15 Application of Derivative

Objective of the Activity

To understand the concept of local maxima and local minima and point of inflexion
for a given function.

Materials Required
✧✧ A drawing board
✧✧ A white paper sheet
✧✧ Board pins
✧✧ Wires
✧✧ Glue
✧✧ Pencil
✧✧ Scale

Logical Steps of the Activity

1. Take a drawing board of convenient size and paste a white paper on it.

2. Take two pieces of wires of convenient lengths and fix them on the drawing board which
are bisected at point o. One is horizontal (XoX‘) is called x-axis and one is vertical (YoY‘) is
called y-axis.

3. Take another wire of suitable length and bend it in the shape of curve. (The curve should be
make at least four points). Fix this curved wire on the white paper pasted on the drawing
sheet as shown in the figure.

4. Take four more wire of suitable lengths and fix them at the points A, B, C, D and P. Which
are represents the tangents of the curves at points A, B, C, D which are parallel to the x-axis.

5. The slope of tangents at these points are zero i.e., the value of first derivative of a function
is zero at all these points and the tangent at point P intersect the curve.

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Observation
dy
1. We see from the given figure the sign of the slope of the tangent   first derivative at
 dx 
a point on the given curve to the immediate left of A is negative and sign of the slope of
dy
tangent   first derivative at a point on the curve to the immediate right of A is positive.
 dx 
That means at the point A sign of the first derivative is changes from negative to positive.
So the point A is the point of local minima.

dy
2. Now similarly we observe that the slope of tangent   (first derivative) at point B. When
 dx 
we move from just left to just right is changes from negative to +ve. Therefore we can say
the point B is also a point of local minima.

dy
3. The slope of tangent   (first derivative) at point on the curve the immediate left of c
 dx 
 dy 
is +ve and the sign of the slope the tangent   first derivative at a point on the curve is
 dx 

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 immediate right of c is –ve. That means the sign of the first derivative of a given function is
changes from +ve to –ve. Thus the point c is the point of local maxima.

4. Similarly the sign of first derivative is also changes from the +ve to –ve thus the point D is
also point of local maxima.

5. But when we move from just left to just right at point P there is no change in the sign of the
 dy 
first derivative   of the given function. Thus the point P is the point of inflexion.
 dx 

Result
Hence from the above discussion we conclude that point A and B are the points of local minima
and the points C and D are the points of local maxima and the point P is neither minima nor
maxima it is a point of inflexion.

Application

1. This activity is helpful to find the points of local minima and local maxima and point of
inflexion for the given curve.
2. The concept of maxima and minima is useful in daily life problems for constructing of
packages of maximum and minimum capacity. Cost and profit maximum and minimum.

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16 Application of Derivative

Objective of the Activity

To understand the concepts of absolute maximum and minimum values of a function
in a given closed interval through its graph.

Materials Required
✧✧ A drawing board required size
✧✧ White paper sheet
✧✧ Wire
✧✧ Glue
✧✧ Pencil
✧✧ Scale

Logical Steps of the Activity

1. Take a drawing board of convenient size and paste a white paper on it.

2. Take two pieces of wires of convenient lengths and fix them on the drawing board which
are bisected at point o. One is horizontal (XoX‘) is called x-axis and one is vertical (YoY‘) is
called y-axis.

3. Take another wire of suitable length and bend it in the shape of curve. Fix this curved wire
on the white paper pasted on the drawing sheet as shown in the figure.

4. Let the given function f(x) = 4x4 – 17x2 + 18 in the interval [–2, 2].

5. We take different values of x in the given interval [–2, 2] and find the value of f(x) and form
the ordered pair (x, f(x)).

6. Plot the graph of the given function (with the help of ordered pair) by free hand curve.

x 0 ±.5 ±1.25 ±.127 ±2

f(x) 0 6 –1.55 –1.56 2.1

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Observations
1. Now through the graph we observe or find the maximum value of given function f(x) on
the given interval [–2, 2]

2. The absolute maximum value of the given function f(x) is 21 at x =± 2.

The absolute minimum value of the function f(x) = –1.56 at x = 1.27.

Application

This activity is helpful to understand the concept of absolute maxima and absolute minima
by using the graph.

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