Did I make a mistake in this integral?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around a participant's attempt to solve an integral related to finding the surface area of a solid of revolution, specifically revolving the ellipse defined by the equation \(\frac{x^2}{16} + \frac{y^2}{4} = 1\) about the x-axis. The focus is on identifying potential mistakes in the integration process and the use of trigonometric substitution.

Discussion Character

  • Technical explanation
  • Debate/contested
  • Mathematical reasoning

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses uncertainty about their integral setup and seeks help in identifying mistakes in their calculations.
  • Another participant questions whether the disk method is being applied correctly, suggesting that the integrand might need to be squared.
  • A participant clarifies that they are calculating surface area and believes their setup is correct up to a certain point, but acknowledges a mistake in the integral that leads to an incorrect factor in their answer.
  • Further steps in the integration process are shared, showing the progression of the calculations and the introduction of trigonometric identities.
  • One participant confirms the earlier calculations and points out a discrepancy in the factor of 3, suggesting that the initial mistake may have occurred in the first step of the integration.
  • The original poster later identifies a specific error in their manipulation of the integral, realizing they incorrectly factored out a term, leading to confusion in their calculations.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the correctness of the initial setup, but there is agreement on the identification of a mistake in the integral manipulation. Multiple views on the correct approach and potential errors remain present.

Contextual Notes

The discussion highlights the complexity of applying trigonometric substitution and the importance of careful manipulation of integrals. Specific assumptions about the setup and bounds of the integral are not fully resolved.

Dethrone
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I'm really exhausted mentally, so it'll be really helpful if someone can tell me where I made a mistake. I'm rotating surfaces, and with that, I had to solve this integral:

$$=\pi \int \sqrt{64-3x^2} dx$$
$$=\frac{\pi}{\sqrt{3}} \int \sqrt{\frac{64}{3}-x^2} dx$$

Let $$x = \frac{8}{\sqrt{3}} sin\left({\theta}\right) d\theta$$
$$dx = \frac{8}{\sqrt{3}} cos\left({\theta}\right) d\theta$$

=$$\frac{8\pi }{3} \int \cos^2\left({\theta}\right) (\frac{8}{\sqrt{3}}) d\theta$$

Have I made a mistake already?
 
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As a quick first thought, are you using the disk method, and as such, should the integrand be squared?
 
I'm calculating surface area, so I'm rotating the line across. The problem basically boils down to what I have above, and I know I'm right up to this point. I know I messed up this integral somehow, but I'm so tired that I don't know how. I've done hundreds of trig. substitution questions, not sure what I'm stuck on this one. My answer is off by a factor of 3, so I want to check my process.
 
I guess I could type out more steps, but my brain isn't cooperating with me.

After:

$$=\frac{64 \pi}{3\sqrt{3}} \int \frac{1}{2} (1+\cos\left({2\theta}\right) d\theta$$
$$=\frac{64 \pi}{6\sqrt{3}} (\theta + \frac{1}{2} \sin\left({2\theta}\right)) $$
$$=\frac{64 \pi}{6\sqrt{3}} (\theta + \sin\left({\theta}\right)\cos\left({\theta}\right)) $$

The original question is "revolve $\frac{x^2}{16} + \frac{y^2}{4} = 1$ about the x-axis", but I've left out the bounds, etc because my mistake is the integral.

$$S=2 \pi \int_{-4}^{4} y\sqrt{1+(\d{y}{x})^2} \,dx $$
 
Last edited:
Ah, yes, I see you stated you are finding a surface of rotation...sorry for not reading thoroughly. :D

So, you begin with:

$$I=\pi\int\sqrt{64-3x^2}\,dx$$

I would let:

$$x=\frac{8}{\sqrt{3}}\sin(\theta)\,\therefore\,dx=\frac{8}{\sqrt{3}}\cos(\theta)\,d\theta$$

And so we now have:

$$I=\frac{64\pi}{\sqrt{3}}\int\cos^2(\theta)\,d\theta$$

This is indeed 3 times greater than what you stated. Do you see your error in the first step you made in the first post?
 
My head is so fried right now, but I found my mistake.

It should be this:
$$\sqrt{3(\frac{64}{3}-x^2})=\sqrt{3}\sqrt{\frac{64}{3}-x^2}$$

I was trying to factor out 3, but instead, I did something quite careless...(Rofl) I knew it was a dumb mistake from the start...(Crying)
 

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