 0.6331 0.6368 0.6406 0.6443 0.6480 0.6517
0.4 0.6554 0.6591 0.6628 0.6664 0.6700 0.6736 0.6772 0.6808 0.6844 0.6879
0.5 0.6915 0.6950 0.6985 0.7019 0.7054 0.7088 0.7123 0.7157 0.7190 0.7224
0.6 0.7257 0.7291 0.7324 0.7357 0.7389 0.7422 0.7454 0.7486 0.7517 0.7549
0.7 0.7580 0.7611 0.7642 0.7673 0.7704 0.7734 0.7764 0.7794 0.7823 0.7852
0.8 0.7881 0.7910 0.7939 0.7967 0.7995 0.8023 0.8051 0.8078 0.8106 0.8133
0.9 0.8159 0.8186 0.8212 0.8238 0.8264 0.8289 0.8315 0.8340 0.8365 0.8389
1.0 0.8413 0.8438 0.8461 0.8485 0.8508 0.8531 0.8554 0.8577 0.8599 0.8621
1.1 0.8643 0.8665 0.8686 0.8708 0.8729 0.8749 0.8770 0.8790 0.8810 0.8830
1.2 0.8849 0.8869 0.8888 0.8907 0.8925 0.8944 0.8962 0.8980 0.8997 0.9015
1.3 0.9032 0.9049 0.9066 0.9082 0.9099 0.9115 0.9131 0.9147 0.9162 0.9177
1.4 0.9192 0.9207 0.9222 0.9236 0.9251 0.9265 0.9279 0.9292 0.9306 0.9319
1.5 0.9332 0.9345 0.9357 0.9370 0.9382 0.9394 0.9406 0.9418 0.9429 0.9441
1.6 0.9452 0.9463 0.9474 0.9484 0.9495 0.9505 0.9515 0.9525 0.9535 0.9545
1.7 0.9554 0.9564 0.9573 0.9582 0.9591 0.9599 0.9608 0.9616 0.9625 0.9633
1.8 0.9641 0.9649 0.9656 0.9664 0.9671 0.9678 0.9686 0.9693 0.9699 0.9706
1.9 0.9713 0.9719 0.9726 0.9732 0.9738 0.9744 0.9750 0.9756 0.9761 0.9767
2.0 0.9772 0.9778 0.9783 0.9788 0.9793 0.9798 0.9803 0.9808 0.9812 0.9817
2.1 0.9821 0.9826 0.9830 0.9834 0.9838 0.9842 0.9846 0.9850 0.9854 0.9857
2.2 0.9861 0.9864 0.9868 0.9871 0.9875 0.9878 0.9881 0.9884 0.9887 0.9890
2.3 0.9893 0.9896 0.9898 0.9901 0.9904 0.9906 0.9909 0.9911 0.9913 0.9916
2.4 0.9918 0.9920 0.9922 0.9925 0.9927 0.9929 0.9931 0.9932 0.9934 0.9936
2.5 0.9938 0.9940 0.9941 0.9943 0.9945 0.9946 0.9948 0.9949 0.9951 0.9952
2.6 0.9953 0.9955 0.9956 0.9957 0.9959 0.9960 0.9961 0.9962 0.9963 0.9964
2.7 0.9965 0.9966 0.9967 0.9968 0.9969 0.9970 0.9971 0.9972 0.9973 0.9974
2.8 0.9974 0.9975 0.9976 0.9977 0.9977 0.9978 0.9979 0.9979 0.9980 0.9981
2.9 0.9981 0.9982 0.9982 0.9983 0.9984 0.9984 0.9985 0.9985 0.9986 0.9986
3.0 0.9987 0.9987 0.9987 0.9988 0.9988 0.9989 0.9989 0.9989 0.9990 0.9990
3.1 0.9990 0.9991 0.9991 0.9991 0.9992 0.9992 0.9992 0.9992 0.9993 0.9993
3.2 0.9993 0.9993 0.9994 0.9994 0.9994 0.9994 0.9994 0.9995 0.9995 0.9995
3.3 0.9995 0.9995 0.9995 0.9996 0.9996 0.9996 0.9996 0.9996 0.9996 0.9997
3.4 0.9997 0.9997 0.9997 0.9997 0.9997 0.9997 0.9997 0.9997 0.9997 0.9998
Normal distribution values

Connecting the spread with the standard deviation

For the normal curve it can be shown that.
• 68% of the area lies within one standard deviation either side of the mean.
• 95% of the area lies within two standard deviation either side of the mean.
• 99.7% of the area lies within three standard deviation either side of the mean.
Let us look at using the table of standard normal values in the following example:
Example 6.3.1. The thickness of an aluminium sheet is normally distributed with mean 52µm
and standard deviation 5µm. What proportion of the aluminium sheets have thickness:
(i) less than 60.3µm;
(ii) less than 40µm;
Solution. Let us denote the thickness of the aluminium sheet by X.
(i) We want to find Prob(X < 60.3).

