UNIT 1

The Derivative


Overview

In this unit we will examine in depth the problem of finding the exact value of the
gradient of a curve. You will see the deficiency of estimating the gradient by drawing a
tangent by eye, and discover that an exact value can be found by calculation once the
function that determines the shape of the curve is known. Do not be afraid of the word
Calculus it is a beautiful topic with almost limitless applications.

Learning Objectives

After you have completed this unit, you should be able to

1. Calculate the gradient of a straight line given the coordinates of two points on the
line.
2. Estimate the gradient of a curve at a point P by drawing the tangent at P, then
finding the gradient of the tangent.
3. Calculate exactly the gradient of the tangent to the curve y = ax
2
+bx +c at any
given point on the curve.
4. Determine whether or not a given sequence has a limiting value L, and find L
where it exists.
ME 22A Unit 1 2
5. Calculate the limiting value of a stated function of x as x tends to a given limiting
value.
6. Determine whether a given function f(x) is continuous at some stated value of x,
and find any discontinuities that may exist.
7. Differentiate f(x) = ax
n
(a, n are constants) from first principles.
8. Use the result f '(x) = nax
n-1
to differentiate functions of the form f(x) = ax
n
and
any sums or differences of such functions.
ME 22A Unit 1 3
Session 1.1
The Gradient of a Curve

Before we begin dealing with the meat of this course, there are certain prerequisites that
are essential, notably the definitions of the gradient of a line and the gradient of a curve.
Gradient of a Line
You have almost certainly met this concept before, either in a mathematics course or one
of the sciences or even in geography.



Fig. 1



If AC and BC are drawn parallel to the axes, the gradient of AB is defined as the ratio
BC/AC, i.e.
the gradient of AB = BC/AC.

Clearly, AC = x
2
- x
1
and BC = y
2
- y
1
.
Therefore the gradient of AB =
y
2
y
1
x
2
- x
1

4 ME 22A Unit 1

Example
The gradient of the line joining the points (- 1, 3) and (2, - 2) is
3 (2)
12
=
3 +2
3
=
5
3









Gradient of a Curve



Fig. 2



The gradient of a curve y = f(x) at a point P is defined as the gradient of the tangent to the
curve at P. Once again, you have probably come across this idea before, whether in a
ACTIVITY 1.1

Find the gradient of the line joining the points
(i) (- 2, - 6) and (3, 4),
(ii) (1, - 8) and (3, - 6).

ME 22A Unit 1 5
mathematics course or possibly (for example) in a chemistry course when finding a rate of
reaction.
The question now is how do we find the gradient of this tangent?
Finding the Gradient of a Curve
We will approach the task of finding the gradient of a tangent to a curve by considering a
particular problem (a problem which we will only manage to solve at the very end of the
course!). The problem is:
The number of microbes (n) in an organism after a time t is such that n = 2
t
, where t is
given in minutes. The graph of n = 2
t
is shown below (Fig. 3). What will be the rate of
increase of n when t = 3?






Fig. 3








6 ME 22A Unit 1
You may (or may not) know that the rate of increase of n can be found by drawing the
tangent to the curve at the point P (where t = 3) and finding its gradient. More work will
be done on rates of change later in the course.
How would you draw this tangent? If your answer is to draw it by eye (so to speak), you
may not be too satisfied with this approach. You must admit that the method is rather hit
or miss!




Some people, in order to draw the tangent as accurately as possible, take two points on the
curve which are equidistant from P (e.g. A and B in Fig. 4 below).





Fig. 4






ACTIVITY 1.2

Draw the tangent by eye and estimate its gradient.
ME 22A Unit 1 7
The tangent at P is then drawn parallel to the chord AB.







As a matter of interest, the value of the gradient (to 4 significant figures) is 5.545. How
close were you to this answer?
[By the way, this is not the final solution to our original problem! What we are seeking is the exact
value of the gradient.]
Can you spot any defects in this technique? One criticism is that the method assumes
symmetry of the curve about the point P (at least in the region A to B). Another fault, of
course, is that the method still involves a construction and can therefore never achieve
the degree of accuracy obtained by using a calculation. If we need an accurate (even an
exact) answer, therefore, what are we to do?
Finding an Accurate Value for the Gradient
It is of interest to note that with some curves accurate tangents can be constructed. One
interesting curve for which this is possible is the parabola
y = ax
2
+bx +c
Consider, for example, the curve y = 5 + 4x 2x
2
. A sketch of this graph is drawn in Fig. 5.




