Auberle 1

Riemann Sums
To be able to compute a definite integral, while infinitely useful, is not always attainable
in real life situations. Using data from a table, for example, makes it impossible to accurately
find the integral without doing more complex calculations to first find a regression of the
function. There are, however, other ways to estimate the integral of data.
Riemann Sums, for example, are one way to estimate an integral. Riemann sums create a
way to can devise an approximate integral of a function by using rectangles. The size of the
rectangles depend on the type of Riemann sum: left, right, midpoint, upper, or lower. The left
Riemann sum is made of rectangles of a height that is the y-value of the function at the left
boundary of the interval, the right sum at the right boundary. The midpoint sum is made up of
rectangles where the height is at the center of the interval, the upper at the largest y-value in the
interval and the lower at the smallest y-value in the interval. These five types are illustrated
below on the function
f(x)=(x-3)4+2(x-3)3-4(x-3)+5.

Auberle 2

For the left sum, the area would equal f(1)(2)+f(3)(2), which is 36 units. The right sum
would equal f(3)(2)+f(5)(2), or 68 units, and the midpoint sum would be f(2)(2)+f(4)(2), or 24
units. For the lower sum, the minimum value for each interval would have to be calculated. In
this case, the minimum values for the intervals fall at f(3) and f(3.65), so the calculation would
be f(3)(2)+f(3.65)(2), which equals 16.24 units. The upper sum consists of the highest values in
the intervals, which fall at f(1) and f(5), so the sum would be f(1)(2)+f(5)(2), or 84 units. These

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sums are all widely different, and are therefore inaccurate, but there are better, more accurate
ways to estimate the integral.
The Trapezoid Rule is similar to Riemann sums in that both methods estimate the area
under a function, but the Trapezoid Rule, instead of using rectangles, uses trapezoids. The bases
of the trapezoid are made up of the y-values at the boundaries of each interval, as shown below.

Using the area of a trapezoid, the estimated integral here would be

1
[ ( f ( 1 ) + f (2 )) + ( f ( 2 ) +f ( 3 ) ) + ( f ( 3 ) + f ( 4 ) ) +( f (4)+ f (5))]
2

which equals 38 units.

Simpsons rule, another method of estimating an integral, is much more accurate than the
Trapezoid Rule or Riemann Sums, but only in certain circumstances. Simpsons Rule is most
effective when used with parabolic functions instead of linear functions. Simpsons Rule works
by taking three points on a curve, represented through the endpoints of two intervals and their
combined midpoint, and creating a parabola through that point. The formula to find these

Auberle 4

parabolas is

x
( y 0 + 4 y 1+ 2 y 2 + 4 y 3+ 2 y 4 ++ 4 y n1+ y n) where x is equal to the
3

difference between the endpoints divided by the number of intervals. By using this formula, the

integral of the function above would be

1
( f (1)+ 4 ( f ( 2 ) ) +2 ( f ( 3 ) ) + 4 ( f ( 4 ) ) + f (5)) which
3

equals 33.3 units.

The true integral, in this case, is 32.8 units. Out of the estimates, the most accurate for the
function was Simpsons Rule. This is because the function is parabolic, and therefore best
estimated by the parabolic estimation provided by Simpsons Rule.
Another method of finding the integral of a function is the Mean Value Theorem for

Integrals. This states that, if there is a value f(c1) that equals

1
f ( x ) dx , then a rectangle
ba a

with a height f(c) has the same area as that of the function between a and b. For example, for the
function above using two intervals, the equation for the first interval would be f(c2)=

1
[( x3 )4 +2 ( x3 )34 ( x3 ) +5]dx , so f(c) would equal 8.2 units. For the second

31 1

interval, the equation would be

8.2 units.

1
[ ( x 3 )4 +2 ( x3 )34 ( x3 )+5 ]dx , which also equals

53 3

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For this function, the sum using the mean value theorem would be f(c1)(2)+f(c2)(2),
which equals 32.8 units.
Another example of these estimations can be displayed through the following problem.
The volume of a spherical balloon expands as the air inside is heated. The radius of the balloon,
in feet, is modeled by a function r of time t, where t is measured in seconds. For 0<t<12, the
graph is concave down. The table below gives values for the rate of change, r(t), of the radius of
the balloon over time.
t (seconds)
r(t) (ft/sec)

0
5.7

1
4.0

4
2.0

7
1.4

11
0.5

12
0.4

When t=7, the radius of the balloon is 32 feet. Estimate the radius of the balloon at t=7.2,
and tell if the estimate is greater or less than the true value, then use a right Riemann sum to
estimate the integral of the function and tell whether the estimation is greater or less than the true
value.
First the problem asks to find the radius at t=7.2. To do this the best method would be to
use a tangential line approximation at the given value of t=7. Since the slope of the function is

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given by the derivative in the table as 1.4 and the radius at t=7 as 32 feet, an estimate of the
radius can be found by creating a line with the slope of 1.4 that passes through the value of 32
feet. The line, exemplified by a point-slope form equation as (y-32)=1.4(x-7), can be simplified
to y=1.4x+22.2. Plugging in 7.2 for x, the value received is 32.28 feet. This value is an
overestimate of the true value because the function is concave down for the interval, and
therefore the line is less concave down than the function since it is not concave up or down, and
therefore would give an estimate higher than that of the function.
The next part of the question asks to find the rate of change of change of the volume of

the balloon at t=7. Knowing that the volume of a sphere is

4 3
r , the rate of change of the
3

volume can be found by replacing the r in the equation with r(t), the rate of change of the radius.

Doing this produces a new equation of

4
3
1.4 , which is equal to 11.49 cubic feet per
3

second.
Next is to use a right Riemann sum to estimate the integral using the intervals given by
the table. As illustrated above, the right Riemann sum is calculated using the right side of each
interval. In this case, it would be calculated as f(1)(1)+f(4)(3)+f(7)(3)+f(11)(4)+f(12)(1), which
equals 16.6 feet. This sum is representative of the total change in the radius of the balloon over
the interval. It is an overestimate, since, as the graph is concave down, the values on the left side
of the interval are less than that on the right, so the rectangles are all taller than the values in the
function.

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Real life isnt always perfect numbers, and while definite integrals are useful, they are not
always attainable. Estimations such as the ones detailed above can help to provide answers with
limited information, making them a perfect fit for the mess that is reality.