Functions

Let’s formulate an equation!

• Tara has charged $2400 on her credit cards. She plans to pay them off at the rate of $275 per month. Write an
equation to represent the amount she owes, excluding any finance charges, after she made 𝑥 payments.

• What is the amount she owes after she made the first payment?

• What is the amount she owes after she made the second payment?

• What is the amount she owes after she made the 𝑥 𝑡ℎ payment?
Functions
Input

• Function: a rule of transforming input number into output number

• Independent and dependent variable

• 𝑓(𝑥)

• Domain and range Function

𝑥
Find the domain of 𝑓 𝑥 =
𝑥 2 −𝑥−2

• Function values

Output

• Let 𝑔 𝑥 = 3𝑥 2 − 𝑥 + 5. Then find 𝑔 𝑥 + ℎ . (Any real number can be used for x, so the domain of g is all real numbers.)
Functions (cont.)

• Equality of functions: two functions 𝑓 and 𝑔 are equal (𝑓 = 𝑔) when…

1. The domain of 𝑓 is equal to the domain of 𝑔.

2. For every 𝑥 in the domain of 𝑓 and 𝑔, 𝑓 𝑥 = 𝑔 𝑥 .

• Determine which of the following functions are equal

(𝑥+2)(𝑥−1) 𝑥 + 2, 𝑖𝑓 𝑥 ≠ 1 𝑥 + 2, 𝑖𝑓 𝑥 ≠ 1
• 𝑓 𝑥 = , 𝑔 𝑥 = 𝑥 + 2, ℎ 𝑥 =ቊ , 𝑘 𝑥 =ቊ
(𝑥−1) 0, 𝑖𝑓 𝑥 = 1 3, 𝑖𝑓 𝑥 = 1
Applications: supply function
𝑞
• Suppose the weekly supply function for a pound of house-blend coffee at a local coffee shop is 𝑝 = , where 𝑞 is the
48

number of pounds of coffee supplied per week. How many pounds of coffee per week will be supplied if the price is $8.39
a pound? How many pounds of coffee per week will be supplied if the price is $19.49 a pound? How does the amount
supplied change as the price increases?
Applications: demand schedule

• The following table is called a demand schedule. It gives a correspondence between the price 𝑝 of a product and the
quantity 𝑞 that consumers will demand (that is, purchase) at that price. (a) If 𝑝 = 𝑓(𝑞), list the numbers in the domain of 𝑓.
Find 𝑓(2900) and 𝑓(3000). (b) If 𝑞 = 𝑔(𝑝), list the numbers in the domain of 𝑔. Find 𝑔 10 and 𝑔(17).

Price per Unit, p ($) Quantity Demanded per Week, q

10 3000
12 2900
17 2300
20 2000
Special functions

• Constant functions
• ℎ 𝑥 = 𝑐 (where c is a constant)
• When ℎ 𝑥 = 10, find ℎ(3) and ℎ(𝑥 + 2)

• Polynomial functions
• 𝑓 𝑥 = 𝑐𝑛 𝑥 𝑛 + 𝑐𝑛−1 𝑥 𝑛−1 + ⋯ + 𝑐1 𝑥 + 𝑐0 (where n is a nonnegative integer, 𝑐𝑛 , 𝑐𝑛−1 , … , 𝑐0 are constant with 𝑐𝑛 ≠ 0)
• Linear functions, quadratic functions

• Rational functions
• A function that is a quotient of polynomial functions

• Every polynomial function is a rational function

Special functions (cont.)

• Case-defined functions
• Functions are defined by each of several disjoint cases
1 𝑖𝑓 − 1 ≤ 𝑠 < 1
• Find F 0 , F 2 , F(7) when 𝐹 𝑠 = ቐ 0 𝑖𝑓 1 ≤ 𝑠 ≤ 2
𝑠 − 3 𝑖𝑓 2 < 𝑠 ≤ 8
𝑥 𝑖𝑓 𝑥 ≥ 0
• Absolute-value functions 𝑥 = ቊ
−𝑥 𝑖𝑓 𝑥 < 0

• Factorials
• 𝑟! = 1 ∙ 2 ∙ 3 ⋯ 𝑟

• 0! = 1
Special functions: applications
• In manufacturing a component for a machine, the initial cost of a die is $850 and all other additional costs are
$3 per unit produced.
(a)Express the total cost 𝐶 (in dollars) as a linear function of the number 𝑞 of units produced.
(b) How many units are produced if the total cost is $1600?