ACTIVITY 1.3

What value would you obtain for the gradient using this method?
Does it differ from your previous answer?
8 ME 22A Unit 1




Fig. 5




What would be the gradient of this curve when x = 2 (for example)?
The point P corresponds to the point on the curve where x = 2. We now draw a line BC
parallel to the x-axis through the maximum point B, and a line through P parallel to the y-
axis to meet BC at A. If the mid-point M of AB is now found, the required tangent is MP
(believe it or not!).
From the above drawing (Fig. 5), the required gradient would be

-
AP
AM
= -
2
1
2
= 4.
One wonders whether this answer would have been obtained when sketching the tangent
by eye!
[As a matter of interest, a proof of this method will be given at the end of Unit 1].





ME 22A Unit 1 9


















Although the above result concerning the function ax
2
+bx +c is interesting, how can we
find an accurate value for the gradient of a tangent with other functions? In particular
(reverting to our original problem), how can we find the exact gradient of the tangent to
the curve n = 2
t
, when t = 3? This is where the beauty of the Calculus comes in!

ACTIVITY 1.4

Fig. 6
0
x
y
8
9
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
1 2 3 4


A sketch of the graph of y = x
2
2x + 5 is shown above. Calculate the exact value of
the gradient of the tangent at the point (3, 8).
10 ME 22A Unit 1

Exercise 1.1

1. Find the gradient of the line segment joining the points

(i) (7, 5) and (- 1, 1),

(ii) (- 2, - 3) and (- 7, 1).

2. Draw the graph of y = x
3
for - 1 x 2 and estimate the gradient of the curve at the
point where x = 1.5.
3. Find the exact value of the gradient of the curve y = x
2
- 6x + 5 at the point (1, 0).

The answers to these questions will be given in the Appendix.







ME 22A Unit 1 11


Session 1.2

Differentiating From First Principles
As with most brilliant ideas, the concept of finding the gradient of a curve by means of the
Differential Calculus is based on a very simple notion. Consider the curve y = f(x) drawn
below :


Fig. 7



If we are asked to find the gradient of this curve at the point P(x, f(x)), we first consider a
point Q with coordinates (x + h, f(x + h)) which is close to P, i.e. h is small. Note that h
could be positive or negative, i.e. Q could be on either side of P. The gradient of the chord
PQ is obviously not equivalent to the gradient of the tangent at P, but as Q is moved closer
and closer to P, the gradient of PQ moves closer and closer to the gradient of the tangent
at P, i.e.


Fig. 8



12 ME 22A Unit 1
But the gradient of the chord PQ=
f(x +h) - f(x)
x +h x
=
f ( x +h) f (x)
h


Therefore, as Q moves closer and closer to P (we write Q P ),
f ( x +h) f (x)
h
the gradient of the tangent at P. We can therefore say that the limiting
value of
f ( x +h) f (x)
h
as h 0 (i.e. Q P ) gives the gradient of the tangent at P, i.e.

the gradient of the tangent at P = lim
h 0
f ( x +h) f (x)
h








If we write f '(x) to denote the gradient of the tangent at P(x, f(x)), where f '(x) is termed the
derivative of f(x), then

f' (x) = lim
h0
f (x +h) f (x)
h







Numerical Example
Let us consider the problem of finding the gradient of the curve y = x
2
at the point P (2, 4).




Fig. 9


ME 22A Unit 1 13


Suppose we take another point Q on the curve where x = 2
1
/
2
. The coordinates of Q would
then be (2.5, 6.25) and the gradient of PQ is
6.25 4
2.52
=
2.25
0.5
=4.5 Let us now move Q a
little closer to P, say to Q
1
(2.25, 5.0625). The gradient of

PQ
1
=
5.0625 4
0.25
=4.25. Moving
now to Q
2
(2.1, 4.41), the gradient of

PQ2 =
4.41 4
0.1
= 4.1. Going even closer, if the
coordinates of Q
3
, Q
4
, Q
5
are (2.01, 4.0401), (2.001, 4.004001), (2.0001, 4.00040001)
respectively, the gradients of PQ
3
, PQ
4
, PQ
5
would be 4.01, 4.001, 4.0001.
The values of the gradients we obtained (as Q moved closer to P) were 4.5, 4.25, 4.1, 4.01,
4.001, 4.0001. It is not difficult to see, therefore, that the gradient is approaching a value
of 4 and will get closer and closer to 4 as Q gets closer and closer to P. In fact, if we take Q
close enough to P, the difference between the gradient of PQ and 4 can be made smaller
than any arbitrary value we care to name.
We therefore conclude that the gradient of the curve y = x
2
at the point P(2, 4) would be
4, which is the correct answer. (We will confirm this result in a few moments).






