02/10/2017 Continuous versus discrete - An approach to calculus

AnApproach
to
CALCULUS
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1
CONTINUOUSVERSUS
DISCRETE
Commonboundary
Thedefinitionofacontinuousquantity

THE SUBJECT MATTER OF DIFFERENTIAL CALCULUS is rate of change;

specically, the rate of change at a given value of a continuous
function, such as the speed of motion. What was the speed at
exactly 5 seconds after 0? We therefore begin by distinguishing
what is continuous from what is discrete.
A natural number is a collection of indivisible and separate units.

The people in the room, the electrons in an atom, the names of

numbers. They are discrete units. You cannot take half of any one. If
you do, it will not be that unit -- it will not have that same name -- any
more. Half of what is called a person is not also a person.
We count things that are discrete: One person, two, three, four,
and so on.
But consider the distance between A and B. That distance is not

composed of discrete units. There is nothing to count -- it is not a

number of anything. We say, instead, that it is a continuous whole.
That means that as we go from A to B, the line "continues" without a
break.

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Themathematicallineisabstractedfromtheboundaryofa
planefigure:theboundaryofacircle,asquare,andsoon.
Allunbrokenlines,curvedorstraight,arecontinuous.
Now, a collection of discrete units will have only certain parts. Of
10 people, we can take only half of them, a fth, or a tenth. When we
divide any discrete collection, we will eventually come to an
indivisible one; in this case, one person.
But since the length AB is continuous, we could divide it into any
number of parts. Not only could we take half of it, we could take any
part we please -- a tenth, a hundredth, or a billionth -- because AB is
not composed of indivisible units. And most important, any part of
AB, however small, will still be a length.
That is the idea of a continuum. There is nolimit to the smallness
of the parts into which it could be divided. We imagine a continuum
to be "innitely divisible," which is a brief way of saying that no
matter into how many parts it has been divided, it could be divided
still further. And each part will itself be innitely divisible.
Commonboundary
A dening property of a continuous quantity, such as the line AC,

is that if it is divided at any point B, then the right-hand boundary B

of the part AB, coincides with the left-hand boundary B of the part
BC. The parts AB, BC make contact -- they are connected -- at the
point B. That allows AB to continue into BC without a gap.
In other words, if a continuous quantity were decomposed into
parts

or intervals, then all parts are connected. All parts share their
boundaries.

The lines AB, B'C do not share a common boundary, a common

endpoint -- they are not connected. And so there is not a continuous
line that joins A and C.
But if we join BB', then what were originally two endpoints, two

boundaries, become one. AB now continues into BC without a gap.

ThewordcontinuouscomesfromaLatinrootmeaningheld
together.Whatisitthatholdsalinetogethertomakeit

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whole?Again,nomatterwherealinemightbedivided,the
rightandleftendpoints,asBabove,coincideasone.
InLesson3wewillseehowthatleadstothedefinitionofa
continuousfunction.

Quantities that are continuous we call a magnitude. Magnitudes

are of different kinds: distance, area, time, speed.
In calculus and physics, we regard magnitudes as being
measureable. Since they are continuous, we could divide a magnitude
into any units of measure, however small. We could divide time, for
example, into seconds, or hundredths of a seconds, or trillionths of a
second.
We sum this up in the following denition:

DEFINITION1.Wesaythataquantityiscontinuousifthereisno
limittothesmallnessofthepartsintowhichitcouldbedivided,and
1)nomatterwhereitmightbedivided,thepartsshareacommon
boundary, and2)eachpartisaquantityofthesamekind.

See the Problem below.

