Material for week 4(3 hours)

1. Local and Absolute Extremum

Absolute maximum

Local maxima

Local minima

Absolute minimum

Terms used:
• Extremum – a general word for either maximum or minimum
• Extrema – the plural form of extremum
• Maxima/minima – the plural form of maximum/minimum

Consider the above figure. It is a graph representative of a

terrain on a surface. Notice that the surface has valleys and hills,
which are translated mathematically as the extrema of the function
modeling the surface.
On the graph, there are many points that can be considered as the
local extrema, but when it comes to the absolute extremum, there can
only be one absolute maximum and one absolute minimum.
We begin our discussion with finding local extrema. There are
two methods available; using the first derivative – called the first
derivative test, and using the second derivative – the second
derivative test.

Basic characteristic of an extremum:

Given y = f ( x) , if the function has a minimum or a maximum
at x = c , then either f ′(c ) = 0 , in other words, the slope of that
function at x = c is zero or f is not differentiable at c. c is called a
critical point.
Local extrema – The first-derivative test

We begin by analyzing slopes of functions around local

minimum and maximum.

Consider the following graph of y = f ( x) . Let the function has

a minimum at x = c . We know at exactly x = c , the slope is zero.
What about the slope of the function at values of x before and after c?

y = f(x)
Tangent lines

x
0 c
x<c x>c

Observation:
• When x < c, the tangent line has a negative slope.
• When x > c, the tangent line has a positive slope
• At exactly x = c, the tangent line has slope zero

Summarize info in a table

Values of x x<c x=c x>c
Signs of f ′( x) - 0 +
Extremum point is A minimum

2
 Now let the function has a maximum at x = c
y

Tangent lines

y = f(x)
0 c x
x<c x>c

Observation:
• When x < c, the tangent line has a positive slope.
• When x > c, the tangent line has a negative slope
• At exactly x = c, the tangent line has slope zero

Summarize info in a table

Values of x x<c x=c x>c
Signs of f ′( x) + 0 -
Extremum point is A maximum

These two observations can be used to determine whether a

critical point gives a minimum or a maximum.

Theorem 1 (First Derivative Test)

(i) if f ′( x) >0 on an open interval extending left from c and
f ′( x) <0 on an open interval extending right from c, then f
has a local maximum at c.
(ii) if f ′( x) <0 on an open interval extending left from c and
f ′( x) >0 on an open interval extending right from c, then f
has a local minimum at c.
(iii) If f ′( x) has the same sign on an open interval extending
left from c as it does on an open interval extending right
from c, then f does not have a local extremum at c.

3
Example 1 Find and classify the extrema of the following
functions if they exist.
(a) f ( x) = x − 4 x − 1 (b) f ( x) = x − 3 x + 1
2 3

Solution
(a) Given f ( x) = x − 4 x − 1, we first have to find the function’s
2

critical point(s). This happens when f ′( x) = 0 .

f ′( x) = 2 x − 4 = 0
⇒x=2
The critical point for this function is x = 2. Analyze the signs of
f ′( x) , before and after x = 2.
Values of x x < 2; x=2 x > 2;
let x = 1 let x = 3
Values of f ′( x) f ′(1) = −2 0 f ′(3) = 2
Signs of f ′( x) - 0 +
Extremum point is A minimum

The minimum value is f (1) = −4 ; the minimum point is (1,-4).

(b) Given f ( x) = x − 3 x + 1, the critical points are:

3

f ′( x) = 3 x 2 − 3 = 0, ⇒ x 2 = 1, ∴ x = ±1
This function has two critical points. Analyze the critical points
separately.
At x = -1:
Values of x x < -1; x = -1 -1<x <1;
let x = -2 let x = 0
Values of f ′( x) f ′(−2) = 9 0 f ′(0) = −3
Signs of f ′( x) + 0 -
Extremum point is A maximum
The maximum value is f ( −1) = 3 ; the maximum point is (-1, 3).

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At x = 1:
Values of x -1< x < 1; x=1 x > 1;
let x = 0 let x = 2
Values of f ′( x) f ′(0) = −3 0 f ′(2) = 9
Signs of f ′( x) - 0 +
Extremum point is A minimum
The minimum value is f (1) = −1; point is (1,-1).

Find the local extrema of f ( x ) = 3 x − 5 x .