Since we have
Prob(X < A) = Prob(z < Az ) ,
where
X x A x
z= , Az = .
Therefore
60.3 52
Prob(X < 60.3) = Prob(z < ),
5
= Prob(z < 1.66) .
From the standard normal distribution table we find
Prob(z < 1.66) = 0.9515 .
The proportion is therefore 95.15%.
(ii) We now want to find Prob(X < 40).

As above
40 52
Prob(X < 40) = Prob(z < )
5
= Prob(z < 2.4) .
The table does not give probabilities for negative values, yet we can determine these using:
(a) symmetry of the standard normal distribution;

(b) total area under the standard normal distribution is 1.
Prob(z < 2.4) = Prob(z 2.4) (from (a)),

= 1.0 Prob(z < 2.4) (from (b)).
From the standard normal distribution table
Prob(z < 2.4) = 0.9918 ,
and so
Prob(z < 2.4) = 1 0.9918 = 0.0082 .
The proportion of aluminium sheets with thickness < 40 will be 0.82%.
Binomial Distribution
We are now familiar with the idea of calculating the probability P (A) of an event A and of
calculating the probability of the complement: P (notA). We now need to find a method of
dealing with a large number of trials, i.e. repeated events.
Suppose, for example, the probability of selecting an acceptable component from a large batch
was 0.98 and we made 50 selections. What are the chances that all the selected components
were acceptable? or 25 of the 50 ? or even none of the 50?
To answer these questions we need to use the Binomial Distribution. An example will serve
as introduction:
Example 6.3.2. A reactor produces 100 kg batches of urea, 0.85 of which (i.e. 85%) are
acceptable. Three batches are selected. Calculate the probability that the number of acceptable
batches is: (a) zero (b) one (c) two (d) three?
Solution. Define A as “the batch is acceptable” and define Ā as “the batch is unacceptable”.
Then P (A) = 0.85 and P (Ā) = 0.15.
(a) Since the selections are independent events, we can use the multiplication law:
P (Ā and Ā and Ā) = P (Ā)P (Ā)P (Ā) = 0.15 ⇥ 0.15 ⇥ 0.15 = 0.003375
(b) If one batch is acceptable then AĀĀ or ĀAĀ or ĀĀA will have occurred. These events
are mutually exclusive so we can use the addition law:
P (one batch is acceptable) = P (AĀĀ or ĀAĀ or ĀĀA)

= P (AĀĀ) + P (ĀAĀ) + P (ĀĀA)
= (0.85)(0.15)(0.15) + (0.15)(0.85)(0.15) + (0.15)(0.15)(0.85)
= 0.057375
(c) If two batches are acceptable then AAĀ or AĀA or ĀAA will have occurred. As with (b)
these events are mutually exclusive, so we can use the addition law):
P (two batches are acceptable) = P (AAĀ or AĀA or ĀAA)

= P (AAĀ) + P (AĀA) + P (ĀAA)
= (0.85)(0.85)(0.15) + (0.85)(0.15)(0.85) + (0.15)(0.85)(0.85)
= 0.325125
(d) If all three batches are acceptable, then
P (A and A and A) = (0.85)3 = 0.614125
We could use the same tactics of writing out all the possibilities if we sampled many more
batches, but the arithmetic involved would quickly become overwhelming. Instead we can make
use of the binomial distribution.
If we have a trial with two possible results A and Ā , the probabilities of each result may be
written as P (A) = p and P (Ā) = q = 1 p. If the trial is then repeated n times the probability
of r occurrences of A and (n r) occurrences of Ā in a sequence of n independent trials is
✓ ◆
n n n!
p (1 p)n r = pn (1 p)n r
r r!(n r)!
The binomial coefficient nr counts the number of di↵erent ways we can get r occurrences of A
and n r occurrences of Ā (and saves us having to do it explicitly).
The factorials appearing in the formula are defined as
n! = n ⇥ (n 1) ⇥ (n 2) ⇥ . . . 2 ⇥ 1
so, for example

