Proving the limit of sinx/x as x approaches 0 equals 1

  • Level: Undergrad 
  • Thread starter Thread starter Terrell
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Limit
Join the discussion
Registration is free. Start your own thread to ask a follow-up.
2 replies · 5K views
Terrell
Messages
316
Reaction score
26
this is a geometric proof from James Stewart's calculus textbook page 192. I'm confused in the sequence of inequalities as part of the proof...
theta = arcAB < AB + EB ==> arcAB < AE + ED. How did EB turned into ED?
please check the picture I've uploaded with this post
 
Attachments
  • image.jpeg
    image.jpeg
    38.6 KB · Views: 2,349
Physics news on Phys.org
In the first diagram, it' easy to see that ##\left|EB\right| < \left|ED\right|##, so what you ask follows. Then there are just substitutions.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: Terrell
Point D was described in the first half of the proof. It should be clear that |ED| > |EB|.
The benefit of doing the substitution is that you can reduce the expression to one involving straight segments related to theta by trigonometric functions.
##\tan \theta = \frac{|AD|}{|OA|}##
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: Terrell