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chjopl
Sep28-04, 12:46 AM
Is there a continuous function that has no tangent line at all? If so what is it? I know it must be made up of cusps and corners

BLaH!
Sep28-04, 01:39 AM
A function that doesn't have a tangent at a point means that the function's derivative doesn't exist at that point. You're right, functions are non-differentiable at cusps or corners. Examples of functions that don't have derivatives at one or more points include the absolute value function: y = \left|x\right| or the Heaviside step function: \theta(x) = \left\{\begin{array}{cc}0,&\mbox{ if }
x\leq 0\\1, & \mbox{ if } x>0\end{array}\right.

phoenixthoth
Sep28-04, 03:05 AM
A function can be nowhere differentiable yet everywhere continuous. It's hard to draw but it does exist. Here is an example

http://www.math.tamu.edu/~tom.vogel/gallery/node7.html

chjopl
Sep28-04, 11:57 AM
A function can be nowhere differentiable yet everywhere continuous. It's hard to draw but it does exist. Here is an example

http://www.math.tamu.edu/~tom.vogel/gallery/node7.html


That cleared it up but i couldnt figure out the equation of the function.

arildno
Sep28-04, 12:40 PM
To give you another one:
Define f(x) as:
f(x)=\sum_{n=0}^{\infty}\frac{\sin((n!)^{2}x)}{n!}
f'(x) cannot be defined at any point, although f(x) is continuous for all x.
This is, I believe, Weierstrass' first published example of such a function.

chjopl
Sep28-04, 08:10 PM
What does the n! stand for

Cyclovenom
Sep28-04, 09:37 PM
What does the n! stand for

It means Factorial, look it up.