5 3
Example 2
Solution
Find all its critical points:
f ′( x) = 15 x 4 − 15 x 2 = 0; ⇒ x 2 ( x 2 − 1) = 0
∴ x 2 = 0; ⇒ x = 0, or x 2 − 1 = 0; ⇒ x = ±1
The critical points of this function happened at x = 0, x = 1 and x = -1.
-1 0 1 x
At x = -1;
Values of x x < -1; x = -1 -1<x<0;
let x = -2 let x = - 0.5
Signs of f ′( x) + 0 -
Extremum point is A maximum
Value: f(-1) = 2; the maximum point: (-1,2).
At x = 0;
Values of x -1<x <0; x=0 0<x<1;
let x = -0.5 let x = 0.5
Signs of f ′( x) - 0 -
Extremum point is Not an extremum: neither max nor min
At x = 1
Values of x 0<x <1; x=1 1<x;
let x = 0.5 let x = 2
Signs of f ′( x) - 0 +
Extremum point is A minimum
Value: f(1) = -2; the minimum point: (1,-2).

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Local extrema: The Second-Derivative test
y

y = f(x)
(a) Tangent lines

x
0 c
x<c x>c

y'

y' = f’(x)
(b)

x
0 c
x<c x>c

Observation
1. When the function y = f ( x) has a minimum as in (a), then the
graph of the function y′ = f ′( x ) is similar to (b). The slope of
d
y′ = f ′( x) is positive; in other words, [ f ′( x)] = f ′′( x) > 0 .
dx
2. On the other hand, when the function y = f ( x) has a
maximum, then the slope of y′ = f ′( x ) is negative or
d
equivalently [ f ′( x)] = f ′′( x) < 0 . Try sketching the graph
dx
yourself.

From these observations we have the following theorem.

6
Theorem 2 (Second Derivative Test)
Suppose that f is twice differentiable at the point x = c.
(i) If f ′(c ) = 0 and f ′′(c) > 0, then f has a local minimum at c.
(ii) If f ′(c ) = 0 and f ′′(c) < 0, then f has a local maximum at c.
(iii) If f ′(c ) = 0 and f ′′(c) = 0, then the test is inconclusive; that
is, f may have a local maximum, a local minimum, or neither
at c. Revert to the First-derivative test.

Example 3 Classify the local extrema of the function in Example

2 by using the second derivative test.

Solution
From Example 2, f ( x ) = 3 x − 5 x , f ′( x) = 15 x − 15 x , and the
5 3 4 2

critical points were at x = 0, x = 1 and x = -1. To use this test, find the
function’s second derivative, which is
f ′′( x) = 60 x 3 − 30 x
At x = -1,
f ′′(−1) = 60 ( −1) − 30(−1) = −30 < 0
3

Therefore at x= -1, the function has a maximum value.

At x = 0,
f ′′(0) = 60 ( 0 ) − 30(0) = 0
3

The test is inconclusive. Revert to the first derivative test, and from
Example 2, the point x = 0, has neither a maximum nor the minimum
value.

At x = 1,
f ′′(1) = 60 (1) − 30(1) = 30 > 0
3

Therefore at x = 1, the function has a minimum value.

The results are the same as in Example 2 when we use the first
derivative test.

7
Inflection Point
If you look back at Examples 2 and 3, you’ll see that at the
critical point of x = 0, the point (0, 0) is neither a maximum nor a
minimum. This point is actually called an inflection point. Let us
analyze its characteristics.

• When we were doing the first derivative test in Example 2, we

notice that when a critical point is an inflection point, the signs
of the slopes of the function before and after the critical point, do
not change.
• In Example 3, the value of the second derivative of the function
equals zero.

Let us examine the values of the second derivatives before and after
the critical point.

