5.
The Derivative as a Function, Di↵erentiability
1. Notation check. A runner is running along North Charles Street. Suppose s(t) gives her position at
time t, where time is measured in hours and position is given in miles north of Interstate 95. Interpret
each of the following quantities, give its units, and sketch a line on the graph of s whose slope is the
given quantity.
s
2
t
1 2 3 4
s(w) s(2)
(a) (If we are interested in what’s going on around time 2, what values of w should we
w 2
look at?)
s(2 + u) s(2)
(b) (If we are interested in what’s going on around time 2, what values of u should
u
we look at?)
s(2 + u) s(2)
(c) lim
u!0 u
s(w) s(2)
(d) lim
w!2 w 2
1
2. One day, a hitchhiker is wandering along a highway near a gas station. Suppose his position at time t
is f (t) = 360t 3t2 , where t is measured in minutes after noon and the position is given in feet east of
the gas station.
(a) Sketch the graph of f (t).
(b) On the graph above, sketch slopes that represent the hitchhiker’s instantaneous velocity at 11 am,
12:30 pm, and 2 pm. Which of these velocities is the biggest?
(c) Were there any times when the hitchhiker’s instantaneous velocity was 0? If so, when?
(d) At what times was the hitchhiker’s instantaneous velocity positive?
(e) Sketch a rough graph of the hitchhiker’s velocity as a function of time.
(f) Using the definition of the derivative, calculate the hitchhiker’s velocity at time t. Does this agree
with your sketch?
(g) What is the hitchhiker’s acceleration at time t? Sketch a graph of his acceleration as a function
of time.
2
3. Gromit has been growing a giant squash for Tottington Hall’s annual Giant Vegetable Competition.
He has carefully tracked his squash’s length and weight. Let w(`) be the squash’s weight in kg when
its length is ` cm.
(a) What are the units of w0 (`)?
dw dw
(b) Another notation for w0 (`) is . Do you expect to be positive or negative? Why?
d` d`
dw
(c) Suppose w0 (70) = 0.5. (This statement can also be written as = 0.5.)
d` `=70
Vote on which of the following is the most reasonable conclusion?
(a) It takes 70 days for the squash to grow to be 0.5 kg.
(b) When the squash is 70 cm long, it weighs 0.5 kg.
(c) When the squash is 70 cm longer than its current length, it will weigh 0.5 kg more than it
currently does.
(d) When the squash grows from 70 cm to 71 cm, it will gain about 0.5 kg in weight.
(d) Interpret the statement w0 (105) = 10 in words.
3
4. (a) Sketch the graph of |x 1|.
d d
(b) Sketch the graph of |x 1|. (The notation |x 1| is shorthand for “the derivative of |x 1|”.)
dx dx
There’s one particularly interesting value of x here; what’s going on at that value of x?
4
We probably won’t get to these problems in lecture, but they could be used as review to
check your understanding of the concepts introduced this week!
5. A dot is moving along a line. Three graphs are shown below; one shows the dot’s position at time t,
another its velocity at time t, and the last its acceleration at time t. Which is which? How do you
know?
A(t)
C(t)
B(t)
x4 9x2 + 20
6. Let f (x) = . Sketch the graph of f , and then sketch the graph of f 0 .
x2 4
