Preface

Here are my online notes for my Calculus I course that I teach here at Lamar University. Despite
the fact that these are my class notes, they should be accessible to anyone wanting to learn
Calculus I or needing a refresher in some of the early topics in calculus.

Ive tried to make these notes as self contained as possible and so all the information needed to
read through them is either from an Algebra or Trig class or contained in other sections of the
notes.

Here are a couple of warnings to my students who may be here to get a copy of what happened on
a day that you missed.

1. Because I wanted to make this a fairly complete set of notes for anyone wanting to learn
calculus I have included some material that I do not usually have time to cover in class
and because this changes from semester to semester it is not noted here. You will need to
find one of your fellow class mates to see if there is something in these notes that wasnt
covered in class.

2. Because I want these notes to provide some more examples for you to read through, I
dont always work the same problems in class as those given in the notes. Likewise, even
if I do work some of the problems in here I may work fewer problems in class than are
presented here.

3. Sometimes questions in class will lead down paths that are not covered here. I try to
anticipate as many of the questions as possible when writing these up, but the reality is
that I cant anticipate all the questions. Sometimes a very good question gets asked in
class that leads to insights that Ive not included here. You should always talk to
someone who was in class on the day you missed and compare these notes to their notes
and see what the differences are.

4. This is somewhat related to the previous three items, but is important enough to merit its
own item. THESE NOTES ARE NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR ATTENDING CLASS!!
Using these notes as a substitute for class is liable to get you in trouble. As already noted
not everything in these notes is covered in class and often material or insights not in these
notes is covered in class.
 Calculus I

Proof of Various Limit Properties

In this section we are going to prove some of the basic properties and facts about limits that we
saw in the Limits chapter. Before proceeding with any of the proofs we should note that many of
the proofs use the precise definition of the limit and it is assumed that not only have you read
that section but that you have a fairly good feel for doing that kind of proof. If youre not very
comfortable using the definition of the limit to prove limits youll find many of the proofs in this
section difficult to follow.

The proofs that well be doing here will not be quite as detailed as those in the precise definition
of the limit section. The proofs that we did in that section first did some work to get a guess for
the and then we verified the guess. The reality is that often the work to get the guess is not
shown and the guess for is just written down and then verified. For the proofs in this section
where a is actually chosen well do it that way. To make matters worse, in some of the proofs
in this section work very differently from those that were in the limit definition section.

So, with that out of the way, lets get to the proofs.

Limit Properties
In the Limit Properties section we gave several properties of limits. Well prove most of them
here. First, lets recall the properties here so we have them in front of us. Well also be making a
small change to the notation to make the proofs go a little easier. Here are the properties for
reference purposes.
Assume that lim f ( x ) = K and lim g ( x ) = L exist and that c is any constant. Then,
x a x a

1. lim cf ( x ) = c lim f ( x ) = cK
xa x a

2. lim f ( x ) g ( x ) = lim f ( x ) lim g ( x ) = K L

x a xa x a

3. lim f ( x ) g ( x ) = lim f ( x ) lim g ( x ) = KL

x a xa x a

lim f x
4. lim f ( x) = x a ( ) = K , provided L = lim g ( x) 0
xa g(x) lim g ( x ) L x a
x a

5. lim f ( x ) n = lim f (x)n=K n , where n is any real number

xa x a

6. lim n f(x )= n lim f ( x)

xa x a

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 Calculus I

7. lim c = c
x a

8. lim x = a
x a

9. lim x n = an
x a

Note that we added values (K, L, etc.) to each of the limits to make the proofs much easier. In
these proofs well be using the fact that we know lim f ( x ) = K and lim g ( x ) = L well use
x a x a

the definition of the limit to make a statement about f ( x ) K and g ( x ) L which will then
be used to prove what we actually want to prove. When you see these statements do not worry
too much about why we chose them as we did. The reason will become apparent once the proof
is done.

Also, were not going to be doing the proofs in the order they are written above. Some of the
proofs will be easier if weve got some of the others proved first.

Proof of 7
This is a very simple proof. To make the notation a little clearer lets define the function
f ( x ) = c then what were being asked to prove is that lim f ( x ) = c . So lets do that.
x a

Let > 0 and we need to show that we can find a > 0 so that
f(x)c < whenever 0 <x a <

The left inequality is trivially satisfied for any x however because we defined f ( x ) = c . So
simply choose > 0 to be any number you want (you generally cant do this with these proofs).
Then,
f(x)c=cc=0<

Proof of 1
There are several ways to prove this part. If you accept 3 And 7 then all you need to do is let
g ( x ) = c and then this is a direct result of 3 and 7. However, wed like to do a more
rigorous mathematical proof. So here is that proof.