At x = 0;
Values of x -1<x <0; x=0 0<x<1;
let x = -0.5 let x = 0.5
Signs of f ′( x) - 0 -
Extremum point is neither max nor min;
Signs of f ′′( x) + 0 -

Obsevation 1
Therefore, one way of determining if a critical point is an
inflection point is by checking the signs of both f ′( x) and f ′′( x) ; it
is a critical point if
• the signs of f ′( x) does not change before and after the critical
point, AND
• the signs of f ′′( x) change; from (+) to (-) or from (-) to (+)
• the value of f ′′( x) = 0 at the critical point

8
 Let us sketch the graph of the function, and its first derivative at
the critical point.

Graph of y:
y
Critical point

y = f(x)

0 x
x <0 x>0

Graph of y’:

Critical point
y'

x <0 x>0
0 x

y' = f’(x)

Further analysis
• From the graph of y’ notice the same critical point becomes an
extremum. If it is an extremum to the function y’, then
dy′
o = 0 , and
dx
d 2 y′
o ≠ 0 , i.e. positive if min, and negative if max.
dx 2
• Simplifying the above discussion, we have
dy′ d 2 y d 2 y′ d 3 y
o = 2 = 0 , and 2
= 3 ≠0
dx dx dx dx

9
Observation 2
Therefore, if it is an inflection point, then
d2y d3y
o = 0 , and 3 ≠ 0
dx 2 dx

Example 4 Find all the inflection points of the function in

Example 2.

Solution
From Example 2, the function is f ( x ) = 3 x − 5 x . Set the
5 3

second derivative to zero to find all the possible critical points:

f ′′( x) = 60 x 3 − 30 x = 0
30 x(2 x 2 − 1) = 0
⇒ x = 0 or
1
2x 2 = 1 ⇒ x = ±
2
1 1
All the possible critical points are x = 0, − , and .
2 2
Check the values of the third derivatives to see if they are indeed
inflection points.
f ′′′( x) = 180 x 2 − 30

When x = 0,
f ′′′(0) = 180(0) 2 − 30 = −30 ≠ 0
∴The point (0,0) is an inflection point.
1
When x = −
2
−1 −1
f ′′′( ) = 180( ) 2 − 30 ≠ 0
2 2
⎛ −1 7 ⎞
∴The point ⎜ , ⎟ ≈ (−0.7071,1.2374) is an inflection point.
⎝ 2 4 2 ⎠

10
 1
When x =
2
1 1
f ′′′( ) = 180( ) 2 − 30 ≠ 0
2 2
⎛ 1 −7 ⎞
∴The point ⎜ , ⎟ ≈ (0.7071, −1.2374) is an inflection point.
⎝ 2 4 2⎠
y
Inflection points

y = f(x)

0 x
x <0 x>0

Example 5 Find the extremum and the inflection point(s) of the

function f ( x ) = x − 4 x .
4 3

Solution
To find all the possible critical points for the extremum set the
first derivative to zero.
f ′( x) = 4 x 3 − 12 x 2 = 0
4 x 2( x − 3) = 0
⇒ x = 0 or x = 3
Use the second derivative test on the two critical points:
f ′′( x) = 12 x 2 − 24 x
When x = 0
f ′′(0) = 12 ( 0 ) − 24 ( 0 ) = 0 - test fails – check 3rd derivative
2

f ′′′( x) = 24 x − 24
f ′′′(0) = 24 ( 0 ) − 24 ≠ 0
Therefore (0,0) is an inflection point.

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When x = 3
f ′′(3) = 12 ( 3) − 24 ( 3) > 0
2

Therefore, (3,-27) is a minimum point.

Now, check for the remaining (if any still exist) inflection
points; set the second derivative to zero.
f ′′( x) = 12 x 2 − 24 x = 0
12 x( x − 2) = 0
⇒ x = 0 or x = 2

We have checked the status of x = 0, which was an inflection point,

now check for x = 2.
f ′′′( x) = 24 x − 24
f ′′′(2) = 24 ( 2 ) − 24 ≠ 0
Therefore (2,24) is also an inflection point.

Conclusion:
(0,0) is an inflection point,
(2,24) is an inflection point
(3,-27) is a minimum point.

Absolute extrema
Literally, absolute extrema refers to the most extreme values of
a function. One of the situations in which a function can attain these
values is when its domain of definition is restricted to an interval of
values. The standard procedure for finding these absolute extrema
follows:
1. Find all the critical points as described above
2. Find the values of the function at its critical points and the two
end points
3. Compare the function values of the extrema with the function
values of the end points
4. Pick the most extreme: the largest is the absolute maximum and
the smallest is the absolute minimum.