5! = 5 ⇥ 4 ⇥ 3 ⇥ 2 ⇥ 1 = 120
Let us consider another urea reactor and a larger number of samples, where the binomial coef-
ficients take care of counting the number of di↵erent orders in which the outcomes may occur.
Example 6.3.3. A reactor produces 100kg batches of urea, 0.87 of which are acceptable. 10
batches are selected. Calculate the probability that the number of acceptable batches from these
10 is: (a) zero (b) nine (c) ten
Solution. Let A and Ā be defined as A “the batch is acceptable” and Ā “the batch is
unacceptable” with P (A) = 0.87 and P (Ā) = 0.13.
We then have
(a) ✓ ◆
10
P (0 acceptable batches) = (0.87)0 (0.13)10 = 1 ⇥ 1 ⇥ 1.37 ⇥ 10 9
0
(b) ✓ ◆
10
P (9 acceptable batches) = (0.87)9 (0.13)1 = 10 ⇥ 0.2855 ⇥ 0.13 = 0.371
9
(c) ✓ ◆
10
P (10 acceptable batches) = (0.87)10 (0.13)0 = 1 ⇥ 0.248 ⇥ 1 = 0.248
10
⇤
F17XA1
Chapter 7: Vectors
Contents
7.1 Basic Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–1
7.2 Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–5
7.3 Scalar Product . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–8
7.4 Vector Product . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–10
7.5 The Scalar Triple Product . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–13
7.6 Lines in 3D . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–14
7.7 The equation of a plane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7–16
7.1 Basic Operations

A scalar is a quantity which has magnitude only, e.g., temperature, mass, pressure.
Many other quantities are not sufficiently defined by their magnitude alone, e.g., displacement,
velocity, magnetic field. These quantities involve both a magnitude and direction. Such
quantities are called vectors.
Vectors can be represented (in 2 and 3 dimensions - to which we restrict ourselves) by a directed
line segment.
PQ
P
A Vector
This directed line segment is denoted by P~Q. It represents a vector. The length, denoted P Q,
is equal to the magnitude of the vector. The direction from P to Q is the direction of the
vector. We shall refer to the vector that this line segment represents, as simply ‘the vector P~Q’.
Vectors are also denoted my underlined letters, e.g., a, or in print by bold face letters, e.g. a.
In these lectures, we shall primarily use the the notation a. A vector a can be represented
pictorially by a directed line segment, e.g., a is presented by
7–1
P
Same Vector, di↵erent notation
If a = P~Q, then the magnitude of a is defined to be the positive length P Q and is denoted by
|a|. Thus |a| = P Q. Sometimes the notation a is used to denoted |a|.
Two vectors are equal is they have same magnitude and direction. Consider the parallelogram
P QRS
Q S
a
b
P R
Equal vectors
If a = P~Q and b = RS,

~ then we have a = b.
Note that the directed line segment representing a vector can start anywhere since vectors are
equal if they have the same magnitude and direction. For example, in the following picture the
line segments P~Q, RS
~ and T~U all represent the same vector a.
Q S
P R
Equal vectors
Suppose that a and b are vectors. We can represent these by directed line segments
a
b
Two vectors
Recall, that these directed line segments can start from anywhere. Thus we are allowed to move
the beginning of the directed line segment representing b to the end of the segment representing
a. This produces a triangle, and the vector a + b is defined to be the directed line segment
forming the 3rd side of the triangle as shown.
b
a
a+b
Two vectors
This rule for adding vectors represented by line segments is called the triangle rule.
Example 7.1.1. Supposing that a = P~Q and b = QR,
~ find a + b.
Solution. Let us draw the situation:
Q
b R
The triangle rule tells us that a + b = P~R. ⇤

One immediate consequence of the triangle rule for adding vectors is that
a+b=b+a
To see this, consider the following diagram
Q
b R
P S
We see that b can also be represented by P~S, and a by SR.

~ Thus
b + a = P~S + SR
~ = P~R = a + b.
We also need to define the idea of a negative vector: a is defined to be the vector with the
same magnitude as a but opposite direction. For example, if a = P~Q, then a = QP ~ .
a
P Q
−a
The negative of a vector
A further useful idea is that of a zero or null vector: 0 is the zero vector (or null vector) with
zero magnitude and any direction.
With these definitions in hand we can now discuss the subtraction of vectors. The subtraction
of a vector is equal to the addition of the negative of that vector so a b is simply defined as
a + ( b).
−b b
a−b a
The negative of a vector
Here a = P~Q, b = QR,