First, note that if c = 0 then cf ( x) = 0 and so,

lim 0 f ( x)= lim0 = 0 = 0 f ( x)
xa x a

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 Calculus I

The limit evaluation is a special case of 7 (with c = 0 ) which we just proved Therefore we know
1 is true for c = 0 and so we can assume that c 0 for the remainder of this proof.

Let > 0 then because lim f ( x ) = K by the definition of the limit there is a 1 > 0 such that,
x a

f(x)K < whenever 0<xa <1
c

Now choose = 1 and we need to show that

cf ( x ) cK < whenever 0< xa <

and well be done. So, assume that 0 < x a < and then,

cf ( x ) cK = c f ( x ) K < c c=

Proof of 2
Note that well need something called the triangle inequality in this proof. The triangle
inequality states that,
a+ba+b
Heres the actual proof.
Well be doing this proof in two parts. First lets prove lim f ( x ) + g ( x ) = K + L .
x a

Let > 0 then because lim f ( x ) = K and lim g ( x ) = L there is a 1 > 0 and a 2 > 0 such
x a x a

that,

f(x)K < whenever 0<xa <1
2

g(x)L < whenever 0< xa<2
2

{ }
Now choose = min 1 , 2 . Then we need to show that

f ( x ) + g ( x ) ( K + L) < whenever 0 <x a <

Assume that 0 < x a < . We then have,

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 Calculus I

f ( x ) + g ( x ) ( K + L ) = ( f ( x ) K ) + ( g ( x ) L)
f(x)K +g(x)L by the triangle inequality
< +
2 2
=

In the third step we used the fact that, by our choice of , we also have 0 < x a < 1 and

0 < x a < 2 and so we can use the initial statements in our proof.

Next, we need to prove lim f ( x ) g ( x ) = K L . We could do a similar proof as we did

x a
above for the sum of two functions. However, we might as well take advantage of the fact that
weve proven this for a sum and that weve also proven 1.

lim f ( x ) g ( x ) = lim f ( x ) + ( 1) g ( x)
xa x a
= lim f ( x ) + lim (1) g ( x) by first part of 2.
xa x a
= lim f ( x ) + ( 1)lim g ( x) by 1.
xa x a

= K + ( 1) L
=KL

Proof of 3
This one is a little tricky. First, lets note that because lim f ( x ) = K and lim g ( x ) = L we can
x a x a

use 2 and 7 to prove the following two limits.

lim f ( x ) K = lim f ( x ) lim K = K K = 0
xa xa x a

lim g ( x ) L = lim g ( x ) lim L = L L = 0

xa xa x a

Now, let > 0 . Then there is a 1 > 0 and a 2 > 0 such that,

(f(x)K)0 < whenever 0 <xa <1

(g ( x ) L ) 0 < whenever 0< x a < 2

{ }
Choose = min 1 , 2 . If 0 < x a < we then get,

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 Calculus I

f(x)K g(x)L0 = f(x)K g(x)L

<
=
So, weve managed to prove that,
lim f ( x ) K g ( x ) L = 0

x a
This apparently has nothing to do with what we actually want to prove, but as youll see in a bit it
is needed.

Before launching into the actual proof of 3 lets do a little Algebra. First, expand the following
product.
f ( x ) K g ( x ) L = f ( x ) g ( x ) Lf ( x ) Kg ( x ) + KL

Rearranging this gives the following way to write the product of the two functions.
f(x)g(x)= f ( x ) K Lf ( x ) + Kg ( x ) KL
g(x)L+

With this we can now proceed with the proof of 3.

lim f ( x ) g ( x ) = lim f ( x ) K g ( x ) L + Lf ( x ) + Kg ( x ) KL
xa x a
= lim f ( x ) K g ( x ) L + lim Lf ( x ) + lim Kg ( x ) lim KL

x a xa xa x a
= 0 + lim Lf ( x) + lim Kg ( x) lim KL
xa xa x a

= LK + KL KL
= LK

Fairly simple proof really, once you see all the steps that you have to take before you even start.
The second step made multiple uses of property 2. In the third step we used the limit we initially
proved. In the fourth step we used properties 1 and 7. Finally, we just did some simplification.