14 ME 22A Unit 1





















ACTIVITY 1.5






Fig 10




Examine the gradient of the chord PQ as Q P, where P is the point (1, 1) on the curve y = x
3

(shown above). Taking the coordinates of Q as (1.25, 1.953), the gradient of
PQ=
1.953 1
1.25 1
= 3.812
Taking Q moving closer to P, i.e. taking the coordinates of Q
1
, Q
2
, Q
3
, Q
4
as 1.1, 1.01, 1.001,
1.0001, what would be the corresponding values of the chord PQ ? What do you think is the
value of the gradient at P?

ME 22A Unit 1 15


Differentiating from First Principles
Taking once again the function

f (x) = x
2
, the derivative f '(x) is given by

f' (x) = lim
h0
f (x+h )f (x)
h
{ }
= lim
h0
(x+ h)
2
x
2
h
{ }


= lim
h0
x
2
+ 2hx+h
2
x
2
h
{ }
= lim
h0
2hx+h
2
h
{ }


= lim
h0
(2x +h) = 2x.
To find the gradient at the point (2, 4) we then substitute x = 2, i.e. the gradient is 2 x 2 =
4 (as we obtained earlier).

Exampl e 1
Find f '(x) when f(x) = 2x
3
. Hence find the gradient of the tangent at the point (3, 54).
f' (x) = lim
h0
f ( x+h) f ( x)
h
{ }
= lim
h0
2( x+h)
3
2x
3
h






= lim
h0
2( x
3
+ 3x
2
h+3xh
2
+h
3
) 2x
3
h







= lim
h0
6x
2
h+6xh
2
+ 2h
3
h
{ }
= lim
h0
(6x
2
+6xh+ 2h
2
) =6x
2
.
The gradient of the tangent when x = 3 is then 6 x 3
2
= 54.

Exampl e 2
Referring to the problem of finding the gradient of the tangent to the curve
y = 5 + 4x 2x
2
at the point where x = 2 (see Fig. 5),

f' (x) = lim
h-0
f (x+h)~ f (x)
h
{ }
= lim
h-0
5+4(x+h)~2(x+h)
2
~ 5+4x~ 2x
2
]
|
|
|
h
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|



= lim
h0
5+4x+4h 2(x
2
+2hx+h
2
)54x+2x
2
h






= lim
h0
4h4hx 2h
2
h
{ }

16 ME 22A Unit 1


= lim
h0
(4 4x 2h) =4 4x.
Therefore, if x = 2, the gradient of the tangent = 4 4 x 2 = - 4 (as obtained earlier).

Exampl e 3
Find f '(x) where f(x) = 1/x. Hence find the gradient of the curve y = 1/x at the point (2,
1
/
2
).

f' (x) = lim
h0
f ( x+h) f ( x)
h
{ }
= lim
h0
1
(x+ h)

1
x
h






= lim
h0
x( x+h)
hx( x+h)
{ }



= lim
h0
/ h
1
/ h
1
x(x+ h)






=
1
x
2
.
Therefore, if x = 2, the gradient = -
1
/
4
.









It is probably becoming increasingly obvious to you, however, that calculating f'(x) from
first principles is rather tedious! You are no doubt asking Is there an easier method?
Please! You will be glad to know that the answer is Yes. Before dealing with this result,
however, (i.e. developing a formula for the differentiation of ax
n
, where a and n are
constants), we will look a little more deeply into the concepts of limits and continuity.
ACTIVITY 1.6
Differentiate from first principles
(i) f(x) = x
2
+ 1, (ii) f(x) = 1/x
2
, (iii) f(x) = x.

Hence find
(iv) the gradient of the tangent to the curve y = x
2
+ 1 at the point (- 1, 2),
(v) the gradient of the tangent to the curve y = x at the point (9, 3).
ME 22A Unit 1 17


Exercise 1.2


1.

