Trapazoidal Approximation help

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the application of the Trapezoidal Approximation to evaluate the integral of the function \( \frac{x}{x+1} \) from 1 to 5 using \( dx = 0.5 \). The participant initially calculated the Trapezoidal Approximation Integral (TAI) values incorrectly, leading to a final result of approximately 2.921789, while the expected answer was 2.8968. The error analysis involved calculating the second derivative and applying the error formula, revealing a mix-up in the summation process and the value of \( dx \). Corrections were made, confirming that the calculations aligned with the expected results after addressing the errors in the summation and differentiation.

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Homework Statement



[tex]\int^{5}_{1} \frac{x}{x+1} dx[/tex]

using dx = .5

Homework Equations



[tex]\sum^{a}_{b} \frac {f(x)+f(x+dx)}{2} dx = [\frac{1}{2}f(x_{0})+f(x_{1})+\cdots+f(x_{n-1})+\frac{1}{2}f(x_{n})]dx[/tex]

The Attempt at a Solution


TAI = Trapazoidal Approximation Input value

[tex]x_{0}=1 \rightarrow f(x_{0})=\frac {1}{2} \rightarrow TAI = \frac{1}{2}\frac{1}{2} =\frac{1}{4}[/tex]

[tex]x_{1} = 1.5 \rightarrow f(x_{1}) = \frac{1.5}{2.5} \rightarrow TAI = \frac{1.5}{2.5}[/tex]

[tex]x_{2} = 2 \rightarrow f(x_{2}) = \frac{2}{3} \rightarrow TAI = \frac{2}{3}[/tex]

[tex]x_{3} = 2.5 \rightarrow f(x_{3})= \frac{2.5}{3.5} \rightarrow TAI = \frac {2.5}{3.5}[/tex]

[tex]x_{4} = 3 \rightarrow f(x_{4}) = \frac{4}{5} \rightarrow TAI = \frac {4}{5}[/tex]

[tex]x_{5} = 3.5 \rightarrow f(x_{5})= \frac{3.5}{4.5} \rightarrow TAI = \frac {3.5}{4.5}[/tex]

[tex]x_{6} = 4 \rightarrow f(x_{6}) = \frac {4}{5} \rightarrow TAI = \frac {4}{5}[/tex]

[tex]x_{7} = 4.5 \rightarrow f(x_{7}) = \frac{4.5}{5.5} \rightarrow TAI = \frac {4.5}{5.5}[/tex]

[tex]x_{8} = 5 \rightarrow f(x_{8}) = \frac {5}{6} \rightarrow TAI = \frac{1}{2}\frac{5}{6} = \frac {5}{12}[/tex]

so now, following the formula I add up all the TAI values, and the 1/2's have already been applied, so:

[tex]\frac{1}{4} + \frac {1.5}{2.5} + \frac{2}{3} + \frac{2.5}{3.5} + \frac {3}{4}+ \frac{3.5}{4.5} + \frac {4}{5} + \frac {4.5}{5.5} + \frac {5}{12} = 5.843578644 = \frac{20248}{3465}[/tex]

and then I multiply the sum by dx which is .5:

[tex]\frac {20248}{3465} * \frac {1}{2} = 2.921789[/tex]

the book states that the answer they are looking for is 2.8968

and for E(dx) (error) I take the second derivative:

[tex]y = \frac {x}{x+1}[/tex]

[tex]y' = \frac {(x+1)(1)-(x)(1)}{(x+1)^{2}}[/tex]

[tex]y' = \frac {x+1-x}{(x+1)^{2}}[/tex]

[tex]y' = \frac {1}{(x+1)^{2}}[/tex]

which the same as:

[tex]y' = (x+1)^{-2}[/tex]

so:

[tex]y''= -2(x+1)^{-3}[/tex]

and the formula for error is:

[tex]|f''(x)| \leq M[/tex] for [tex]a \leq x \leq b[/tex]

and:

[tex]E(dx)= \frac {b-a}{12} M (dx)^{2}[/tex]

so now:

[tex]|f''(1)| = .25[/tex]

[tex]|f''(5)| = .00926[/tex]

so f'' has M at 1 so to find error we do:

[tex]\frac {5-1}{12}(.25)(.25)^{2} = \frac {1}{192}[/tex]

the book states that the correct E(dx) is [tex]\frac {1}{48}[/tex]

I have done this many times over and can not find where I went wrong, especially with the actually summing in the first part.
 
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For x4 you put down 4/5 instead of 3/4. You wrote the right thing in the horizontal addition, but the sum you come up with is the sum including 4/5 instead of 3/4.

In the error part, your dx is 0.5, not 0.25.
 
hmm i just mixed up on the post with the 4/5 instead of 3/4, that's what I have written on the paper but i just did the problem again and it all works out, i wonder why i couldn't get it to come out before... and the error, yeah i got mixed up, thanks for the help!
 

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