Proof of 4
This one is also a little tricky. First, well start of by proving,
lim 1 =1
x a g ( x ) L

Let > 0 . Well not need this right away, but these proofs always start off with this statement.
Now, because lim g ( x ) = L there is a 1 > 0 such that,
x a

L
g(x)L < whenever 0 <x a < 1
2
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 Calculus I

Now, assuming that 0 < x a < 1 we have,

L = L g ( x ) + g ( x) just adding zero to L

L g ( x ) + g ( x) using the triangle inequality
= g ( x ) L + g ( x) Lg(x)=g(x)L

L assuming that 0 < x a < 1

< 2 + g ( x)
Rearranging this gives,

Now, there is also a 2

{ }
Choose = min 1 , 2 . If 0 <
=
=
 <

<

= 1

Now that weve proven lim

x a
1
xa x a g ( x)

=K

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 Calculus I

Proof of 5. for n an integer

As noted were only going to prove 5 for integer exponents. This will also involve proof by
induction so if you arent familiar with induction proofs you can skip this proof.

So, were going to prove,

lim f ( x ) n = lim f ( x ) n = K n, n 2, n is an integer.

xa x a

For n = 2 we have nothing more than a special case of property 3.

lim f ( x ) 2 = lim f ( x ) f ( x ) = lim f ( x )lim f ( x ) = KK = K 2
xa x a xa x a

So, 5 is proven for n = 2 . Now assume that 5 is true for n 1 , or lim f ( x ) n1 = K n1 . Then,
x a

again using property 3 we have,

lim f ( x ) n = lim f ( x ) n1 f ( x)
xa x a ( )
= lim f ( x ) n1
lim f ( x)
xa x a
= K n1K
=Kn

Proof of 6
As pointed out in the Limit Properties section this is nothing more than a special case of the full
version of 5 and the proof is given there and so is the proof is not give here.

Proof of 8
This is a simple proof. If we define f ( x ) = x to make the notation a little easier, were being
asked to prove that lim f ( x ) = a .
x a

Let > 0 and let = . Then, if 0 < x a < = we have, f (

x)a=xa<=

So, weve proved that lim x = a .

x a

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 Calculus I

Proof of 9
This is just a special case of property 5 with f ( x ) = x and so we wont prove it here.

Facts, Infinite Limits

Given the functions f ( x) and g ( x) suppose we have,
lim f ( x) = lim g ( x ) = L
xc x c

for some real numbers c and L. Then,

1. lim f ( x ) g ( x) =

x c

2. If L > 0 then lim f ( x ) g ( x) =

x c

3. If L < 0 then lim f ( x ) g ( x) =

x c
g ( x)
4. lim ( )=0
x c f x

Partial Proof of 1
We will prove lim f ( x ) + g ( x) = here. The proof of lim f ( x ) g ( x) = is nearly
x c x c
identical and is left to the reader.

Let M > 0 then because we know lim f ( x) = there exists a 1 > 0 such that if
x c

0 < x c < 1 we have,

f ( x ) > M L +1

Also, because we know lim g ( x ) = there exists a 2 > 0 such that if 0 < x c < 2 we
L x c
have,
0< g(x)L <1 1<g(x)L<1 L 1 < g ( x ) < L +1

{ }
Now, let = min 1 , 2 and so if 0 < x c < we know from the above statements that we
will have both,
f ( x ) > M L +1 g ( x ) > L 1

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 Calculus I

This gives us,

f ( x ) + g ( x ) > M L + 1 + L 1
=M f(x)+g(x)>M

So, weve proved that lim f ( x ) + g ( x) = .

x c

Proof of 2
Let M > 0 then because we know lim f ( x) = there exists a 1 > 0 such that if
x c

0 < x c < 1 we have,

2M
f ( x) > L

Also, because we know lim g ( x ) = L there exists a 2 > 0 such that if 0 < x c < 2 we
x c

have,
0 < g ( x ) L < L2 L
2 < g ( x ) L < L2 L
2 < g ( x) < 3L2

Note that because we know that L > 0 choosing L2 in the first inequality above is a valid choice

because it will also be positive as required by the definition of the limit.