~ ~ and a b = P~S by the triangle rule.
b = QS
Note, a a = 0. This follows since if a = P~Q, then a = QP
~ and
a a = P~Q + QP
~ = P~P = 0.
We can multiply vectors by scalars (i.e. numbers). When p > 0, p a is defined to be the vector
with the same direction as a and p times the magnitude of a. When p < 0, p a is the
vector with the opposite direction to a and p = |p| times the magnitude.
Pictorially this looks like stretching or squeezing the vector when we multiply by a positive
number depending on whether the number is larger or smaller than one. If we multiply by a
negative number we also reverse the direction of the vector.
2a
a
−2a
1
2
a
Scalar multiplication of a vector
A vector of magnitude one is called a unit vector. u is a unit vector if |u| = 1. A unit vector
1
in the direction of a vector a is given by u = |a| a.
7.2 Components
Let P be a point in 2 dimensions (the xy-plane) with Cartesian coordinates (x, y). And let O
~ .
denote the origin with coordinates (0, 0). We say that P has a position vector r = OP
y axis
y P
O x x axis
Position vector in 2D
~ | = OP , and by Pythagoras’ Theorem OP 2 = x2 + y 2 . Thus

We have |r| = |OP
p
|r| = x2 + y 2 .
The unit vectors in 2D corresponding to line segments of length one along the positive x and y
axes are denoted by i and j.
i
Components in 2D
It follows from the triangle rule that we can write the position vector of the point with Cartesian
coordinates (x, y) as r = xi + yj. That is we have
r
yj
O xi
Example 7.2.1. Find the position vector r of the point with Cartesian co-ordinates ( 1, 3)
Solution. This is simply r = i + 3j. ⇤

~ in terms of the unit vectors i and j in this way
In fact, we can write any vector v = AB
We can write any 2D vector v as v = ai + bj, in which case we say the vector v is expressed or
resolved in terms of vectors components. a and b are called the i and j components of v.
If v = ai + bj, then we may write the vector as a column matrix
✓ ◆
a
b
or a row matrix (a, b).

We shall adopt the common convention of the comma separated row matrix notation (a, b) for
vectors. The danger of this notation is that it is easy to confuse with the notation for Cartesian
co-ordinates.
Example 7.2.2. If a has components a1 and a2 , what is |a|?
Solution.
a = (a1 , a2 ) = a1 (1, 0) + a2 (0, 1) = a1 i + a2 j (7.1)

q
|a| = a21 + a22 . (7.2)
⇤
The position vector of a point P is 3D with Cartesian coordinates (x, y, z) is

~ = xi + yj + zk,
r = OP
where i, j and k are the unit vectors in the direction of the positive x, y and z axes respectively.
More generally, we can resolve any 3D vector v as
v = ai + bj + ck
in which case we may write

v = (a, b, c)
where i = (1, 0, 0), j = (0, 1, 0), k = (0, 0, 1).
The magnitude of the vector v = (a, b, c) is the length of the corresponding directed line segment.
By the 3 dimensional version of Pythagoras’ Theorem, this is given by
p
|v| = a2 + b2 + c2 .
We shall generally be interested in vectors in 3D in this course, for the rather obvious reason
that our world has 3 space dimensions (except if you are talking to a string theorist).
Example 7.2.3. If v = (2, 3, 1) express v in the form v = ai + bj + ck. Find |v|.
p p
Solution. We have v = 2i + 3j k and |v| = 22 + 32 + ( 1)2 = 14. ⇤
General vector addition and scalar multiplication can be simply stated in terms of components.
Let a = (a1 , a2 , a3 ), b = (b1 , b2 , b3 ) be vectors then
a + b = (a1 , a2 , a3 ) + (b1 , b2 , b3 ) = (a1 + b1 , a2 + b2 , a3 + b3 )
Example 7.2.4. If a = ( 3, 9, 1) and b = ( 6, 9, 12), find a + 13 b.
Solution.
1 1
a + b = ( 3, 9, 1) + ( 6, 9, 12) (7.3)
3 3
= ( 3, 9, 1) + ( 2, 3, 4) = ( 5, 12, 3)
Example 7.2.5. P and Q are the points with Cartesian co-ordinates ( 1, 3, 4) and ( 3, 2, 5).
Find the distance P Q and the Cartesian co-ordinates of the midpoint M of P Q.
Solution. For this type of geometrical problem, the first step is always to draw the the relevant
vectors (you can draw it in 2D and you don’t need to worry about the detailed position of points).
We have
OM PM
O P
OP
Midpoint
First, we need P~Q. We have OP