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Example 6 Find the absolute maximum and minimum of the
function f ( x) = 2 x − x + 2 in the interval −2 ≤ x ≤ 1.
3 2

Solution
1. First find all the critical points (if any):

f ( x) = 2 x3 − x 2 + 2
f ′( x) = 6 x 2 − 2 x = 0
2 x(3 x − 1) = 0
1
⇒ x = 0 or x =
3

2. Find the function values of the critical points and the two end
points:

At the critical points:

When x = 0, f (0) = 2
1 26
When x =1/3, f ( ) = 1
3 27
The two end points are x = -2 and x = 1.
When x = -2, f ( −2) = −18 ;
When x = 1, f (1) = 3 .

3. Compare the function values:

Values of x -2 0 1/3 1
f(x) -18 2 53/27 3

4. The most extreme values

Smallest: -18; ∴(-2,-18) is the absolute minimum point.
Largest: 3; ∴ (1,3) is the absolute maximum point.

13
Applications of Absolute Extrema

Example 7 A wire with length 2 meters is bent to form a rectangle with a

maximum area. Find the measurement of its sides.
Solution
1- x Let the width of the rectangle be x meters.
2 − 2x
x Its length is then =1− x .
2
The interval in which we will be working with
would be an interval of all possible values of x. The shortest value for the width
would be 0; this happens when the entire length of the wire is making up only
the two lengths; the longest value for x would be if the entire wire is making up
only the two widths, i.e. 1. The interval is then [0,1].

Let L( x) be the area of the rectangle, then the area is given by

L( x) = x(1 − x) = x − x 2
1. Find the critical point(s)
1
L′( x) = 1 − 2 x = 0 ⇒ x =
2
2. Find the function values
At the critical point:
2
1 1 1 ⎛1⎞ 1
x = ; L( ) = − ⎜ ⎟ =
2 2 2 ⎝ 2⎠ 4
At the end points:
x = 0; L(0) = 0 − ( 0 ) = 0 and x = 1; L(1) = 1 − (1) = 0
2 2

3. Compare function values:

x 0 ½ 1
f(x) 0 ¼ 0

4. Pick the largest value:

The largest value is ¼ , happens when x = ½ .

Conclusion:
The area L( x) is maximum when the rectangle is a square with ½ meter
long sides.

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 2. L’Hôpital’s Rule
L’Hôpital’s rule is used when we encounter indeterminate forms
while we are finding limits.

The list of indeterminate forms:

0 ∞
, , 0 ⋅ ∞, ∞ − ∞, 00 , ∞ 0 , 1∞
0 ∞

However, this rule can only be used when the indeterminate form
0 ∞
is of the form or .
0 ∞

0
Theorem 1 – L’Hôpital’s Rule for
0
Suppose that f and g are differentiable functions on an open interval
containing x = a, except possibly at x = a, and that
lim f ( x) = 0 and lim g ( x) = 0
x→a x→a
If lim [ f ′( x) / g ′( x) ] exists, or if this limit is +∞ or -∞, then
x →a
f ( x) f ′( x)
lim = lim
x→a g ( x) x →a g ′( x)
This statement is also true in the case of a limit as x →a+, x →a-,
x →+∞, or as x →-∞.

Example 8 Find the limits of the following functions.

sin 2 x ex −1
(a) lim (b) lim 3
x →0 x x →0 x
x −4 / 3 1 − cos x
(c) lim (d) lim
x → 0 sin(1/ x ) x →0 x2

15
Solution
sin 2 x 0
(a) lim = , thus we can apply l’Hopital’s rule:
x →0 x 0

sin 2 x 2cos 2 x 2
lim = lim = =2
x →0 x x →0 1 1

ex −1 0
(b) lim 3 = , thus we can apply l’Hopital’s rule:
x →0 x 0

ex −1 ex − 0 1
lim 3 = lim 2
= =∞
x →0 x x → 0 3x 0

x −4 / 3 0
(c) lim = ; l’Hopital’s rule can be applied:
x → 0 sin(1/ x ) 0
−4 −7 / 3
x −4 / 3 3 x
lim = lim
x → 0 sin(1/ x )
( )
x →0 −1/ x 2 cos(1/ x )

