Module 7

Functions

Introduction
A function, loosely, can be considered as a machine or operator, that will take an input
denoted x, do something to that input, and based on what the input is, produce an
output denoted f(x).

Input → Function → Output

The variable x is the most used input into the function. Often the inputs are real
numbers. Think of the notation f as the function’s name. Suppose our function is f(x)
= x + 5. We can think of this equation as the rule that defines the function f. If the
value of x is 2, i.e., our input for the function is 2, then we are looking for f(2). In this
case, f(2) = 2 + 5 = 7. If our input is 3, our function will output f(3) = 3 + 5 = 8. You
see that taking some input numbers, our functions would output another set of
numbers.

Functions are quite useful in describing a quantity in terms of other quantities. For
example, the distance covered by a moving car depends on the speed of the car and
the time it has traveled.

Learning Outcomes
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
1. Describe the different type of functions based on their properties;
2. Differentiate the types of functions based on their properties;
Functions

3. Differentiate between deterministic and probabilistic/stochastic models; and,

1.0 What is a function?

Activity 1. Video Viewing. (12 minutes)

You can watch the short videos “What is a function?” for a quick review of elementary
concepts in the study of functions.

1. What is a Function? (7:46), uploaded by Dr. Patricia Edmiston, at

https://m.youtube.com
2. What is a Function? (4:00), uploaded by Erin M. Lennon, Study.com at
https://m.youtube

To formally define the concept of functions, we first define what is a relation. Recall
that X x Y = {(x,y)| x in X and y in Y}, called the Cartesian product of two sets X and
Y. This is a set composed of ordered pairs. A relation R from X to Y is a non-empty
subset of X x Y.

Example 1.1 Consider a set X = {1,2,3} and Y = {5,6}. Then the Cartesian product X
x Y={(1,5), (2,5), (3,5), (1,6), (2,6), (3,6)}. A example of a relation R from X to Y is the
set {(1,5), (2,5), (1,6), (2,6)}. Another is the set {(1,5) (2,5), (3,5)}.
A relation from X to Y can be viewed as an association of elements of X to those
elements of Y.

A function f from X to Y, denoted by f: X → Y, is a relation from X to Y such that every

x in X, there is a unique element y in Y such that (x, y) in f. Equivalently, it is an
association of elements such that each element x in X is associated with exactly one
element y in Y. Here, X is called the domain of f and Y is called the co-domain.

Activity 2. Function or not? (5 minutes)

1. R1 = { (1,5), (2,5), (1,6), (2,6) }

2. R2 = { (1,5) (2,5), (3,5) }.
3. R3 = { (x,y) | x = y2, where x and y are real numbers}

2.0 Types of Functions

Here are some basic types of functions and their graphs:

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1. Let c be any real number. Then f(x) = c is called the constant function.

2. Let m and b be real numbers with m nonzero. Then function f(x) = mx +b is

called a linear function.

3. Let a, b and c be real numbers with a nonzero. Then the function f(x) = ax2 +
bx + c is called quadratic function.

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4. Let ao, a1, …, an be real numbers with an nonzero. Then the function f(x) = anxn
+ an-1xn-1 +…+ a1x + a0 is called a polynomial (of degree n) function.

5. Let P and Q be polynomial functions in x with Q not equal to 0. Then the

𝑃(𝑥)
function 𝑓 (𝑥 ) = 𝑄(𝑥) is called a rational function.

6. If a function involves a radical expression then it is called a radical function.

7. let b > 0 with b not equal to 1. Then the function f(x) = bx is called an
exponential function with b. If b = e = 2.7182… (an irrational number), then
f(x) = ex is called the natural exponential function.

8. Let b be a real number such that b is positive and b not equal to 1. Then the
function f(x) = logbx is called the logarithmic function to the base b. If b = e
(Euler number), that is, f(x) = logex is called the natural logarithmic function.

3.0 Linear versus Exponential Growth

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Functions

Let us start with a tale from long ago. A king wanted to buy a piece of land from a
neighboring kingdom. He offered the land owner two options for paying the land.
● Option 1: He would pay 1 million gold coins everyday for 64 days.
● Option 2: He would pay 1 gold coin the first day, 2 gold coins the second day,
4 gold coins the third day, and so on, doubling the gold coins until the 64th day.
If you were the seller, which option would you choose? Well, the obvious choice is to
pick the option that would pay more. So let’s calculate what would be obtained using
the two options.
For option 1, the total payment would be
1,000,000 + 1,000,000 + . . . + 1,000,000 (64 times) = 64,000,000 gold coins.
For option 2, the total payment would be
1 + 2 + 4 + 8 + . . . + 262 + 263 gold coins.
Well, this sum of powers of two could be added and it would total
1 + 2 + 4 + 8 + … + 262 + 263 = 18,446,744,073,709,551,615.

Linear functions, which have the form y = ax+b and

exponential functions, such as y = bx describe very
different behaviours. Specifically, if b > 0, the
exponential function grows much faster as x
becomes large. In the table below are comparisons
of values of the linear function y = 2x, and
exponential functions y = 2x and y = 10x. There are
many quantities that grow exponentially, such as
populations.

x y = 2x y = 2x y = 10x
0 0 1 1
1 2 2 10
2 4 4 100
3 6 8 1000
4 8 16 10000
5 10 32 100000
6 12 64 1000000
7 14 128 10000000
8 16 256 100000000
9 18 512 1000000000
10 20 1024 10000000000
4.0 Deterministic, Probabilistic / Stochastic Behavior
Functions are used to describe a quantity in terms of another. For instance, the train
fare or the bus fare depends on distance travelled or the cost production is a function
of the quantity on raw material/s used or the interest earned depends on the rate of
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interest and the length of investment period. Thus, functions are also used to describe
models of behavior. If the behavior is said to be an inevitable consequence of
antecedent sufficient causes, then we have a deterministic model. Here, the output
is fully determined by the parameter values and the initial conditions. Now, if the
behavior has that property of different chances of occurrence, we have a probabilistic
or stochastic model. This model possesses some inherent randomness. The same
set of parameter values and initial conditions will lead to an ensemble of different
outputs.

