72 Chapter 2: Limits and Continuity

3-X, x<2 6. Letg(x) = Yxsin(I/x).

3. Let f(x) = x
{ 2 + I, x> 2.
y
1
y

L Find lim,....2+ f(x) and lim,....2- f(x).

b. Does lim,....2 f(x) exist? If so, what is it? If no~ why not?
c. Find lim,....4- f(x) and lim,....4+ f(x).
d. Does lim,....4 f(x) exist? Ifso, what is it? Ifno~ why not?
a. Does lim,....o+ g(x) exist? If so, what is it? Ifno~ why not?

4. Letf(x)=j:-X' ::~ b. Does lim,....o- g(x) exist? If so, what is it? Ifno~ why not?
c. Does lim,....o g (x) exist? If so, what is it? If no~ why not?
2' x> 2. x3 x oF I
7. a. Graph f(x) = { 0.'
x = I.
y b. Find lim,....l- f(x) and lim%~I+ f(x).
c. Does lim,....1 f(x) exist? If so, what is it? If no~ why not?

8. a. Graphf(x) = {I - x
2,
2
, x oF
x=l.
I
b. Find lim,....l+ f(x) and lim%~I- f(x).
c. Does lim,.... I f(x) exist? If so, what is it? If n~ why not?

Graph the functions in Exercises 9 and 10. Then answer these questions.
L Find lim,....2+ f(x), lim%~2- f(x) , and f(2).
a. What are the domain and range off?
b. Does lim,....2 f(x) exist? If so, what is it? If no~ why not?
b. At what points c, if any, does lim,...., f(x) exist?
c. Findlim,....-l- f(x) andlim,....-l+ f(x).
c. At what pnints does only the left-hand limit exist?
d. Does lim,....-l f(x) exist? If SO, what is it? Ifnot, why not?
d. At what points does only the right-hand limit exist?
O, xsO '\11=7; 0:5x<1
S. Letf(x) = . I
{ Sffi:x, x> O. 9. f(x) = I, I :5 X < 2
{ 2, x= 2

{~:
y -lsx<O, or O<xsl
10. f(x) = x=O
0, x<-I or x> I

Finding One-Sided Limits Algebraically

________~-L+_~~----~x Find the limits in Exercises 11-18.

° o. ,,;;0 11. lim ~xX ++ 21

y= . 1 %-+-0.5-
{Sffi x' x>O
-1 II 13 lim
• %-+-2+ X
(_x
+
)(2)x ++
1 2
5)
X

L Does lim%~o+ f(x) exist? If so, what is it? If n~ why not? 14. %~-(xh)(~W ~x)
b. Does lim,....(f' f(x) exist? If so, what is it? If not, why not? 2
15. lim Vh + 4h + 5 - Vs
c. Does lim,....o f(x) exist? If so, what is it? If no~ why not? h-+O+ h
 2.5 Continuity 73

16 r V6 - y'5h' + llh + 6 41. lim tan 0 42. lim 0 cot 48

. h~11J h .~o 0' cot 30 .~o sin' 0 cot' 20

. Ix + 21 . Ix + 21 Theory and Examples

17. a. lim (x + 3 ) - +
2 b. ,.!."2',jx + 3) x + 2
%--2+ X 43. Once you know lim......., j(x) and lim.......- j(x) at an interior point
~(x - I) b. lim ~(x-I) of the domain of j, do you then know lim,...... j(x)? Give reasons
18. a. %-1+
lim Ix- II ,~l Ix - II for your answer.
44. If you know that lim,....., j(x) exists, can you find its value by cal-
Use the graph of the greatest integer function y = lx J, Figure 1.10 in culating limx-c+ j(x)? Give reasons for your answer.
Section 1.1, to help you f"md the !intits in Exercises 19 and 20. 45. Suppose that j is an odd function of x. noes knowing that
19. a. lim lOJ b. lim lOJ lim,_o' j(x) = 3 tell you anything about lim,.....o- j(x)? Give rea-
0-3+ (} o-r (J sons for your answer.
b. lim(t - ltJ) 46. Suppose that j is an even function of x. Does knowing that
,....4-
lim,_r j(x) = 7 tell you anything about either lim, __r j(x) or
limx_-2+ j(x)? Give reasons for your answer.
Using lim sin/J /J = 1
.~o
Formal Definitions of One-Sided Limits
Find the lintits in Exercises 21-42. 47. Given. > O,f"md an interval I = (5,5 + S),S > O,suchthatif
21. lim sin \120 22• I'1m -
sint-kt (k constant ) x lies in I, then Vx-=s< •. What !intit is being verified and
.~o \120 ,....0 what is its value?
. sin 3y 48. Given. > O,f"md an interval I = (4 - S, 4), S > 0, such that if
23. hm-- 24. lim . h3h
y-o 4y 11-0- sm x lies in I, then ~ < •. What !intit is being verified and
what is its value?
25. lim tan 2x
x-o x 26. ~ t!t Use the def"ntitions of right-hand and left-hand lintits to prove the
27. lim x csc 2x 28. lim 6x'(cotx)(csc 2x) lintit statements in Exercises 49 and 50.
x-o cosSx
29. lim x .+ x cos x
,~o

30. lim x - x
, +.SIDX' 49. lim -IXI = -I
x-o- X
50. lim ( -
x-2+ x
;1 = I
x-o smxcosx x-o 2x 51. Greatest integer function Find (a) lim,_.oo' l x J and
31. lim I ~ cosO 32. lim x - x cosx (b) lim,_.oo- l x J ; then use limit definitions to verilY your f"md-
8-0 sm28 x-o 8in2 3x ings. (0) Based on your conclusions in parts (a) and (b), can you
sin (sinh) say anything about lim,........ l x J ? Give reasons for your answer.
33. lim sin (I - cos t)
1 - cost 34. lim . h
1-0 11-0 sm 52. One-sided1intits Letj(x) = {:';in(I/X), x < 00
35. lim sinO 36. lim s~5x
vx, x> .
8-0 sm28 x-o sm4x Find (a) lim,.....o' j(x) and (b) lim,_o- j(x); then use lintit defini-
37. lim 0 cos 0 38. lim sin 0 cot 20 tions to verilY your f"mdings. (0) Based on your conclusions in
.~o .~o
parts (a) and (b), can you say anything about lim,~o j(x)? Give
_sin=3y'...:.co",t..c5,y- reasons for your answer.
39. lim tan 8x3x 40. lim-
x-o sm y-o ycot4y

Continuity
2.5
When we plot function values generated in a laboratory or collected in the field, we often
connect the plotted points with an unbroken curve to show what the function's values are
likely to have been at the times we did not measure (Figure 2.34). In doing so, we are
assuming that we are working with a continuaus jUnction, so its outputs vary continuously
with the inputs and do not jump from one value to another without taking on the values
in between. The limit of a continuous function as x approaches c can be found simply by
calculating the value of the function at c. (We found this to he true for polynomials in
Theorem 2.)
Intuitively, any function y = t(x) whose graph can be sketched over its domain in one
continuous motion without lifting the pencil is an example of a continuous function. In
this section we investigate more precisely what it means for a function to be continuous.