Fig. 11



Taking x-values of Q as 1.1, 1.01, 1.001, 1.0001, and finding the corresponding
gradients of the chord PQ, show that the gradient of the tangent at P(1,
1
4
) to the
curve y =
1
1+ x ( )
2
is
1
4
.
2. Referring to the curve n = 2
t
and our problem of finding the gradient at P (where t
= 3), take points Q
1
, Q
2
, Q
3
and Q
4
close to P with t-coordinates 3.1, 3.01, 3.001 and
3.0001. Find the gradients of the chords PQ
1
, PQ
2
, PQ
3
and PQ
4
. Do the magnitudes
of these gradients get closer and closer to 5.545 as we suggested earlier in session
1.1?

3. Differentiate from first principles
(i)

1
x
2
, (ii) x
2
3x +6 , (iii)

1
x
.
Find the gradient of the tangent to the curve

y =
1
x
2
at the point (1, 1).

18 ME 22A Unit 1




ME 22A Unit 1 19

Session 1.3

Limits and Continuity
LIMITS
Looking back once again to the sequence of values 4.5, 4.25, 4.1, 4.01, 4.001, 4.0001 that
we obtained earlier, it is not difficult to see that, if the pattern of the last four terms is
continued, the sequence would proceed in the form 4.00001, 4.000001, 4.0000001, etc.
Clearly, we could continue until we reach as close to 4 as we wish without actually
reaching 4. For example, if we require the difference to be less than 10
-10
, i.e. 1/10
10
, we
could continue until we reach 4.00000000001. The limiting value of the sequence is then
said to be 4.
A more formal definition of a limit is given below:
A sequence of values u
1
, u
2
, u
3
,, u
n
, would tend to a limit L if the difference between
u
n
and L can be made smaller than any arbitrarily small value of that we care to
state, i.e. | u
n
- L | < , where 0.









ACTIVITY 1.7
What is the limiting value of the sequence
(i) whose nth term is

1
2 ( )
n
,
(ii) whose nth term is

4 +
1
n
,
(iii) whose nth term is

2n +3
n +1

(iv) 0.1, 0.11, 0.111, 0.1111, ?
20 ME 22A Unit 1
In most cases

lim
xa
f (x) can be found by simply substituting x = a. For example,

lim
x1
2x+3 ( ) =5. However, if putting x = a results in obtaining lim (0/0), clearly this is
undefined. For example,

lim
h0
(x +h)
2
x
2
h






would give lim (0/0) if we simply put h = 0.
In this kind of situation the function needs to be re-written, i.e.

lim
h0
(x+h)
2
- x
2
h






=
lim
h0
x
2
+2hx+h
2
- x
2
h






= lim
h0
2hx +h
2
h






= lim
h0
(2x+h) =2x.

Examples on Limits

Evaluate the following limits
(i)

lim
x1
3x 2
x +1






, (ii)

lim
h0
5x
2
+2hx +h
2
( )
, (iii)

lim
h0
3x +h
( )
x h
( )
[ ]
,
(iv)

lim
x- 2
2x
2
~3x ~2
x
2
~4
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|
, (v)

lim
h-0
1
x+h ( )
2
~
1
x
2
h
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|


The solutions would be
(i)

3 2
1+1
=
1
2
, (ii) 5x
2
(simply put h = 0), (iii) 3x
2
(simply put h = 0),
(iv)

lim
x- 2
2x +1 ( ) x ~2 ( )
x +2
( )
x ~2
( )
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|
= lim
x- 2
2x +1
x +2
|

|
|

|
=
5
4

(v)

lim
h-0
x
2
~ x +h
( )
2
hx
2
x +h
( )
2
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|
= lim
h-0
x
2
~ x
2
~2hx ~h
2
hx
2
x +h
( )
2
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|
= lim
h-0
~2hx ~h
2
hx
2
x +h
( )
2
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|

ME 22A Unit 1 21



= lim
h-0
~2x ~h
x
2
x +h
( )
2
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|
= ~
2x
x
4
= ~
2
x
3
.


ACTIVITY 1.8
Evaluate the limits
(i) lim
x3
2x 1
x +2






, (ii) lim
h-0
5x ~h ( ) 2x +h ( )
3x ~h
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|
, (iii) lim
x- ~4
3x
2
+11x ~4
x
2
~16
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|


(iv) lim
h-0
1
x+h ( )
~
1
x
h
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|
.


