Curve Skeching

Monotonic Functions:

Monotonic functions are those functions that tend to move in only one direction as increases.
In particular, a function is said to be monotonically increasing (or increasing or non-
decreasing) on an interval if
1 < 2 (1 ) (2 ), 1 , 2
Similarly, a function is said to be monotonically decreasing (or decreasing or non-
increasing) on an interval if
1 < 2 (1 ) (2 ), 1 , 2

Figure.1.

A function is said to be strictly increasing on an interval if

1 < 2 (1 ) < (2 ), 1 , 2 .

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A function is said to be strictly decreasing on an interval if
1 < 2 (1 ) > (2 ), 1 , 2 .
Illustration:
1. Is = 2 + 3 increasing/decreasing function?
Solution: Since , . Therefore =
Let 1 , 2 , such that 1 < 2 .
Now, 1 < 2 21 < 22 21 + 3 < 22 + 3 (1 ) < (2 )
= () = 2 + 3 is strictly increasing function.
First derivative test for monotonic functions:
Suppose is a continuous and differentiable function on an interval .
a) If () > 0 at each point on , the function is increasing on .
b) If () < 0 at each point on , the function is decreasing on .
The graph to the right illustrates this theorem.
From A to B, the slopes of the tangent lines are
all negative, so the derivative,() is negative
from A to B. The theorem above states that the
function is decreasing from A to B. The graph
shows that the values of the function are
decreasing between A and B. Similarly, the
function is also decreasing between C and D.
From B to C however, the slopes of the tangent
Figure.2.
lines are positive. Therefore, the derivative is
positive from B to C. The graph shows that the
values of the function are increasing between
B and C.

The First Derivative Test for Local Extrema

Let c be a critical number of a continuous function. If
a) changes from positive to negative at c, there is a local maximum at c.
b) changes from negative to positive at c, there is a local minimum at c.
c) does not change sign at c, (that is, the derivative is positive before and after c or
negative before and after c) there is no maximum or minimum at c.
The graphs below illustrate the first derivative test.

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 Figure.3.

Concavity and Points of Inflection

A graph is called concave upward (CU) on an interval , if the graph of the function lies above
all of the tangent lines on . A graph is called concave downward (CD) on an interval , if the
graph of the function lies below all of the tangent lines on .
In other words, the graph of a differentiable function = () is
(a) Concave up on an open interval if is increasing on
(b) Concave down (convex) on an open interval if is decreasing on .

The second derivative test for concavity:

Let = () be twice differentiable function on an interval .

a) If () > 0 for all in an interval , the graph is concave up on .
b) If () < 0 for all in an interval , the graph is concave down on .
The intervals of concavity will occur between points where () = 0 or () is undefined.
We test the concavity around these points even if they are not included in the domain of .
The graph below illustrates the different forms of concavity. Remember that there are two ways
in which a graph can be concave upward or concave downward. This graph covers every
different form of concavity in Fig.4.

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 Figure.4.
A point on a curve is called a point of inflection if the function is continuous at that point and
the concavity changes at that point.
Points of inflection may occur at points where () = 0 or () is undefined, where is
in the domain of . We must test the concavity around these points to determine whether they
are points of inflection.
The graph to the right illustrates a curve with a point of inflection.

The Second Derivative Test

Let be a continuous function near c. If

a) () = 0 and () > 0, then has a local minimum at .
b) () = 0 and () < 0, then has a local maximum at .
The graphs containing local maximums and minimums in the "Increasing and Decreasing
Functions" and "The First Derivative Test" sections above illustrate the second derivative test.
When a graph has a local minimum, the function is concave upward (and thus lies above the
tangent lines) at the minimum, which is possible if () > 0.Similarly, the function is
concave downward at a local maximum, and hence the condition () < 0.
Illustration

1. For the function () = ,

discuss (i) the increasing and decreasing nature
(ii) concavity
(iii) point of inflection
(iv) local maxima and local minima.
Solution:

