Chapter 3

Limits and Continuity

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THE LIMIT PROCESS (AN INTUITIVE INTRODUCTION)
We could begin by saying that limits are important in calculus, but that would be a
major underestimation. Without limits, calculus would not exist. Every single notion
of calculus is a limit in one sense or another.

For example:
What is the slope of a curve? It is
the limit of slopes of secant lines.

What is the length of a curve? It is

the limit of the lengths of polygonal
paths inscribed in the curve.

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 Cont…
What is the area of a region bounded by a curve? It is the limit of the sum of areas
of approximating rectangles.

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 Cont …
The Idea of a Limit
We start with a number c and a function f defined at all numbers x near c but not
necessarily at c itself. In any case, whether or not f is defined at c and, if so, how is totally
irrelevant.
Now let L be some real number. We say that the limit of f (x) as x tends to c is L and write

lim f
x c
 x  L

provided that (roughly speaking)as x approaches c, f(x) approaches L

or (somewhat more precisely) provided that f (x) is close to L for all x ≠ c
which are close to c.

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Example
Let f(x) = 4x + 5 and take c = 2. As x approaches 2,
4x approaches 8 and 4x + 5 approaches 8 + 5 = 13.
We conclude that

lim f ( x)  13.
x2

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Example
Let
f  x   1  x and take c = −8.
As x approaches −8, 1 − x approaches 9 and 1  x approaches 3. We conclude
that
lim f  x   3
x 8

If for that same function we try to calculate

lim f  x 
x 2

we run into a problem. The function f  x   1  x is defined only for x ≤ 1. It

is therefore not defined for x near 2, and the idea of taking the limit as x
approaches 2 makes no sense at all:

lim f  x  does not exist.

x 2

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 Example

x3  2 x  4 5
lim  .
x 3 x 1
2
2

First we work the numerator: as x approaches 3, x3 approaches 27, −2x approaches –6, and
x3 – 2x + 4 approaches 27 – 6 + 4 = 25. Now for the denominator: as x approaches 3, x2 +
1 approaches 10. The quotient approaches 25/10 = 5/2

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The curve below represents the graph of a function f. The number c is on the
x-axis and the limit L is on the y-axis. As x approaches c along the
x-axis, f (x) approaches L along the y-axis.

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Example

x3 – 8
lim = 12.
x→2
x–2
x3 – 8
The function f(x) = is undefined at x = 2. But, as we said before, that
x–2
doesn’t matter. For all x ≠ 2,

x3 – 8 (x – 2)(x2 + 2x +4)
= = x2 + 2x +4.
x–2 x–2
Therefore,

x3 – 8
lim = lim (x2 + 2x + 4) = 12.
x→2 x→2
x–2

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Example
3x – 4, x ≠ 0
If f(x) = then lim f(x) = –4.
10, x ≠ 0, x→0

It does not matter that f(0) = 10. For x ≠ 0, and thus for all x near 0,
f(x) = 3x – 4 and therefore lim f(x) = lim (3x – 4) = –4.
x→0 x→0

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Basic Limit Theorems

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Examples
lim (5x2 – 12x + 2) = 5(1)2 – 12(1) + 2 = –5,
x→1
lim (14x5 – 7x2 + 2x + 8) = 14(0)5 – 7(0)2 + 2(0) + 8 = 8
x→0

lim (2x3 + x2 – 2x – 3) = 2(–1)3 + (–1)2 – 2(–1) – 3 = –2.

x→–1

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 One-Sided Limits
Numbers x near c fall into two natural categories: those that lie to the left of c and those
that lie to the right of c. We write

lim f  x   L [The left-hand limit of f(x) as x tends to c is L.]

x c
to indicate that as x approaches c from the left, f(x) approaches L. We write

lim f  x   L [The right-hand limit of f(x) as x tends to c is L.]

x c

to indicate that as x approaches c from the right, f(x) approaches L

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One-sided limits give us a simple way of determining whether or not a (two-sided)
limit exists:

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Example
Take the function indicated in Figure As x approaches 5 from the left, f (x)
approaches 2; therefore

lim f  x   2
x  5

As x approaches 5 from the right, f (x) approaches 4; therefore

lim f  x   4
x  5

The full limit, does not exist: consideration of x < 5 would force the limit to be 2, but
consideration of x > 5 would force the limit to be 4.

For a full limit to exist, both one-sided limits have to exist and they have to be equal.

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Example For the function f indicated in figure,

lim  f  x   5 and lim  f  x   5

x  2  x  2 

In this case
lim f  x   5
x 2

It does not matter that f (−2) = 3.