Activity 3. Deterministic or Stochastic? (5 minutes)

1. Stock market
2. Patient’s EKG, EEG, blood pressure or temperature
3. Rolling a pair of dice
4. Calculating your savings account balance will be in a month
5. Typhoons

5.0 A Peek into Calculus

Calculus is the branch of mathematics that studies continuous change. These
changes can be observed in the behaviour of functions. Physical phenomena can
often be modelled by functions or a set of function that describe various states of the
function at a given time. Because of this, calculus has become an invaluable tool not
just in mathematics, but also in other disciplines.

The main ideas of the calculus took a long time to

be developed. The ancient Greeks studied
problems that today are routinely solved using
calculus. These problems include the
determination of areas (of curved figures),
volumes of pyramids and other objects, among
others. They obtained successive
approximations of these areas or volumes using
areas or volumes that could be easily calculated.

For instance, to calculate the area of a circle, they

inscribed polygons of increasing number of sides,
starting with a square, then a pentagon, then a
hexagon, and so on. Each succeeding figure
would have an area that is closer to the actual area of the circle. By taking polygons
whose number of sides n increase indefinitely, this method (called the Method of
Exhaustion) is a forerunner to the modern concept of taking the limit as n approaches
infinity.

In the second half of the 17th century, the calculus as an area of mathematics was
developed (independently) by Sir Isaac Newton in England and Gottfried Leibniz in
Germany.
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Functions

Differential calculus is concerned with the study of the rates at which quantities
change. It is one of the two traditional divisions of calculus, the other being integral
calculus, the study of the area beneath a curve.

The primary objects of study in differential calculus are the derivative of a function,
related notions such as the differential, and their applications. The derivative of a
function at a chosen input value describes the rate of change of the function near that
input value. The process of finding a derivative is called differentiation.

Geometrically, the derivative at a point

is the slope of the tangent line to the
graph of the function at that point,
provided that the derivative exists and
is defined at that point. For a real-
valued function of a single real
variable, the derivative of a function at
a point generally determines the best
linear approximation to the function at
that point.

Differential calculus and integral

calculus are connected by the
Fundamental Theorem of Calculus, which states that differentiation is the reverse
process to integration.

Differentiation has applications to nearly all quantitative disciplines. For example, in

physics, the derivative of the displacement of a moving body with respect to time is
the velocity of the body, and the derivative of velocity with respect to time is
acceleration. The derivative of the momentum of a body equals the force applied to
the body; rearranging this derivative statement leads to the famous F = ma equation
associated with Newton's second law of motion. The reaction rate of a chemical
reaction is a derivative.

Derivatives are frequently used to find the maxima and minima of a function.
Equations involving derivatives are called differential equations and are fundamental
in describing natural phenomena.

Module 10 contains more details of the calculus and its applications.

Activity 4. Video Viewing. (35 minutes)

The following short videos give nice introductions to the history and development of
the calculus:

1. “Introduction to Calculus: The Greeks, Newton and Leibniz” (8:40), Professor

Dave Explains, at https://m.youtube.com
2. “The Birth of Calculus (1986)” (24:44), a BBC production that can be accessed
at: https://m.youtube.com

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Activity 5. Speed Cameras. (20 minutes)

Many locations around the world are now using traffic enforcement cameras –
which include cameras and vehicle-monitoring devices to detect and identify vehicles
disobeying speed limits. Speed Cameras are used to identify vehicles traveling over
the legal speed limit. Cameras are installed on bridges above traffic lanes, for
example, in two different locations along a roadway. Each camera automatically
captures an image of the vehicle and a computer identifies and recognizes the license
plate of the passing vehicle. The pair of images taken of a single vehicle are matched
by the license plate and speed is calculated.

The picture below is a sample pair of such images. The two cameras that took
these images are located at a distance of 0.3 km apart on this particular roadway.
The times printed in the upper left hand corner of each image are difficult to read.
They are: (1) 12:03:52 and (2) 12:04:01.

Questions:

1. How fast is the car pictured above traveling? Explain your reasoning.
2. When is the car traveling at that speed?
3. Is it fair to give the driver of this car a traffic ticket for speeding if the speed you
calculated exceeds the speed limit? Why or why not?

References
1. Smith, K.J., The Nature of Mathematics, Cengage Learning, 2015.
2. https://www.khanacademy.org/math/algebra/algebra-functions/evaluating-
functions/v/what-is-a-function
3. http://www-groups.dcs.st-
and.ac.uk/~history/HistTopics/The_rise_of_calculus.html
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4. http://www.iblcalculus.com/home/in-class-activities-and-activity-guides/ca-ii1-
average-v-instantaneous-speed
5. Math 17 Modules, Institute of Mathematics, College of Science, UP Diliman, 2012.

Photo Credits:
● Cover photo:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3b/Function_machi
ne2.svg/1200px-Function_machine2.svg.png
● A peek of calculus: http://www-groups.dcs.st-
and.ac.uk/~history/HistTopics/The_rise_of_calculus.html

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