Scribd
Upload
125 views6 pages

Jump Discontinuities

The document discusses jump discontinuities in functions. It provides examples of functions and asks the reader to identify where jump discontinuities occur. A jump discontinuity occurs when the left-hand and right-hand limits of a function exist but are not equal at a single point. The solutions identify that a jump discontinuity occurs at x=0 for the first function and at x=1 for the second function presented.

Uploaded by

jeffconnors
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
125 views6 pages

Jump Discontinuities

The document discusses jump discontinuities in functions. It provides examples of functions and asks the reader to identify where jump discontinuities occur. A jump discontinuity occurs when the left-hand and right-hand limits of a function exist but are not equal at a single point. The solutions identify that a jump discontinuity occurs at x=0 for the first function and at x=1 for the second function presented.

Uploaded by

jeffconnors
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 6

Topic: Jump discontinuities

Question: Which of the following statements is true?

Answer choices:

A A jump discontinuity occurs when the right-hand limit and left-hand


limit of a function are different but they both exist.

B A jump discontinuity occurs when the right-hand limit and left-hand


limit of a function are different but only one exists.

C A jump discontinuity occurs when the right-hand limit and left-hand


limit of a function do not exist.

D A jump discontinuity occurs when the right-hand limit and left-hand


limit of a function are the same and they both exist.

63
Solution: A

A jump discontinuity occurs when the right-hand limit and left-hand limit of
a function both exist, but have different values.

64
Topic: Jump discontinuities

Question: Choose the correct description of the jump discontinuity.


x
f (x) =
|x|

Answer choices:

A The function has a jump discontinuity at x = 1.

B The function has a jump discontinuity at x = − 1.

C The function has a jump discontinuity at x = ∞.

D The function has a jump discontinuity at x = 0.

65
Solution: D

To solve for the discontinuities of the function, start by evaluating the


right-hand and left-hand limits as x approaches 0. We need to use 0 for the
limit because the function does not exist when x = 0.

For the right-hand limit, we’ll use 3, 2 and 1.

x 3 3
lim+ = = =1
x→0 |x| |3| 3

x 2 2
lim+ = = =1
x→0 |x| |2| 2

x 1 1
lim+ = = =1
x→0 |x| |1| 1

For the left-hand limit, we’ll use −3, −2 and −1.

x −3 −3
lim− = = =−1
x→0 |x| | − 3| 3

x −2 −2
lim = = =−1
x→0− | x | | − 2| 2

x −1 −1
lim = = =−1
x→0− | x | | − 1| 1

We can see that both one-sided limits exist. The right-hand limit is 1 and
the left-hand limit is −1. Because both limits exist but aren’t equal to each
other, there’s a jump discontinuity at 0.

66
Topic: Jump discontinuities

Question: Choose the correct description of the jump discontinuity.

x−1
f (x) =
|x − 1|

Answer choices:

A The function has a jump discontinuity at x = − 1.

B The function has a jump discontinuity at x = 1.

C The function has a jump discontinuity at x = ∞.

D The function has a jump discontinuity at x = 0.

67
Solution: B

To solve for the discontinuities of the function, start by evaluating the


right-hand and left-hand limits as x approaches 1. We need to use 1 for the
limit because the function does not exist when x = 1.

For the right-hand limit, we’ll use 4, 3 and 2.

x−1 (4) − 1 3 3
lim+ = = = =1
x→1 |x − 1| | (4) − 1 | |3| 3

x−1 (3) − 1 2 2
lim+ = = = =1
x→1 |x − 1| | (3) − 1 | |2| 2

x−1 (2) − 1 1 1
lim+ = = = =1
x→1 |x − 1| | (2) − 1 | |1| 1

For the left-hand limit, we’ll use −2, −1 and 0.

x−1 (−2) − 1 −3 −3
lim− = = = =−1
x→1 |x − 1| | (−2) − 1 | | − 3| 3

x−1 (−1) − 1 −2 −2
lim = = = =−1
x→1− | x − 1 | | (−1) − 1 | | − 2| 2

x−1 (0) − 1 −1 −1
lim = = = =−1
x→1− | x − 1 | | (0) − 1 | | − 1| 1

We can see that both one-sided limits exist. The right-hand limit is 1 and
the left-hand limit is −1. Because both limits exist but aren’t equal to each
other, there’s a jump discontinuity at −1.

68

You might also like