{ }
Now, let = min 1 , 2 and so if 0 < x c < we know from the above statements that we
will have both,
f ( x) > 2LM g ( x) > L2

This gives us,

f(x ) g ( x) > ( 2LM )( L2 )
=M f(x)g(x)>M

So, weve proved that lim f ( x ) g ( x) = .

x c

Proof of 3
Let M > 0 then because we know lim f ( x) = there exists a 1 > 0 such that if
x c

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 Calculus I

0 < x c < 1 we have,

f ( x) > 2LM
Note that because L < 0 in the case we will have 2LM > 0 here.

Next, because we know lim g ( x ) = L there exists a 2 > 0 such that if 0 < x c < 2 we
x c

have,
0 < g ( x ) L < L2 L
2 < g ( x ) L < L2 3L
2 < g ( x) < L2

Again, because we know that L < 0 we will have L2 > 0 . Also, for reasons that will shortly be
apparent, multiply the final inequality by a minus sign to get,
L2 < g ( x) < 32L

{ }
Now, let = min 1 , 2 and so if 0 < x c < we know from the above statements that we
will have both,
f ( x) > 2LM g ( x) > L2

This gives us,

f ( x ) g ( x ) = f ( x ) g ( x)

> ( 2 M
L )( L2 )
=M f(x)g(x)>M

This may seem to not be what we needed however multiplying this by a minus sign gives,
f ( x ) g ( x ) < M
and because we originally chose M > 0 we have now proven that lim f ( x ) g ( x) = .
x c

Proof of 4
Well need to do this in three cases. Lets start with the easiest case.

Case 1 : L = 0
Let > 0 then because we know lim f ( x) = there exists a 1 > 0 such that if
x c

0 < x c < 1 we have,

f ( x) > 1 > 0

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 Calculus I

Next, because we know lim g ( x) = 0 there exists a 2 > 0 such that if 0 < x c < 2 we
x c

have,
0 < g ( x) <

{ }
Now, let = min 1 , 2 and so if 0 < x c < we know from the above statements that we
will have both,

f ( x) > 1
g ( x) <

This gives us,

g ( x) g ( x)
= < < =
f(x) f(x) f ( x) 1

In the second step we could remove the absolute value bars from f ( x) because we know it is
positive.

g ( x)
So, we proved that lim ( ) = 0 if L = 0 .
x c f x

Case 2 : L > 0
Let > 0 then because we know lim f ( x) = there exists a 1 > 0 such that if
x c

0 < x c < 1 we have,

f ( x) > 32L > 0

Next, because we know lim g ( x ) = L there exists a 2 > 0 such that if 0 < x c < 2 we
x c

have,

0 < g ( x ) L < L 2 L2 < g ( x ) L < L2 L

2 < g ( x) < 32L

Also, because we are assuming that L > 0 it is safe to assume that for 0 < x c < 2 we have

g ( x) > 0 .

{ }
Now, let = min 1 , 2 and so if 0 < x c < we know from the above statements that we
will have both,
3L
f ( x) > 2 g ( x) <
3L
2

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 Calculus I

This gives us,

g ( x ) = g ( x) < 3 L 2 < 3L 2 =
f(x) f ( x) f ( x) 3L 2

In the second step we could remove the absolute value bars because we know or can
safely assume (as noted above) that both functions were positive.
g ( x)
So, we proved that lim ( )=0
if L > 0 .
x c f x

Case 3 : L < 0 .
Let > 0 then because we know lim f ( x) = there exists a 1 > 0 such that if
x c

0 < x c < 1 we have,

f ( x) > 23L > 0

Next, because we know lim g ( x ) = L there exists a 2 > 0 such that if 0 < x c < 2 we
x c

have,

0 < g ( x ) L < L2 L
2 < g ( x ) L < L2 3 L
2 < g ( x) < L2

Next, multiply this be a negative sign to get,

L2 < g ( x) < 32L

Also, because we are assuming that L < 0 it is safe to assume that for 0 < x c < 2 we have

g ( x) < 0 .

{ }
Now, let = min 1 , 2 and so if 0 < x c < we know from the above statements that we
will have both,
3 L 3L
f ( x) > 2 g ( x) < 2

This gives us,

g(x) g ( x) 3L 2 3L 2 =
= < <
f(x) f ( x) f ( x) 3L
2

In the second step we could remove the absolute value bars by adding in the negative because we

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 Calculus I

know that f ( x) > 0 and can safely assume that g ( x) < 0 (as noted above).