Rules Regarding Limits
The solution to (ii) above can be found by re-writing

lim
h0
5x
2
+2hx +h
2
( )
as

lim
h0
5x
2
( )
+ lim
h0
2hx
( )
+ lim
h0
h
2
( )
=5x
2
+0 +0 =5x
2
.

Similarly, the solution to (iii) can be found by re-writing

lim
h0
3x +h
( )
x h
( )
[ ]
as

lim
h0
3x +h
( )
lim
h0
x - h
( )
=3x x
( )
= 3x
2
.


22 ME 22A Unit 1
The above results serve in part as illustrations of the general rules
Rule 1

lim
xa
kf x
( ) [ ]
= k lim
xa
f x
( ) [ ]
,
Rule 2

lim
xa
f x
( )
g x
( )
[ ]
= lim
xa
f x
( )
[ ]
lim
xa
g x
( )
[ ]
,
Rule 3

lim
xa
f x
( )
g x
( )
[ ]
= lim
xa
f x
( )
[ ]
lim
xa
g x
( )
[ ]
,
Rule 4

lim
xa
f x ( )
g x
( )








= lim
xa
f x ( ) [ ]
lim
xa
g x ( ) [ ]
, if

lim
xa
g x
( )
[ ]
0.

CONTINUITY



Fig. 12



A function f(x) is continuous at the point where x = a, if
1. f(a) exists, and
2.

f a +h
( )
f a
( ) as
h 0 (no matter whether h > 0 or h < 0).


ME 22A Unit 1 23

Discontinuities
With some functions obvious discontinuities exist, for example

f x ( ) =
1
1+x
( )
. Clearly f(-1)
has no value, as division by zero is not possible. The graph of

y =
1
1+ x
( )
is shown below



Fig. 13



The graph shows a clear discontinuity where x = - 1.

ACTIVITY 1.9

For the following functions, find the values of x at which discontinuities occur:
(i)

3
x 1
, (ii)
3x 1
x
2
7x +6
.


With some functions, however, the question of whether or not continuity exists at certain
specific points is not quite so obvious. Consider the following examples.

24 ME 22A Unit 1
y
x
-2 -1 0 1 2
3
2
1
1
0
-1
y
x
Example 1
Is the function f(x) = | x | , i.e. the modulus of x, continuous at x = 0?
The graph of y = | x | is drawn below, where | x | = x if x 0, but = - x if x < 0.


Fig. 14



Does this function fulfil the requirements of continuity at x = 0? First of all, the function is
defined when x = 0, i.e. | 0 | = 0. Secondly, f 0 +h
( )
f 0
( ) as h 0 no matter whether h <
0 or h > 0. The function is therefore continuous at x = 0 (and at every other point for that
matter).

Example 2
Is the function f defined below continuous at x = 0?
f(x) = + 1 when x 0, f(x) = - 1 when x < 0.
The graph of y = f(x) is drawn below.


Fig. 15



ME 22A Unit 1 25

The function is defined when x = 0, i.e. f(0) = + 1, so it fulfils the first condition. However,

f 0 +h
( )
+1 as
h 0 when h > 0, but

f 0 +h
( )
1 as
h 0 when h < 0. Therefore we
must conclude that the function has a discontinuity at x = 0.

Continuity and Differentiability
From the method we used to develop the derivative of a function, i.e. taking the limiting
value of the gradient of the chord PQ as

Q P(and hence as

f x +h
( )
f x
( ) ) , it should be
clear that a function must be continuous at a point x = a in order to have a derivative at
x = a.
However, the converse of the above result is not necessarily true, i.e. a function can be
continuous at x = a, but have no derivative at x = a. For example, the function f(x) = | x | is
continuous at x = 0 (as we have already seen), but it has no derivative at this point. For
one thing, the gradient of the function is + 1 on one side of the point where x = 0, and 1
on the other side.
After our brief digression on the topics of limits and continuity, we will now return to our
task of finding a formula to differentiate the function ax
n
(where a and n are constants).