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 () = 4 4 3 () = 4 3 12 2 = 4 2 ( 3)
() = 12 2 24 = 12( 2)
(i) () is increasing if () > 0. . 4 2 ( 3) > 0. . > 3( 2 > 0)
Hence, () is increasing on (3, ).
() is decreasing if () < 0. . 4 2 ( 3) < 0. . < 3( 2 > 0)
Hence, () is decreasing on ( , 3).
(ii) Concavity:
(a) () is concave upward if () > 0. . . 12( 2) > 0
. . () > 0 > 2 or () < 0 < 2.
. . () > 2 or () < 0
Hence, the curve is concave upwards in the interval (, 0) and (2, ).
(b) () is concave downward if () < 0. . . 12( 2) < 0
. . () > 0 < 2 or () < 0 > 2.
. . ()0 < < 2 or () < 0 > 2, .
Hence, the curve is concave upwards in the interval (0,2).

(iii) Point of inflection:

At the point of inflection, () = 0, . . 12( 2) = 0, . . = 0, = 2.

At = 0, () = 0.

At = 2, () = (2)4 4(2)3 = 16.

Hence, points of inflection are (0,0) (2, 16).

(iv) At stationary point, () = 0, . . 4 2 ( 3) = 0, . . = 0 = 3.

(0) = 0and (3) = 12(3)(3 2) = 36 > 0.

Hence, () has a local minimum at = 3.

Exercise:

For the following functions discuss

(i) the increasing and decreasing nature (ii)concavity
(iii)point of inflection (iv) local maxima and local minima.
(A) () = 4( + 3)3 (B) () = 4 4 3 + 10

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Tracing a curve: (Cartesian coordinates)

Following points should be taken care while sketching a curve for a function = ().
Symmetry:
Symmetry about X-axis: A curve is symmetric about if the equation remains
the unchanged by replacing by .(i.e. have even powers only.)
Symmetry about Y-axis: A curve is symmetric about if the equation remains
the unchanged by replacing by .(i.e. have even powers only.)
Symmetry about = : A curve is symmetric about = line if the equation remains
unchanged by interchanging and .
Symmetry in opposite quadrants: A curve is symmetric in opposite quadrants if the
equation remains unchanged when is replaced by and is replaced by .
Curve through Origin
The curve passes through the origin, if the equation does not contain constant term.
Intercepts:
The point of intersection of the curve with is called of the curve
and the point of intersection of the curve with is called of the curve.
For : put = 0 in given equation.
For : put = 0 in given equation.
Region in which the curve does not lie.
If the value of y is imaginary for certain value of then the curve does not exist for such
values.
Tangent:
For tangent at origin: equate the lowest degree term in equation to zero.
To know the nature of a double point it is necessary to find the tangent at that point. A point
is called double point if two branches of the curve pass through it.
If the tangents are real and distinct, then the double point is called a node.
If the tangents are real and coincident, then the double point is called a cusp.
If the tangents are imaginary, then the double point is called an isolated point.
Tangent are parallel to axes

If = 0 at a point, then the tangent is parallel to -axis at that point.

If = at a point then the tangent will be parallel to -axis at this point.

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 Asymptotes:

Asymptote of a curve is a line such that the distance between the curve and the line
approaches zero as they tend to infinity.
1. Asymptotes parallel to x-axis:

The line = is a vertical asymptote of the graph of the function = () if at least

one of the following statements is true:
(i) lim () = (ii) lim () =
+

Also we can find vertical asymptote by equating to the coefficient of the highest
degree term in to zero.
2. Asymptotes parallel to y-axis:
The line = is a vertical asymptote of the graph of the function = () if at least
one of the following statements is true:
(i) lim () = (ii) lim+ () =

Also we can find vertical asymptote by equating to the coefficient of the highest
degree term in to zero.
3. Oblique Asymptote:
When a linear asymptote is not parallel to the -axis or -axis, it is called an oblique
asymptote. To find an oblique asymptote,
I. Find () by putting = 1 and = in the highest degree (n) terms of the
equation of the curve.
II. Solve () = 0
III. Find 1 () = 1 = in the next highest degree (n-1)
terms of the equation of the curve.
1 ()
IV. If the value of m are not equal, find by the formula, = .
()

If the value of m are equal, then find by ,

2
() + 1 () + 2 () = 0
2
V. Obtain the equation of the asymptote by putting the values of m and c in
= + .