~ + P~Q = OQ ~ by the triangle rule. Thus P~Q = OQ ~ ~ . But
OP
~ ~
the vectors OQ and OP are just the position vectors corresponding to the points Q and P . Thus
we have OQ~ = ( 3, 2, 5), OP
~ = ( 1, 3, 4). Hence, P~Q = ( 3, 2, 5) ( 1, 3, 4) = ( 2, 1, 1)
p p
~
and P Q = |P Q| = 4 + 1 + 1 = 6. Next, we need to find the vector OM ~ . This is given by
~
OM ~ + P~M = OP
= OP ~ + 1 P~Q = ( 1, 3, 4) + 1 ( 2, 1, 1)
2 2
1 1 5 9
= ( 1, 3, 4) + ( 1, , ) = ( 2, , ).
2 2 2 2
Thus the Cartesian coordinates of M are ( 2, 52 , 92 ). ⇤
7.3 Scalar Product

The scalar product of 2 vectors a and b is defined by
a.b = |a||b| cos(✓)
where ✓ is the angle between the positive directions of a and b.
The angle 0  ✓  ⇡ is as follows:
b
b
θ
θ
a a
Angle in scalar product
Note that a.b is a scalar quantity. It is also often called the dot product. One of the uses
of the scalar product is to find the angle ✓ between 2 vectors a and b. Namely, if we know a.b,
then we can find ✓ from the formula
a.b
cos(✓) = .
|a||b|
There are certain special cases when the scalar product of 2 vectors is very simple:
To say that a and b are parallel vectors means that they are in the same or opposite directions.
If they are in the same direction then ✓ = 0, cos(✓) = 1 and
a.b = |a||b|.
If they are in opposite directions then ✓ = ⇡, cos(✓) = 1 and
a.b = |a||b|.
Example 7.3.1. Find the scalar product of the vectors (1, 1, 0) and (2, 2, 0).
Solution. These are clearly in the same direction (since (2, 2, 0) = 2(1, 1, 0)). Hence,
p p p
(1, 1, 0).(2, 2, 0) = 2 8 = 16 = 4.
If a and b are perpendicular, then ✓ = ⇡2 and cos(✓) = 0. Hence, a.b = 0. Conversely, if a.b = 0
and a and b are non-zero vectors, then we must have
a.b ⇡
cos(✓) = =0 and so ✓ = (since 0  ✓  ⇡)
|a||b| 2
and so the vectors are perpendicular. Another word for perpendicular is orthogonal. Note
that |a.b| means the absolute value of the scalar quantity.
Scalar products of i, j, k are useful to know. Recall that i, j and k are unit vectors along the
x, y and z axes in 3D. Thus they are perpendicular and from the above results we have
i.i = 1, j.j = 1, k.k = 1,

i.j = 0, i.k = 0, j.k = 0.
This means that the scalar product of vectors expressed in component form is very simple.
If a = (a1 , a2 , a3 ) and b = (b1 , b2 , b3 ), then
a.b = a1 b1 + a2 b2 + a3 b3
Note:
(i) that |a|2 = a21 + a22 + a23 = a.a for any vector.
(ii) For 2D vectors a = (a1 , a2 ) and b = (b1 , b2 ) we have a.b = a1 b1 + a2 b2 .
Example 7.3.2. Find a.b when a = (1, 4, 3) and b = (6, 2, 1).
Solution. a.b = 1 ⇥ 6 + ( 4) ⇥ ( 2) + 3 ⇥ ( 1) = 11. ⇤
Example 7.3.3. Find the angle between the vectors e = i 4j and f = 3i + 2j.
Solution.
p p p
e.f= 1 ⇥ 3 + ( 4) ⇥ 2 = 5, |e| = 12 + ( 4)2 = 17, |f | = 13,
e.f 5
cos(✓) = = p p , hence,
|e||f | 17 13
✓ = 1.913 radians (3DP).
Example 7.3.4. Find the angle at A in the triangle with vertices A, B, C with Cartesian
coordinates (1, 0, 1), (2, 1, 3), (3, 2, 1) respectively.
Solution. First draw the picture.

C
AC
Α
AB
Angle in scalar product
We then have
~
AB ~
= OB ~ = (2, 1, 3)
OA (1, 0, 1) = (1, 1, 4)
~
AC ~
= OC ~ = (3, 2, 1)
OA (1, 0, 1) = (2, 2, 2).
Note that here, we are referring to vectors - not Cartesian coordinates, despite the identical
notation! Thus we have
~ AC
AB. ~ = 1 ⇥ 2 + 1 ⇥ 2 + 4 ⇥ 2 = 12,
p p p p
~
|AB| = 1 + 1 + 16 = 18, |AC| ~ = 4 + 4 + 4 = 12,
r
~ AC
AB. ~ 2
hence cos(A) = = .
~ AC|
|AB|| ~ 3
This gives ✓ = 0.615 (3DP). ⇤
7.4 Vector Product

