What are the requirements for a function to be continuous at a point?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the requirements for a function to be continuous at a point, including concepts of uniform continuity and examples of continuous and discontinuous functions. Participants explore theoretical aspects, provide examples, and seek clarification on continuity principles.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant notes that the function f(x) = x³ is continuous on all of ℝ but seeks clarification on the reasoning behind this.
  • Another participant mentions that a function fails to be uniformly continuous on A if there exists an ε₀ > 0 and sequences (xₙ) and (yₙ) in A such that |xₙ - yₙ| → 0 but |f(xₙ) - f(yₙ)| → ε₀.
  • It is stated that a function can be continuous at a point or on an interval, requiring it to have a value at that point or be continuous at every point in the interval.
  • A counterexample is provided to challenge the claim that a function must have a value at a point to be continuous, using the piecewise function defined as f(x) = 0 for x ≠ 0 and f(0) = 1.
  • Another participant recalls that for continuity at a point c, the limit of f(x) as x approaches c must equal f(c), indicating a need for clarity on this definition.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the conditions for continuity, particularly regarding the necessity of having a value at a point for continuity. Some definitions and examples are contested, indicating that multiple competing views remain unresolved.

Contextual Notes

There are limitations in the discussion regarding the completeness of definitions and examples provided. Some participants express uncertainty about theorems related to continuity, and there are unresolved mathematical steps in the explanations.

rbzima
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Hey guys, I'm in a little bit of a jam here:
I managed to miss a really important lecture on continuity the other day, and there were a few examples that the professor provided to the class that I just got, but would love it if someone could explain them to me.

First, f(x)=x3 is continuous on all of R. Everyone went through this, but I'm not really sure how it works.

Second, we used the fact that "a function [tex]f:A \rightarrow[/tex] R fails to be uniformly continuous on A if and only if there exists a particular [tex]\epsilon_{0} > 0[/tex] and two sequences (xn) and (yn) in A satisfying

[tex]\left| x_n - y_n\right| \rightarrow 0[/tex] but [tex]\left| f(x_n) - f(y_n)\right| \rightarrow \epsilon_0[/tex]

to show fis not uniformly continuous on R.

Thirdly, we showed that f is uniformly continuous on any bounded subset of R
 
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I studied continuity in the last semester. I can't remember all the theorems ATM.
Any way, as far as I can remember that a function, in plain words, can be continuous
1) at a point or,
2) can be continuous on a certain interval.

For continuity at a point it must have a value at that point
For an interval, it must be continuous at every points in the interval.

I can remember upto this.
 
rbzima said:
Hey guys, I'm in a little bit of a jam here:
I managed to miss a really important lecture on continuity the other day, and there were a few examples that the professor provided to the class that I just got, but would love it if someone could explain them to me.

First, f(x)=x3 is continuous on all of R. Everyone went through this, but I'm not really sure how it works.

Second, we used the fact that "a function [tex]f:A \rightarrow[/tex] R fails to be uniformly continuous on A if and only if there exists a particular [tex]\epsilon_{0} > 0[/tex] and two sequences (xn) and (yn) in A satisfying

[tex]\left| x_n - y_n\right| \rightarrow 0[/tex] but [tex]\left| f(x_n) - f(y_n)\right| \rightarrow \epsilon_0[/tex]

to show fis not uniformly continuous on R.

Thirdly, we showed that f is uniformly continuous on any bounded subset of R

For the first quesiton, you can use the contunuity of limit. As I remember ıt is something like that. lim(x --> a) f(x) = f(a). and for f(x^3), this statement is correct.
 
mdnazmulh said:
I studied continuity in the last semester. I can't remember all the theorems ATM.
Any way, as far as I can remember that a function, in plain words, can be continuous
1) at a point or,
2) can be continuous on a certain interval.

For continuity at a point it must have a value at that point
For an interval, it must be continuous at every points in the interval.

I can remember upto this.

This is incorrect.

One counter example is the following function

Let [tex]f(x)=\left\{\begin{array}{cc}0,&\mbox{ if } <br /> x\neq 0\\1, & \mbox{ if } x=0\end{array}\right.[/tex]

This function has a value at x = 0, but is certainly not continuous at that point.

From Wiki,
To be more precise, we say that the function f is continuous at some point c when the following two requirements are satisfied:

f(c) must be defined (i.e. c must be an element of the domain of f).

The limit of f(x) as x approaches c must exist and be equal to f(c).
 
Last edited:

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