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Computing derivatives
1. Find the derivative of the following functions.

(f) s(t) = 4 t 14 t4 + t + 1
s0 (t) = 4t1/2 t3 + 1

(a) h(t) = t
h0 (t) = 1.

(g) h(x) = (x2 + 1)2

h(x) = x4 + 2x2 + 1
h0 (x) = 4x3 + 4x

(b) g(t) = e3
g 0 (t) = 0.
(c) f (x) = 5x6
f 0 (x) = 30x5

(h) g(w) = w ww
g(w) = w2 1
g 0 (w) = 2w

(d) g(y) = 6 y
g 0 (y) = 3y 1/2 .

w2/3 + w3/2 14/5

(i) f (w) =
w5/4
f (w) = w7/12 + w1/4 w5/4
f 0 (w) = 7
w19/12 + 14 w3/4 + 54 w9/4
12

(e) f (w) = 2w3 + 3w2 + 100

f 0 (w) = 6w2 + 6w.

For part (e), draw a graph of f (w) and f 0 (w), give a chart of the signs of f 0 (w) and
the increasing/decreasing properties of f (w) over different intervals.
The original function is 2w3 + 3w2 + 100 and looks like

The derivative is f 0 (w) = 6w2 + 6w.

It is a parabola and has two zeroes at 1 and 0.

Interval
Sign of f 0 (w)
Behaviour of f (w)

(, 1)
+
increasing

(1, 0)

decreasing

(0, )
+
increasing

2. Consider the function f (x) = 2ex 6x.

(a) Find f 0 (x). What does f 0 (1) mean geometrically?
f 0 (x) = 2ex 6. f 0 (1) = 2e 6 means that the tangent line at the point (1, 2e 6)
has slope 2e 6.
(b) Find all the horizontal tangent lines of f .
The horizontal tangent lines are where f 0 (x) = 2ex 6 = 0. Solving for x, we get
x = ln(3). Then the only point with a horizontal tangent line is (ln(3), 66 ln(3)).
(c) Find all the tangent lines of f with slope 12.
We set f 0 (x) = 2ex 6 = 12. Solving for x we get x = ln(9). Then there is only
one point, (ln(9), 18 6 ln(9)).
3. Find the first 3 derivatives of the following functions. What are the 4th, 5th, 6th, nth
derivatives?
(a) f (x) = 3x2 + 5ex
f 0 (x) = 6x + 5ex , f 00 (x) = 6 + 5ex , and f 000 (x) = 5ex . Any derivative after the
third is 5ex .

(b) g(x) = 3x3 + 5x2 + 6x

g 0 (x) = 9x2 + 10x + 6, g 00 (x) = 18x + 10, and g 000 (x) = 18. Every derivative after
the third derivative is 0.

!!

4. Find the following limit by identifying it with the definition of a derivative:

(1 + h)8 + (1 + h)3 2
h0
h
lim

The function is f (x) = x8 + x3 . If you try to find the derivative at x = 1 using the
limit definition, then
f (1 + h) f (1)
(1 + h)8 + (1 + h)3 2
= lim
.
h0
h0
h
h
lim

Instead of going through the limit, we use the power rule to find that f 0 (x) = 8x7 + 3x2
and f 0 (1) = 8 + 3 = 11.