Suppose that a and b are non-zero 3D vectors (the vector product is only defined for 3D vectors).
They determine a plane in which each lies. The vector product (or cross product) is defined by
a ⇥ b = |a||b| sin(✓) n,
where as before 0  ✓  ⇡ is the angle between the positive directions of a and b, and n
is the unit vector perpendicular to the plane of a and b, with direction determined by the
right-hand-rule. Note:
• The vector product is a vector quantity.
• An alternative common notation for the vector product is a ^ b.
• There are two unit vectors perpendicular to the plane of a and b. One going in to the
plane and one coming out. Which one we choose to give n is fixed by the right-hand-rule.
The right-hand rule: Let the index finger of the right-hand point in the
direction of a and the middle finger point in the direction of b. Then
the thumb points in the direction of the unit vector n entering the cross
product a ⇥ b
Let us try this out. For
a
Right hand rule
the right-hand-rule gives n pointing out of the plane towards you (after some minor contortions).
For the vectors
a
Right hand rule II

the rule gives n pointing into the plane.
Vector products of i, j, k are easy to work out from the definition. Firstly, the cross product of
any vector with itself is zero, i.e., a ⇥ a = 0. This is because the angle ✓ = 0 and so sin(✓) = 0.
Hence we have
i ⇥ i = j ⇥ j = k ⇥ k = 0.
On the other hand i and k are by definition perpendicular, and hence ✓ = ⇡/2 and sin(✓) = 1.
Thus
i ⇥ j = k,
where the fact that n = k is given by the right-hand-rule. On the other hand the right-hand-rule
also gives
j ⇥ i = k.
We can follow the same argument for the cross product of the other unit vectors to arrive at
i ⇥ j = k, j ⇥ k = i, k ⇥ i = j,
j⇥i= k, k⇥j = i, i⇥k = j.
Note, that each expression is a cyclic permutation of the previous one in the row.
Example 7.4.1. If a = (2, 1, 3) and b = (1, 2, 1), find a ⇥ b.
Solution.
a ⇥ b = (2i j + 3k) ⇥ (i + 2j + k) = 7i + j + 5k = ( 7, 1, 5).
⇤
The vector product obeys the following properties, where is a scalar
b⇥a = a⇥b
a⇥a = 0
a ⇥ (b + c) = a ⇥ b + a ⇥ c
(a + b) ⇥ c = a ⇥ c + b ⇥ c
We can give a geometrical interpretation to the magnitude of the vector product if we consider
the parallelogram below
b
h
θ
a
Right hand rule
The area of this parallelogram is
Area = base ⇥ height = |a|h = |a||b| sin(✓) = |a ⇥ b|.
which gives one simple use of the vector product.

7.5 The Scalar Triple Product

The scalar triple product of three 3D vectors a, b and c is defined as
a · (b ⇥ c)
In terms of components:
a = a1 i + a2 j + a3 k
b = b1 i + b2 j + b3 k
c = c1 i + c2 j + c3 k
so we can evaluate the vector product first using the rules for the vector products of the unit
vectors i, j, k
b ⇥ c = (b1 i + b2 j + b3 k) ⇥ (c1 i + c2 j + c3 k)
= (b2 c3 b3 c2 )i (b1 c3 b3 c1 )j + (b1 c2 b2 c1 )k
We can now take the scalar product of this with a = a1 i + a2 j + a3 k to find
a · (b ⇥ c) = a1 (b2 c3 b3 c 2 ) a2 (b1 c3 b3 c1 ) + a3 (b1 c2 b2 c 1 )
Example 7.5.1. Find the scalar triple product a.(b ⇥ c) when a = (1, 2, 3), b = (2, 1, 3),
c = (4, 0, 1)
Solution. We have
a · (b ⇥ c) = a1 (b2 c3 b3 c 2 ) a2 (b1 c3 b3 c1 ) + a3 (b1 c2 b2 c 1 )

= 1(1 ⇥ 1 3 ⇥ 0) 2(2 ⇥ 1 3 ⇥ 4) + 3(2 ⇥ 0 1 ⇥ 4)
= 9
A geometrical interpretation may also be given to the scalar triple product. Consider the
following parallelepiped:
bxc a
φ
c
b
Parallelepiped
The volume V of this object is the base area B times the height h = |a| cos( ). We also know
B = |b ⇥ c| from above, and that b ⇥ c points up from the right-hand-rule. Hence, we have
V = Bh = |b ⇥ c||a| cos( ) = |a||b ⇥ c| cos( ) = a.(b ⇥ c).
Thus we have that the volume of such a parallelepiped is given by the scalar triple product
a.(b ⇥ c). One nice use of this formula is that it leads us immediately to the identity
a.(b ⇥ c) = b.(c ⇥ a) = c.(a ⇥ b)
since the volume does not depend upon the cyclic order we choose for a, b and c.
The fact that the volume is clearly zero if any two of the vectors are the same, also leads us to
the identity
a.(a ⇥ b) = a.(b ⇥ a) = 0.
In arriving at V = a.(b ⇥ c), we have been rather careful about choosing the orientation of a, b
and c. More generally, we have V = |a.(b ⇥ c)|.
7.6 Lines in 3D
The equation of a line in 3D is easily obtained if we have a point P on the line, and a vector d
parallel to the line. From the picture
P r = OP + t d
OP + d
Ο
3D Line
~ + d. In fact, any point