• A daily round-trip train ticket to the city costs $4.50. Write the cost of a daily round-trip ticket as a function
of a passenger’s income. What kind of function is this?

• To encourage large group sales, a theater charges two rates. If your group is less than 12, each ticket costs
$9.50. If your group is 12 or more, each ticket costs $8.75. Write a function to represent the cost of buying 𝑛
tickets.
Combinations of functions

• Sum: 𝑓 + 𝑔 𝑥 = 𝑓 𝑥 + 𝑔(𝑥)

• Difference: 𝑓 − 𝑔 𝑥 = 𝑓 𝑥 − 𝑔(𝑥)

• Product: 𝑓𝑔 𝑥 = 𝑓 𝑥 ∙ 𝑔 𝑥
(c.f. Scalar product: product of real number c and function f 𝑐𝑓 𝑥 = 𝑐 ∙ 𝑓(𝑥))

𝑓 𝑓(𝑥)
• Quotient: 𝑥 = (for 𝑔(𝑥) ≠ 0)
𝑔 𝑔(𝑥)

• Composition:

• If 𝑓 and 𝑔 are functions, the composite of 𝑓 with 𝑔 is the function 𝑓 ∘ 𝑔 defined by 𝑓 ∘ 𝑔 𝑥 = 𝑓 𝑔 𝑥

• Associative property: 𝑓 ∘ 𝑔 ∘ ℎ = 𝑓 ∘ 𝑔 ∘ ℎ
Combinations of functions (cont.)
• If 𝑓 𝑥 = 𝑥 2 + 1 and 𝑔 𝑥 = 𝑥 2 − 𝑥,
find the following.

a. 𝑓+𝑔 𝑥 = d. 𝑓𝑔 𝑥 =
g. 𝑓∘𝑔 𝑥 =

b. 𝑓−𝑔 𝑥 = 𝑓 h. 𝑔∘𝑓 𝑥 =
e. 𝑔
𝑥 =
c. 𝑓−𝑔 4 =
i. 𝑔 ∘ 𝑓 −3 =
𝑓 1
f. 𝑔
−
2
=

• An environmental impact study conducted for the city of Oxnard indicates that under existing environmental protection laws,
2
the level of carbon monoxide (CO) present in the air due to pollution from automobile exhaust will be 0.01𝑥 3 parts per million
when the number of motor vehicles is 𝑥 thousand. A separate study conducted by a state government agency estimates that 𝑡
years from now, the number of motor vehicles in Oxnard will be 0.2𝑡 2 + 4𝑡 + 64 thousand. Find an expression for the
concentration of CO in the air due to automobile exhaust 𝑡 years from now. What will be the level of concentration 5 years
from now?
Inverse functions

• Identity function: for any 𝑥, the function 𝐼 which satisfies

𝑓∘𝐼 𝑥 =𝑓 𝐼 𝑥 =𝑓 𝑥 =𝐼 𝑓 𝑥 = (𝐼 ∘ 𝑓)(𝑥)

• One-to-one function: for all 𝑎 and 𝑏, a function that satisfies

if 𝑓 𝑎 = 𝑓(𝑏), then 𝑎 = 𝑏

• Inverse function: the function 𝑔 which satisfies 𝑓 ∘ 𝑔 𝑥 = 𝐼(𝑥)

• Such 𝑔 is denoted as 𝑓 −1 (c.f. 𝑓 𝑓 −1 𝑥 = 𝑓 −1 𝑓 𝑥 )

• Domain of 𝑓 −1 is the range of 𝑓 and the range of 𝑓 −1 is the domain of 𝑓

• A function has an inverse precisely if it is one-to-one (c.f. 𝑓 𝑥 = 𝑥2, 𝑓 𝑥 = 𝑥 )

Inverse functions (cont.)
• A function with a form 𝑓 𝑥 = 𝑎𝑥 + 𝑏(𝑎 ≠ 0) is a linear function. Show that a linear function is one-to-one.
Find the inverse of the function and show that it is also linear.

• Show that if 𝑓 and 𝑔 are one-to-one functions, the composite 𝑓 ∘ 𝑔 is also one-to-one and (𝑓 ∘ 𝑔)−1 = 𝑔−1 ∘
𝑓 −1 .

• Show that if 𝑓 is one-to-one, then 𝑓 −1 −1

= 𝑓.