−4
x −1/ 3 0
lim 3
= =0
x → 0 cos(1/ x ) 1

1 − cos x 0
(d) lim = , apply l’Hopital’s rule:
x →0 x2 0
1 − cos x sin x 0
lim = lim = ; apply the rule one more time,
x →0 x2 x →0 2 x 0

cos x 1
lim =
x →0 2 2

16
 ∞
Theorem 2 – L’Hôpital’s Rule for
∞
Suppose that f and g are differentiable functions on an open interval
containing x = a, except possibly at x = a, and that
lim f ( x) = ∞ and lim g ( x ) = ∞
x→a x→a
If lim [ f ′( x) / g ′( x) ] exists, or if this limit is +∞ or -∞, then
x →a
f ( x) f ′( x)
lim = lim
x→a g ( x) x →a g ′( x)
This statement is also true in the case of a limit as x →a+, x →a-,
x →+∞, or as x →-∞.

Example 9 Find the limits of the following functions:

x ln x
(a) lim (b) lim
x →+∞ e x x →+∞ x 2

Solutions
x ∞
(a) lim = ; we apply l’Hopital’s rule
x →+∞ e x ∞
x 1 1
lim x = lim x = = 0
x →+∞ e x →+∞ e ∞
ln x ∞
(b) lim 2 = ; apply l’Hopital’s rule
x →+∞ x ∞

ln x 1/ x 1 1
lim = lim = lim = =0
x →+∞ x 2 x →+∞ 2 x x →+∞ 2 x 2 ∞

Reminder: l’Hopital’s rule can only be applied on indeterminate

forms of 0/0 or ∞/∞.

17
Limits of other indeterminate forms
When you encounter other indeterminate forms, rewrite the
expression until the required form (either 0/0 or ∞/∞) is achieved
before applying l’Hopital’s rule.

Example 10
⎛1 1 ⎞
(c) lim (1 + x )
1/ x
(a) lim+ x ln x (b) lim+ ⎜ − ⎟
x →0 x →0⎝ x sin x ⎠ x →0

Solution

(a) lim+ x ln x = 0 ⋅ ∞ - indeterminate form. Change or rewrite to

x →0
either 0/0 or ∞/∞ form.
ln x ∞
lim+ x ln x = lim+ = ; now the rule can be used.
x →0 x →0 1/ x ∞
Applying the rule:
ln x 1/ x
lim+ x ln x = lim+ = lim+ = lim+ (− x) = 0
x →0 x →0 1/ x x → 0 −1/ x 2
x →0

⎛1 1 ⎞
(b) lim+ ⎜ − ⎟ = ∞ − ∞ - indeterminate form. Change to
x →0 ⎝ x sin x ⎠
appropriate form.
⎛1 1 ⎞ ⎛ sin x − x ⎞ 0
lim+ ⎜ − ⎟ = lim ⎜ ⎟ = ; now we can use the
x →0 ⎝ x sin x ⎠ x→0+ ⎝ x sin x ⎠ 0
rule. Applying it:
⎛ sin x − x ⎞ ⎛ cos x − 1 ⎞ 0
lim+ ⎜ =
⎟ x →0+ ⎜
lim ⎟ = ; again the
x → 0 ⎝ x sin x ⎠ ⎝ x cos x + sin x ⎠ 0
indeterminate form. Apply the rule a second time:
⎛ cos x − 1 ⎞ ⎛ − sin x ⎞ 0
lim+ ⎜ =
⎟ x → 0+ ⎜
lim ⎟= =0
x → 0 ⎝ x cos x + sin x ⎠ ⎝ cos x − x sin x + cos x ⎠ 2

18
(c) lim (1 + x ) = 1∞ - indeterminate form. Rewrite to the
1/ x

x →0
appropriate form.

Let y = (1 + x )
1/ x

Take the natural logarithm of both sides:

1 ln( x + 1)
ln y = ln (1 + x )
1/ x
= ln(1 + x) =
x x
ln( x + 1) 0
lim ln y = lim =
x →0 x →0 x 0
Apply l’Hopital’s rule:
ln( x + 1) 1/( x + 1) 1
lim ln y = lim = = =1
x →0 x →0 x 1 1

So, we have lim ln y = 1, exponentiate both sides of the equations:

x →0
lim ln y
e x→0 = e1
lim ln y
e x→0 = lim eln y = lim y
x →0 x →0

∴ lim y = lim(1 = x) 1/ x
=e
x →0

19