Examining the graph of f near x = 4, we find that

lim f  x   7 whereas lim f  x   2

x  4 x  4

Since these one-sided limits are different,

lim f  x  does not exist.

x 4

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Example
Set f ( x) . x / x Note that f(x) = 1 for x ＞ 0, and f(x) = −1 for x ＜ 0:

1, if x ＞ 0
f(x) =
−1, if x ＜ 0.
Let’s try to apply the limit process at different numbers c.
If c ＜ 0, then for all x sufficiently close to c,
x ＜ 0 and f(x) = −1. It follows that for c ＜ 0
lim f(x) = lim (−1) = −1
x→c x→c

If c ＞ 0, then for all x sufficiently close to c, x ＞ 0 and f(x) = 1. It follows that

for c ＜ 0
lim f(x) = lim (1) = 1
x→c x→c

However, the function has no limit as x tends to 0:

lim f(x) = −1 but lim f(x) = 1.
x→ 0- x → 0+

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Example
Let f(x) = (sin x)/x. If we try to evaluate f at 0, we get the meaningless ratio 0/0;
f is not defined at x = 0. However, f is defined for all x ≠ 0, and so we can
consider sin x
lim .
x→0 x

We select numbers that approach 0 closely from the left and numbers that
approach 0 closely from the right. Using a calculator, we evaluate f at these
numbers. The results are tabulated in Table 2.1.1.

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 These calculations suggest that

sin x sin x
lim 1 and lim 1
x 0 x x 0 x

and therefore that

sin x
lim  1.
x 0 x
The graph of f, shown in Figure above
supports this conclusion.

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Example
For each number c

Example
For each real number c

Example
For each constant k

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 Limits at Infinity
This section discusses the “end behavior” of a
function on an infinite interval. Consider the graph
of as shown in Figure 3.32.

Graphically, you can see that the values of

f(x) appear to approach 3 as x increases
without bound or decreases without bound.
You can come to the same conclusions
numerically, as shown in the table.

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 Horizontal Asymptotes

Find the limit:

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• Find the limit:

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Find each limit.

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 Finite Limits
f(x) closed to infinite as x approaches finite
and write

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 Continuity

If the domain of f contains an interval (c − p, c + p), then f can fail to be

continuous at c for only one of two reasons: either
(i) f has a limit as x tends to c, but lim f  x   f  c  , or
x c
(ii) f has no limit as x tends to c.
In case (i) the number c is called a removable discontinuity. The discontinuity can
be removed by redefining f at c. If the limit is L, redefine f at c to be L.
In case (ii) the number c is called an essential discontinuity. You can change the
value of f at a billion points in any way you like. The discontinuity will remain.
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 Continuity
The functions shown have essential discontinuities at c. The discontinuity in Figure 2.4.2 is,
for obvious reasons, called a jump discontinuity.

The functions of Figure 2.4.3 have infinite discontinuities.

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Continuity

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 Continuity
Example The function

x3  x
F  x  3 x  2 4
x  5x  6

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 Continuity

Example
x2 + 1
The function F(x) = is continuous at all numbers greater than 3. To see this,
x–3

note that F = f g, where

x2 + 1
f ( x)  x and g(x) = .
x–3

Now, take any c ＞ 3. Since g is a rational function and g is defined at c, g is

continuous at c. Also, since g(c) is positive and f is continuous at each positive number,
f is continuous at g(c).

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Continuity

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 Continuity

Example Determine the discontinuities, if any, of the following function:

f(x) = 2x + 1, x≦0
1, 0＜x≦1
x2 + 1, x ＞ 1.

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 Continuity
Continuity on Intervals
A function f is said to be continuous on an interval if it is continuous at each interior
point of the interval and one-sidedly continuous at whatever endpoints the interval may
contain.
For example:
(i) The function
f  x   1  x2
is continuous on [−1, 1] because it is continuous at each point of (−1, 1),
continuous from the right at −1, and continuous from the left at 1.
The graph of the function is the semicircle.
(ii) The function
1
f  x 
1  x2
is continuous on (−1, 1) because it is continuous at each point of (−1, 1). It is not
continuous on [−1, 1) because it is not continuous from the right at −1. It is not
continuous on (−1, 1] because it is not continuous from the left at 1.
(iii) The function graphed in Figure 2.4.8 is continuous on (−∞, 1] and continuous on
(1,∞). It is not continuous on [1,∞) because it is not continuous from the right at 1.
(iv) Polynomials, being everywhere continuous, are continuous on (−∞,∞).

Continuous functions have special properties not shared by other functions.

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