26 ME 22A Unit 1
Exercise 1.3

1. Which of the following sequences would have a limiting value L? Find L in those cases
where the limit exists.
(i) The sequence whose nth term is 3
1
2
( )
n
.
(ii) The sequence whose nth term is 3(2)
n
.
(iii) The sequence whose nth term is
n 1
2n +1


2. Evaluate the limits
(i)

lim
x
1
2

2x
2
+ 9x - 5
2x
2
x






, (ii)

lim
h0

x + h [ ]
3
- x
3
h








,
(iii)

lim
h0

1
1 + x + h
( )
-
1
1 + x
( )
h












3. At which value of x does the function
1
(x 1)
have a discontinuity?
Where does the curve y =
1
x 1
( )
intersect the y-axis?
What happens to the function when x or x - ?
Sketch the curve.


ME 22A Unit 1 27

Session 1.4
Derivative of ax
n

We will now make life a little easier for you by showing that, if f(x ) = ax
n
(a, n are
constants), then f '(x) = nax
n-1
, e.g. if f(x) = 3x
6
, f'(x) = 18x
5
.
In order to develop this proof, we need the result
x
n
- a
n
= (x a)(x
n-1
+ ax
n-2
+ a
2
x
n-3
+ a
3
x
n-4
+ + a
n-1
).
If you have met algebraic long division before, the factorization can be explained as
follows:

x a x
n
x
n
ax
n1
ax
n1
ax
n1
a
2
x
n2
a
2
x
n2
.
.
.
a
n-1
x - a
n
a
n-1
x - a
n
0

x
n1
+ax
n2
+a
2
x
n3
+K+a
n1
)


However, the result is easily explained once (x a)(x
n-1
+ ax
n-2
+ a
2
x
n-3
+ + a
n-1
) is
expanded, giving
x
n
+ ax
n-1
+ a
2
x
n-2
+ a
3
x
n-3
+ + a
n-1
x
- ax
n-1
- a
2
x
n-2
- a
3
x
n-3
- - a
n-1
x - a
n

= x
n
- a
n
.

28 ME 22A Unit 1
Example

x
4
- a
4
= (x a)(x
3
+ ax
2
+ a
2
x + a
3
).

Differentiating ax
n
(a, n are constants) from first principles
If f(x) = ax
n
,
f'(x) = lim
h-0
f x +h
( )
~f x
( )
h
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|
= lim
h-0
a x +h
( )
n
~ax
n
h
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|

=

lim
h-0
a
/
x + / h
1
~
/
x
[
\
|
|

)
j
j
x+h
[ ]
n~1
+x x+h
[ ]
n~2
+ x
2
x+h
[ ]
n~3
+K+x
n~1
[
\
|

)
j
/ h
1
|

|
|
|
|
|
|

|
|
|
|
|

=

lim
h-0
a x +h
[ ]
n~1
+x x+ h
[ ]
n~2
+ x
2
x+h
[ ]
n~3
+K+x
n~1
[
\
|

)
j
|

|
|

|
=ax
n~1
n =anx
n~1


Example
Differentiate the following functions using the result
d
dx
ax
n
[ ]
= nax
n1
.
(i) 5x
10
, (ii) 16x
4
, (iii)

3
x
2
, (iv)

x , (v)

2
x
3
,
(vi) 3x , (vii) 2 .
[Note that examples (iii) to (v) assume some knowledge of indices, i.e.

x
n
=
1
x
n
,
x
1
n
= x
n
]

ME 22A Unit 1 29

(i)

d
dx
5x
10
[ ]
= 50x
9

(ii)

d
dx
16x
4
[ ]
=64x
3

(iii)

d
dx
3
x
2






=
d
dx
3x
-2
[ ]
= -6x
-3
=
6
x
3

(iv)
d
dx
x
[ ]
=
d
dx
x
1
2






=
1
2
x
-
1
2
=
1
2 x
( )

(v)

d
dx
-2
x
3






=
d
dx
-2x
-
1
3






=
2x
3

4
3
=
2
3 x
3
( )
4

(vi)

d
dx
3x [ ] =
d
dx
3x
1
[ ]
= 3x
0
=3 1= 3.
(vii)

d
dx
2 [ ] =
d
dx
2x
0
[ ]
= 0.


ACTIVITY 1.10
Differentiate the following functions with respect to x, using the result

d
dx
ax
n
[ ]
= nax
n1
.
(i) 15x
6
, (ii)

4
x
3
, (iii) x
3
, (iv)

1
x
4
, (v) 4.
Find the gradient of the tangent to the curve

y =
1
x
4
at the point
1
2
, 16.