we see that the position vector of one point on the line L is given by OP
~
on the line will have a position vector of the form r = OP + td for some value of the parameter
t. Let us denote a = OP~ and give the position vector in terms of its components as r = (x, y, z).
Then we have the parametric equation of the line L
r = a + td
which we can write in coordinates as
x = a1 + td1 , y = a1 + td2 , z = a3 + td3 .
We can then eliminate t from these equations to give

x a1 y a2 z a3
= = .
d1 d2 d3
This form is known as the Cartesian equation of the line L.

Conversely, if we are given the Cartesian equation of a line in the form
x a1 y a2 z a3
= =
d1 d2 d3
we can immediately write down the parametric form
x = a1 + td1 , y = a2 + td2 , z = a3 + td3
or
r = (x, y, z) = (a1 , a2 , a3 ) + t(d1 , d2 , d3 ).
Thus we can easily go both ways between the parametric and Cartesian forms of the equation
for a line.
Example 7.6.1. Find the parametric equation of the line through the point (1, 2, 1) in the
direction of the vector ( 1, 1, 3). Hence, find the Cartesian form of the line.
Solution. The parametric equation is
r = (1, 2, 1) + t( 1, 1, 3) = (1, 2, 1) + ( t, t, 3t) = (1 t, 2 + t, 1 + 3t)
Writing this in components, we have
x = 1 t
y = 2+t
z = 1 + 3t
Eliminating t, we get the Cartesian equation of the line

z 1
1 x=y 2= .
3
⇤
If we are given just two points on the line P and Q, then we can easily produce a vector parallel
to the line by choosing d = OQ~ ~ . Then we again have the parametric equation
OP
~ + td.
r = OP
Example 7.6.2. Find the parametric equation of the line passing through the two points
P = (1, 1, 0) and Q = (2, 1, 3).
~
Solution. We choose the vector parallel to the line to be d = OQ ~ = (2, 1, 3)
OP (1, 1, 0) =
(1, 0, 3) and obtain the parametric equation
r = (1, 1, 0) + t(1, 0, 3) = (1 + t, 1, 3t).
Example 7.6.3. The Cartesian equation of a line is given by

x 1 y+2
= =z 2.
3 2
Write down the parametric version of the equation and hence find a vector parallel to the line,
and a point on the line.
Solution. We can write the Cartesian equation in the form

x 1 y+2 z 2
= =
3 2 1
and hence read o↵ the parametric form
r = (x, y, z) = (1, 2, 2) + t(3, 2, 1).
Hence, (3, 2, 1) is a vector parallel to the line, and (1, 2, 2) is a point on the line. ⇤
7.7 The equation of a plane

A plane can be defined in terms of a single point P on the plane with position vector a, and a
normal vector n in the following way: A plane consists of all points with position vector
r = (x, y, z)
such that
(r a).n = 0
To understand this equation defining a plane, consider the following picture:
n
r−a
P
a r
O
Plane
The normal vector n is a vector perpendicular to all vectors r a lying parallel to the plane.
Example 7.7.1. Find the equation of the plane that contains the point P with position vector
a = (1, 2, 4), and has the normal vector n = (1, 1, 1).
Solution. A point r = (x, y, z) lies in the plane if it satisfies the equation r.n = a.n (it is often
easier to write the equation in this form). That is we have
(x, y, z).(1, 1, 1) = (1, 2, 4).(1, 1, 1) = 1 + 2 4= 1
or
x+y z= 1.
⇤
Suppose, we are not given the normal directly, but are given the position vectors a, b and c of
3 points that lie in the plane. In the case, we can construct a normal n by taking the vector
product of any two vectors that are parallel to the plane. Two such vectors are b a and c a,
and thus we can take
n = (b a) ⇥ (c a),
and carry on to write the equation of the plane as r.n = a.n as before.
Example 7.7.2. Find a plane through the points A (1,1,-1), B (2,0,2) and C (0,-2,1).
Solution. Two vectors in the plane are