*
Theprimeexampleofacontinuumislength.Alinecouldbe
dividedintoanynumberofparts,whichthemselvescouldbe
dividedthelinewillthenbecomposedofthoseparts.
Acontinuumcannotbecomposedofpoints,becausepoints
areindivisibletheycannotbedividedintoparts,asrequired
bythedefinition."Point"isaconvenientword,whenweneed
it,torefertotheboundaryofanintervalorwheretwolines
meet.Butpointsdonotexistuntilwepointtothem!
Incalculus,anythingmorethanthatisunnecessary.Infact,
ifpointswereinanysenserealentities,thenthe"two"
points,B,B'above,couldnotbecomeone.
That,atanyrate,hasbeenthemeaningofthewordspoint
andcontinuumsinceancienttimes.Inthe19thcentury,the
abstractionsofmodernismfoundtheirexpressionin
mathematicsaswell,andcertainmathematicianscreateda
radicallydifferentmeaningforthosewords.Theybeganwith
whattheycalled"points,"andtheyascribedtothema
primarylogicalexistence.Theythendefineda"continuum,"
andspecificallya"line,"asa"set"ofthose"points."(That
meaningof"point"becameunexplainedlylinkedwiththe
geometricalmeaning.)Andwhatwerecalledthereal
"numbers"werethenidentifiedwiththeinfinityofthose
"points."Thatislogic,whichdoesnotrequirethatwords
havetheircustomarymeaningsoranymeaningforthat
matter.Itrequiresonlythatwords"point,""number,"
"infinity"obeytheformalrulesofalanguage.Alogical
theorythereforemaybenothingmorethanaformalgame,
eventothepointoffantasy.
SeetheAppendix:Aretherealnumbersreallynumbers?

Problem.Which of these is continuous and which is discrete?

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To see the answer, pass your mouse over the colored

area.
To cover the answer again, click "Refresh" ("Reload").
Do the problem yourself rst!
a) The leaves on a tree. Discrete
b) The stars in the sky. Discrete
c) The distance from here to the Moon.Continuous. Our idea of
distance, of length, is that it could have any size, however large or
however small.
d) A bag of apples. Discrete
e) Applesauce. Continuous!
f) A dozen eggs. Discrete. (But if they're scrambled?)
g) 60 minutes. Continuous. Our idea of time, like our idea of
distance, is that there is no smallest unit. Any part of 60 minutes
is still time.
h) Motion from one place to another. Continuous. The idea of any
quantity of motion is that there is no limit to its smallness.
i) Pearls on a necklace Discrete
j) The area of a circle.
As area, it is continuous; any part of an area is also an area.
But as a form, a circle is discrete; half a circle is not also a
circle.
k) The volume of a sphere.
As volume, it is continuous. As a form, a sphere is discrete.
l) A gallon of water.
Continuous. We think of volume as having any part. And
any part is still a volume of water.
But:
m) Molecules of water.
Discrete. In other words, if we could keep dividing a
quantity of water, then ultimately (in theory) we would come to
one molecule. If we divided that, it would no longer be water!
n) A chapter in a book.
Discrete. Surely, half a chapter is not also a chapter.

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o) Events.
If you think that half an event is also an event, then you will
say that an event -- such as a birthday party -- is continuous.
(We are not speaking of the time in which the event occurs. We
are speaking of the event itself.) Otherwise, you will say that
events are discrete.
p) The changing shape of a balloon as it's being inated.
Continuous. The shape is changing continuously.
q) The evolution of biological forms; that is, from sh to man
n) (according to the theory).
What do you think? Was it like a balloon being inated? Or
was each new form discrete?
r) Words. Discrete.
s) Ideas.
If you think that the hundredth part of an idea is also an idea,
(Really?), then you will say that ideas are continuous.
t) Meanings.
Discrete. Half a meaning?
u) The proof of a theorem.
Discrete. Half a proof?
v) The names of numbers.
Surely, the names of anything are discrete.
w) The universe.
Discrete. Is half a universe also a universe?

Apart from our conceptions of time, space, and motion, we see

that virtually everything we encounter is discrete. Even a motion
picture -- where the gures on the screen appear to be in continuous
motion -- is made up of individual frames, which are discrete.
Calculus, however, is the study of magnitudes; of things that are
continuous.

Next Lesson: Limits

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