Grade 11

General Mathematics
Module 1 – Part 1 Introduction to
Functions
Module Content

In this module, you will learn to:

represent real-life situations using functions, including piece-wise functions;

LESSON1 REPRESENTATIONS OF FUNCTIONS AND RELATIONS

Here you’ll learn how to interpret situations that occur in everyday life and use functions to represent
them. You’ll also use these functions to answer questions that come up.
In everyday life, many quantities depend on one or more changing variables. For
example:
(a) Plant growth depends on sunlight and rainfall
(b) Speed depends on distance traveled and time taken
(c) Voltage depends on current and resistance
(d) Test marks depend on attitude, listening in lectures and doing tutorials (among
many other variables!!)
(e) Our love to God depends on how far we have known Him.

Consider this Example:

A particular electrical circuit has a power source and an 8 ohms (Ω) resistor. The voltage in
that circuit is given by:
V = 8I, where V = voltage (in volts, V), I = current (in amperes, A)

So if I = 4 amperes, then the voltage is V = 8 × 4 = 32 volts.

If I increases, so does the voltage, V.
If I decreases, so does the voltage, V.

What if your bank charged a monthly fee of $15 for your checking account and also charged $0.10 for
each check written? How would you represent this scenario with a function? Also, what if you could only afford
to spend $20 a month on fees? Could you use your function to find out how many checks you could write per
month? In this Concept, you’ll learn how to handle situations like these by using functions.

Write a Function Rule

In many situations, data is collected by conducting a survey or an experiment. To visualize

the data, it is arranged into a table. Most often, a function rule is needed to predict
additional values of the independent variable.

Example

Try to notice the trend of each variable.

Number of CDs 2 4 6 8 10

Cost (Php) 24 48 72 96 120

Solution:

You pay Php 24 for 2 CDs, Php 48 for 4 CDs, and Php 120 for 10 CDs. That means that each CD costs
Php 12.

We can write the function rule.

𝐶𝑜𝑠𝑡 = 𝑃ℎ𝑝 12 × 𝑛𝑢𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝐶𝐷𝑠 or (𝒙) = 𝟏𝟐𝒙

Example

Write a function rule for the table.

𝒙 −𝟐 𝟎 𝟐 −𝟑 −𝟏 𝟏 𝟑

𝒚 𝟐 𝟎 𝟐 𝟑 𝟏 𝟏 𝟑

Solution:

The values of the dependent variable are always the corresponding positive

value. The function rule looks like this: (𝒙) = |𝒙|.

outcomes of the input values. This relationship has a special name, the absolute

Represent a Real-World Situation with a Function.

Let’s look at a real-world situation that can be represented by a function.

Example

Maya has an internet service that currently has a monthly access fee of $11.95
and a connection fee of $0.50 per hour. Represent her monthly cost as a function
of connection time.

Solution:

Let 𝑥 = the number of hours Maya spends on the internet in one month.
𝑦 = Maya’s monthly cost.
The monthly fee is $11.95 with an hourly charge of $0.50.
The total cost = flat fee + hourly fee × number of hours. The function is

𝒚 = 𝒇(𝒙) = 𝟏𝟏. 𝟗𝟓 + 𝟎. 𝟓𝟎𝒙.

Definition

A relation is a rule that relates values from a set of values (called the domain) to a second set of
values (called the range).

A relation is a set of ordered pairs (𝑥, 𝑦).

A function is a relation where each element in the domain is related to only one value in the
range by some rule.
 What’s More

Relations can be represented by using ordered pairs, graph, table of values,

mapping diagram and rule or equations. Determine which of the following
represents functions.

1. Ordered Pairs
Example 1. Which of the following relations are functions?

𝑓 = (1, 3), (4, 1), (2, 0), (7,2)

𝑔 = (3, 2), (4,4), (3, 3), (8, 9)

ℎ = (1, 2), (2, 3), (3, 4), (4, 5)

Solution:

The relations 𝑓 and ℎ are functions because no two ordered pairs have
the same x-value but different y-values. Meanwhile, 𝑔 is not a function
because (3,2) and (3, 3) are ordered pairs with the same x-value but
different y- values.