g ( x)
So, we proved that lim ( ) = 0 if L < 0 .
x c f x

Fact 1, Limits At Infinity, Part 1

1. If r is a positive rational number and c is any real number then,
c
lim r =0
x x

2. If r is a positive rational number, c is any real number and xr is defined for x < 0 then,
lim c = 0
x xr
Proof of 1
This is actually a fairly simple proof but well need to do three separate cases.

c
Case 1 : Assume that c > 0 . Next, let > 0 and define M = r . Note that because c and
c
are both positive we know that this root will exist. Now, assume that we have x > M = r
. Give this assumption we have,

c
x>r

c
xr > get rid of the root
c
< rearrange things a little
xr
c
0 < everything is positive so we can add absolute value bars
xr

So, provided c > 0 weve proven that lim c = 0 .

x xr

Case 2 : Assume that c = 0 . Here all we need to do is the following,

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 Calculus I

lim c = lim 0 = lim 0 = 0

x xr x xr x

Case 3 : Finally, assume that c < 0 . In this case we can then write c = k where k > 0 . Then
using Case 1 and the fact that we can factor constants out of a limit we get,

lim c = lim k = lim k = 0 = 0

x xr x xr x xr

Proof of 2
This is very similar to the proof of 1 so well just do the first case (as its the hardest) and leave
the other two cases up to you to prove.

c
Case 1 : Assume that c > 0 . Next, let > 0 and define N = r . Note that because c and
c
are both positive we know that this root will exist. Now, assume that we have x < N = r .
Note that this assumption also tells us that x will be negative. Give this assumption we have,

c
x<r
c
x > r take absolute value of both sides

c
xr > get rid of the root

c
< = rearrange things a little and use the fact that > 0
xr
c
0 < rewrite things a little
xr

So, provided c > 0 weve proven that lim c = 0 . Note that the main difference here is that we
r
x x
need to take the absolute value first to deal with the minus sign. Because both sides are negative
we know that when we take the absolute value of both sides the direction of the inequality will
have to switch as well.

Case 2, Case 3 : As noted above these are identical to the proof of the corresponding cases in the

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 Calculus I

first proof and so are omitted here.

Fact 2, Limits At Infinity, Part I

If p ( x ) = an x n + an1 x n1 + + a1 x + a0 is a polynomial of degree n (i.e. an 0 ) then,

lim p ( x ) = lim an xn lim p ( x ) = lim an xn
x x x x

Proof of lim p ( x ) = lim an xn

x x
Were going to prove this in an identical fashion to the problems that we worked in this section
involving polynomials. Well first factor out an xn from the polynomial and then make a giant
use of Fact 1 (which we just proved above) and the basic properties of limits.

lim p ( x ) = lim (an x n

+ an1 x n1
+ + a1 x + a 0 )
x x
a a
n n1 1 a0
= lim an x 1 + + + n 1 + n

x an x an x an x

Now, clearly the limit of the second term is one and the limit of the first term will be either or
depending upon the sign of an . Therefore by the Facts from the Infinite Limits section we
can see that the limit of the whole polynomial will be the same as the limit of the first term or,
lim p ( x ) = lim (an x n + an1 x n1 + + a1 x + a0 ) = lim an xn
x x x

Proof of lim p ( x ) = lim an xnxx

The proof of this part is literally identical to the proof of the first part, with the exception that all
s are changed to , and so is omitted here.

Fact 2, Continuity
If f ( x) is continuous at x = b and lim g ( x ) = b then,
(
xa (
x a
( )) xa ( )) ( )
lim f g x = f lim g x =f b

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 Calculus I

Proof
Let > 0 then we need to show that there is a > 0 such that,
f (g ( x )) f (b) < whenever 0< xa <

Lets start with the fact thatf ( x) is continuous at x = b . Recall that this means that
lim f ( x ) = f (b) and so there must be a 1 > 0 so that,
x b

f ( x ) f (b) < whenever 0 <x b < 1

Now, lets recall that lim g ( x ) = b . This means that there must be a > 0 so that,
x a

g(x)b < 1 whenever 0 <x a <

But all this means that were done.

Lets summarize up. First assume that 0 < x a < . This then tells us that,

g(x)b<1

But, we also know that if 0 < x b < 1 then we must also have f ( x ) f (b) < . What this
is telling us is that if a number is within a distance of 1 of b then we can plug that number into

f ( x) and well be within a distance of of f (b) .

So, g ( x ) b < 1 is telling us that g ( x) is within a distance of 1 of b and so if we plug

it into f ( x) well get,

f (g ( x )) f (b) <
and this is exactly what we wanted to show.

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