30 ME 22A Unit 1
Differentiation of a Polynomial Function
If

y = f (x) + g (x),

dy
dx
= lim
h-0
f x +h ( ) + g x +h ( ) ~f x ( ) ~ g x ( )
h
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|



= lim
h-0
f x +h ( ) ~f x ( )
h
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|
+ lim
h-0
g x +h ( ) ~ g x ( )
h
|

|
|
|
|

|
|
|

where
dy
dx
indicates the derivative of y with respect to x.
Therefore
dy
dx
= f' x ( ) + g' x ( )
, i.e. we can differentiate a polynomial function term by term.

Example 1
Find the gradient of the tangent to the curve y =5x
3
3x
2
+2x 1 at the point (2, 31).
The gradient function is obtained by finding
dy
dx
=15x
2
6x +2.
Putting x = 2,
dy
dx
= 60 12 +2 = 50.

Example 2
Find the gradient of the curve y =
4
x

1
x
3
at the point where x = 4.

y =4x

1
2
x
3
, making

dy
dx
=2x

3
2
+3x
4
=
2
x
( )
3
+
3
x
4
.
Therefore, if x = 4,

dy
dx
=
2
8
+
3
256
=
64
256
+
3
256
=
61
256
.


ME 22A Unit 1 31

y
x
-
b
/
2a
B M A
x
1
p (x
1
,y
1
)
0

ACTIVITY 1.11
(i) Find the gradient of the tangent to the curve

y =3
2
x
at the point (
1
2
, -
1).
(ii) Find the gradient of the tangent to the curve y =5 2x 4x
2
at the point
where x = 1.
Can you find the equation of this tangent?

To end this lesson (and Unit 1), we will look once again at the construction of the tangent
to the curve

y =ax
2
+bx + c at the point (x
1
, y
1
). If you remember, the technique was as
follows (this time we will take a > 0).



Fig. 16



If B is the minimum point, we draw a line through B parallel to the x-axis and a line
through P(x
1
, y
1
) parallel to the y-axis, the two lines meeting at A. M is the mid-point of
AB and MP is the required tangent. Can you justify this method using your knowledge of
differentiation and a few algebraic skills?
Of course we know that, if

y =ax
2
+bx + c , then

dy
dx
= 2ax + b. The gradient when x = x
1
is
therefore 2ax
1
+ b. We need, then, to show that the gradient of MP (in Fig. 1) is also

2ax
1
+ b. Be warned, however the following proof is a bit heavy!
32 ME 22A Unit 1

Proof
As

ax
2
+bx + c =a x
2
+
bx
a
+
c
a
( )
=a x +
b
2a ( )
[
\
|

)
j
2
+
c
a
~
b
2
4a
2
( )
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|


=a x +
b
2a
[ ]
2
+c
b
2
4a ( )
, the minimum
value of the function is

c
b
2
4a ( )
, this occurring when

x =
b
2a
. The coordinates of B are
therefore

b
2a
,c
b
2
4a ( )





.
The length of AB is therefore x
1

b
2a ( )





= x
1
+
b
2a ( )
, and the length of AM =
1
2
x
1
+
b
2a ( )





.
Also, the length of AP is y
1
c
b
2
4a ( )






=ax
1
2
+ bx
1
+ c c +
b
2
4a ( )
= ax
1
2
+ bx
1
+
b
2
4a ( )
.
Therefore the gradient of MP =
AP
AM
=
ax
1
2
+ bx
1
+
b
2
4a
( )
1
2
x
1
+
b
2a
( )






=
4a
2
x
1
2
+4abx
1
+b
2
2ax
1
+ b
=
2ax
1
+b ( )
2
2ax
1
+b


= 2ax
1
+b, which is the required result.










ME 22A Unit 1 33

Exercise 1.4

1. Differentiate the following functions with respect to x, using the result

d
dx
ax
n
( )
= nax
n1
.
(i) 3x
3

1
x
3
, (ii)
4
x
+3, (iii)

2x
3
3x
2
++1
x
2
,
(iv)

3x
2
4
( )
2


2. Find the gradient of the tangent to the curve y =
4
x
at the point (9, 12).
3. Find the equation of the tangent to the curve y =2x
3
3x
2
+5x 1 at the point (-
1, - 11).
4. Find the equation of the tangent to the curve

y =
3 4x
3
x
at the point where x = 1.

[The solutions will be given in the Appendix.]






34 ME 22A Unit 1