~ = (2, 0, 2)
AB (1, 1, 1) = (1, 1, 3)
and
~ = (0, 2, 1)
AC (1, 1, 1) = ( 1, 3, 2)
Their vector product is perpendicular to both vectors and therefore to the plane.
This will give a normal n to the plane.
Now
~ ⇥ AC
AB ~ = (i j + 3k) ⇥ ( i 3j + 2k)
= 7i 5j 4k
Thus a normal to the plane is n = (7, 5, 4). Any scalar multiple of this vector would also do
for the normal. The point A with position vector a = (1, 1, 1) is on the plane so the equation
of a plane is given by
r.n = a.n
In coordinates, this may be written as
(x, y, z).(7, 5, 4) = (1, 1, 1).(7, 5, 4)

7x 5y 4z = 1 ⇥ 7 + 1 ⇥ ( 5) + ( 1) ⇥ 4
7x 5y 4z = 6
Jack Carr and Des Johnston, 24 Jul. 2013

Maths for Engineers Course Notes

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F1.

Maths for Engineers and Scientists 1

2 Functions: Log and Exponential 2–1

3 Application of Linear and Log Functions 3–1

4 Introduction to Di↵erentiation 4–1

5 Introduction to Integration 5–1

6 Statistics and Probability 6–1

6.3 Probability distributions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6–7

1.1 Working with formulae

• One for the physicists, the period T of a pendulum of length L:

multiply both sides by g/4⇡ 2

Example 1.1.3. The formula for converting Centigrade (C) to Fahrenheit (F ) is

Always do the same thing to both sides of the equation.

1.2 Units - Beware!

1.3 Algebraic Fractions and Partial Fractions

Algebraic fractions are the ratios of two polynomials like

(ii) The numerator is linear; for example 7x + 3 .

Multiplying by (2x + 1)(x 3) :

Put x = 3 then 6 1 = 0 + B(6 + 1) .

by simply making a di↵erent guess, but following the same procedure.

9x + 3 = (Bx + C)(x 1) + A(x2 + x + 10).

Put x = 1, then 12 = 12A so A = 1.

2.1 A reminder about Indices and Exponents

In an expression such as 26 the base is 2 and the index or power is 6 .

The rules for manipulating indices are:

These rules apply for all values of m and n .

If b = ax then x = loga (b)

As an example: 1000 = 103 so log10 (1000) = 3 .

Example 2.2.1. Show that loga 1 = 0 .

Solution. If x = loga 1 then ax = 1 . Since a0 = 1 we have that x = 0 . ⇤

Graph of log(x) and ln(x)

• loga (BC) = loga (B) + loga (C)

• loga (B n ) = n loga (B)

Example 2.2.2. Reduce to a single log term :

(c) ln(x2 y) ln(y) + 3 ln(x) = ln(x2 ) + ln(y) ln(y) + ln(x3 ) = ln(x5 ) . ⇤

Example 2.2.3. Find the value of x which satisfies (1.76)x = 2002 .

Solution. Taking logarithms to base 10 of each side of (1.76)x = 2002 gives

Using rule 3, x log(1.76) = log(2002) , so that

Note that we could have taken logarithms to base e to obtain

2.3 The Exponential Function

The function y = ex is called the exponential function. On a calculator , the exponential

The usual laws of indices apply to ex so that

e0 = 1 , (ex )2 = e2x , ex ey = ex+y

If y = ex then taking taken logarithms to base e of each side gives

ln(y) = ln(ex ) = x ln(e) = x

Solution. f (0) = 3e0 = 3 .

Example 2.3.2. Simplify (e4x e 4x )2 .

Solution. (e4x e 4x )2 = (e4x )2 2 e4x e 4x + (e 4x )2 = e8x 2+e 8x . ⇤

Example 2.3.3. Solve for x : 100e 2x = 26.2 .

Solution. e 2x = 0.262 so 2x = ln(0.262) = 1.34 . Hence x = 0.67 . ⇤

Example 2.3.4. Sketch the graph of y = 6e 2t for t 0.

0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0

Example 2.3.5. Sketch the graph of y = 7 4e 2t for t 0 . Express t in terms of y .

0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0

P (h) = exp( Ah)

where A = 0.000016 (i.e.1.6 ⇥ 10 5 ), and h is measured in metres. At sea level h = 0 and P = 1

The summit of Ben Nevis (h = 1344m)

The summit of Everest (h = 8848m)

Heriot-Watt Riccarton campus (h = 90m)

The summit of Ben Nevis (h = 1344m)

P (1344) = exp( 0.000016 ⇥ 1344) = exp( 0.021504) = 0.979

The summit of Everest (h = 8848m)