Maxima minina on an interval (calculus+trig)

  • Thread starter Thread starter quicksilver123
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Interval Maxima
Click For Summary
To find the maximum and minimum of the function f(x) = x + cos(x) on the interval <-π, 2π>, the derivative f'(x) = 1 - sin(x) is calculated. The critical points occur where the derivative equals zero, but it's important to also evaluate the endpoints of the interval. The solution emphasizes that simply finding the derivative is insufficient; one must also consider the behavior of the function at the boundaries. The discussion highlights a potential misunderstanding in interpreting the solution's wording, clarifying that f'(x) being non-negative indicates the function is increasing. Proper evaluation of both critical points and endpoints is essential for determining the extrema.
quicksilver123
Messages
173
Reaction score
0
IMG_2066.jpg
I need to find the max/min of a function on an interval.
The function is f(x)=x+cos(x) and the interval is <-PI,2pi>
There is an attached solution but I do not understand how to arrive at the given solution (see screenshot). I would personally just take the derivative as
F'(x)=1-sin(x)
However the solution says this is only half the answer and I do not understand the reasoning (I am trying to do this algebraicly, without thinking of it graphically).
 
Physics news on Phys.org
quicksilver123 said:
the solution says this is only half the answer
I think you may be misinterpreting what it says. It is strangely worded. Better would be "f'(x)=1-sin(x), which is ≥0 since sin(x)≤1 for any real x".
 
  • Like
Likes quicksilver123
Thanks
 
First, I tried to show that ##f_n## converges uniformly on ##[0,2\pi]##, which is true since ##f_n \rightarrow 0## for ##n \rightarrow \infty## and ##\sigma_n=\mathrm{sup}\left| \frac{\sin\left(\frac{n^2}{n+\frac 15}x\right)}{n^{x^2-3x+3}} \right| \leq \frac{1}{|n^{x^2-3x+3}|} \leq \frac{1}{n^{\frac 34}}\rightarrow 0##. I can't use neither Leibnitz's test nor Abel's test. For Dirichlet's test I would need to show, that ##\sin\left(\frac{n^2}{n+\frac 15}x \right)## has partialy bounded sums...