Relations and functions can be represented by mapping diagrams where

the elements of the domain are mapped to the elements of the range using
arrows. In this case, the relation or function is represented by the set of all
the connections represented by the arrows.

2. Table of values
Example 2

x -3 -2 -1 0 1 3 4
A.
y 10 5 2 1 2 5 6

Answer: Function. This is a many-to- one correspondence.

B. x 1 1 1 2 4

y 1 2 3 4 5

Answer: mere relation. This is a one- to- many correspondence. Looking at

the table, there is duplication in the domain. The element “1” in x is matched to
three elements in y.

3. Mapping Diagrams
Example 3. Which of the following mapping diagrams represent functions?

𝑓 𝑔
 ℎ

Solution.

The relations f and g are functions because each value y in Y is unique for
a specific value of x. The relation h is not a function because there is at

value. For example, 𝑥 = 2 corresponds to 𝑦 = 20 or 40.

least one element in X for which there is more than one corresponding y-

A relation between two sets of numbers can be illustrated by a graph in the

Cartesian plane, and that a function passes the vertical line test.

Example 4. Which of the following can be graphs of functions?

The Vertical Line Test

A graph represents a function if and only if each vertical line intersects the graph
at most once.

1. 2.

3. 4.

5.
 Solution.
Graphs 2, 3, 4 are graphs of functions while 1 and 5 are not because they do not pass the
vertical line test.

Important Concepts.
Relations are rules that relate two values, one from a set of inputs and the second from the set
of outputs.

Functions are rules that relate only one value from the set of outputs to a value from the set
of inputs.

The domain of a relation is the set of all possible values that the variable x can take.

Example 5.

𝑦 = 3𝑥 – 2
Identify the domain for each relation using set builder notation.

𝑦 = 3𝑥2 − 4𝑥
a.

𝑥2 + 𝑦2 = 1
b.

𝑦 = √x–4
c.

𝑦 = ⌊𝑥⌋ + 1 where is the greatest integer function.

d.
2 x+1 f.
e. y=
x−1

Solution. The domains for the relations are as follows:

a. {𝒙: 𝒙 ∈ 𝑹} d. {𝒙: 𝒙 ∈ 𝑹, 𝒙 ≥ 𝟒}
b. {𝒙: 𝒙 ∈ 𝑹} e. {𝒙: 𝒙 ∈ 𝑹, 𝒙 ≠ 𝟏}
c. {𝒙: 𝒙 ∈ 𝑹, −𝟏 ≤ 𝒙 ≤ 𝟏} f. {𝒙: 𝒙 ∈ 𝑹}

Functions as representations of real-life situations.

Functions can often be used to model real situations. Identifying an
appropriate functional model will lead to a better understanding of various
phenomena.

Example 6.

Give a function C that can represent the cost of buying x meals, if one
meal costs P40.

Solution: Since each meal costs P40, then the cost function is f(𝑥) = 40𝑥.

Piecewise Functions.
Some situations can only be described by more than one formula, depending on the value of the
independent variable.
 Example 7.

A user is charged 𝑃300 monthly for a particular mobile plan, which includes 100

monthly cost for text messaging using the function (𝑚), where m is the number of
free text messages. Messages in excess of 100 are charged P1 each. Represent the

messages sent in a month.

Solution. The cost of text messaging can be expressed by the piecewise function

, 𝑖𝑓 0 < 𝑚 ≤10
{300+ , 𝑖𝑓 𝑚 > 100
t (m)= 300
m

Example 8.
A certain chocolate bar costs P35.00 per piece. However, if you buy more than 10
pieces, they will be marked down to a price of P32.00 per piece. Use a piecewise
function to represent the cost in terms of the number of chocolate bars bought.
Solution.