Solving an Integral: My Struggle

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around solving a complex integral involving the arctangent function and powers of trigonometric functions. Participants are exploring various approaches to integrate the expression, which includes substitutions and transformations related to trigonometric identities.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Mathematical reasoning, Problem interpretation

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants discuss different methods of integration, including substitution and the use of trigonometric identities. There is a focus on understanding the transitions between steps and clarifying the reasoning behind certain transformations. Some participants express confusion about specific steps and seek clarification on the use of the product rule and potential connections to the gamma function.

Discussion Status

The discussion is active, with participants sharing their thought processes and attempting to clarify each other's approaches. There is a mix of agreement and questions about specific steps taken in the integration process, indicating a collaborative effort to understand the problem better.

Contextual Notes

Some participants mention the time spent on the problem, indicating a level of frustration and the complexity of the integral. There are references to specific mathematical techniques, such as the product rule and gamma functions, which are under consideration but not fully resolved.

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Integral: Hint please

\int\frac{x\tan^{-1}x}{(1+x^2)^3}dx

\int\frac{\tan^{ - 1}x}{(1 + x^2)}\frac{x}{(1 + x^2)^2}dx\left\{\begin{array}{cc}x = \tan{r} \leftrightarrow r = \tan^{ - 1}x \\<br /> dr = \frac {dx}{1 + x^2}\end{array}\right\}

Let's not even get into what I did next and how much work I put into this Integral. This is definitely not the right way to go, hmm ...

Ok I think I see it now ... omg.
 
Last edited:
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Well, therefore, you have:
\int\frac{x\tan^{-1}(x)}{(1+x^{2})^{2}}\frac{dx}{1+x^{2}}=\int\frac{\tan(r)r}{(1+\tan^{2}(r))^{2}}dr=\int\cos^{4}(r)\tan(r)rdr=\int{r}\cos^{3}(r)\sin(r)dr=\frac{1}{4}\int\cos^{4}(r)dr-\frac{r}{4}\cos^{4}(r)

Agreed?
 
On my previous try, after the 2nd to last step of yours, I did it differently; I would like to try your way, but I'm not sure what you did.

I did ... \int r\sin{r}(1-\sin^{2}r)\cos{r}dr

Nvm, I see what you did. UHHH! I can't believe I spent more than an hour on this problem. Thanks arildno :-]
 
Last edited:
arildno said:
Well, therefore, you have:
\int\frac{x\tan^{-1}(x)}{(1+x^{2})^{2}}\frac{dx}{1+x^{2}}=\int\frac{\tan(r)r}{(1+\tan^{2}(r))^{2}}dr=\int\cos^{4}(r)\tan(r)rdr=\int{r}\cos^{3}(r)\sin(r)dr=\frac{1}{4}\int\cos^{4}(r)dr-\frac{r}{4}\cos^{4}(r)

Agreed?

Hi arildno,

I followed all but how you went from the second last step to the last step, as there is an 'r' in the integrand. Are you using some sort of gamma function there. That's the closest I've seen to int( sin^m(x) x cos^n(x) dx)

Thanks.
 
I'm just using the product rule:
u(r)=r, v&#039;(r)=\cos^{3}(r)\sin(r)\to{v}(x)=-\frac{1}{4}\cos^{4}(r)
 
arildno said:
I'm just using the product rule:
u(r)=r, v&#039;(r)=\cos^{3}(r)\sin(r)\to{v}(x)=-\frac{1}{4}\cos^{4}(r)

You're a freakin genius. I totally didn't see that. I was trying to solve it using a gamma function. I think there should be something related to a gamma function too as you still have to solve the int(cos^4(r) dr) which is part of the question.

Thanks for the help.
 

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