Illustration

1. Trace the curve ( ) = , > 0.

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Solution:

3
The equation of the curve can be written as 2 = 2

Symmetry:
The curve is symmetric about because on replacing by in the equation , it
remains unchanged.
Origin:
On substituting = 0 in the given equation, = 0. i.e. the curve passes through origin.
Intercepts:
The curve meets the axes only at (0,0).
Region:
From the equation, one can observe that when < 0and > 2, 2 becomes negative.
Thus no part of curve exist when < 0and > 2.
Tangent at origin:
Equating the lowest degree term in equation to zero,
2 2 = 0 = 0,0.
Thus, tangents at origin are real and coincide. So origin is a double point and it is cusp.
Asymptotes:
There will be no horizontal or vertical asymptote.
But as 2, . Therefore the line = 2 is the vertical asymptote.

Figure 5.

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2. Trace the curve = ( ).

Solution:

Symmetry:
The curve is symmetric about because all the powers of in the equation are
even.
But the curve is not symmetric about because all the powers of in the equation
are not even.
Origin:
Since the curve contains no constant term, the curve passes through origin.
Intercepts:
The curve meets the axes only at (0,0).
Region:
> 2 2 < 0.
Left side of the equation of the curve becomes negative, which is not possible.
Thus no part of curve exist for > 2. From the equation, one can observe that when <
0and > 2, 2 becomes negative. Thus no part of curve exist when < 0and > 2.
Tangent at origin:
Given equation can be written as 2 2 = 2 2 3
Equating the lowest degree term in equation to zero,

2 2 = 2 2 = .
2
Thus, tangents at origin are real and distinct. So origin is a double point and it is node.
Asymptotes:
There will be no horizontal asymptote.
But as 2, . Therefore the line = 2 is the vertical asymptote.

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 Figure 6.
Exercise:
Trace the following curves;
1. 2 = 2 ( )
2. ( ) 2 = 2
3. 2 (2 + 2 ) = 2 (2 2 )
4. (1 + 2 ) =

Polar Coordinate:

Coordinate systems are really nothing more than a way to define a point in space. For instance
in the Cartesian coordinate system at point is given the coordinates (, ) and we use this to
define the point by starting at the origin and then moving x units horizontally followed by y
units vertically. This is shown in the sketch below.

Figure 7.

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This is not, however, the only way to define a point in two dimensional space. Instead of
moving vertically and horizontally from the origin to get to the point we could instead go
straight out of the origin until we hit the point and then determine the angle this line makes
with the positive x-axis. We could then use the distance of the point from the origin and the
amount we needed to rotate from the positive x-axis as the coordinates of the point. This is
shown in the sketch below.

Figure 8.

Coordinates in this form are called polar coordinates.

The polar coordinates (the radial coordinate) and (the angular coordinate, often called the
polar angle) are defined in terms of Cartesian coordinates by

= cos
= sin

Where is the radial distance from the origin and is the counterclockwise angle from the
. In the terms of and ,

= 2 + 2

= tan1 ( )

y
Here, tan1 ( ) should be interpreted as the two-argument inverse tangent which takes the
x

signs of x and y into account to determine in which quadrant lies.

It follows immediately that polar coordinates aren't inherently unique; in particular, (r, +
2n) will be precisely the same polar point as (r, ) for any integer n. What's more, one often

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allows negative values of r under the assumption that (r, ) is plotted identically to (r, +
).

The expression of a point as an ordered pair (r, ) is known as polar notation, the equation of
a curve expressed in polar coordinates is known as a polar equation, and a plot of a curve in
polar coordinates is known as a polar plot.

Common Polar Coordinate Graphs:

Lets identify a few of the more common graphs in polar coordinates. Well also take a look
at a couple of special polar graphs.

Lines

Some lines have fairly simple equations in polar coordinates.

=
Converting this equation to Cartesian coordinates as follows:

= tan1 ( ) = = tan = (tan )

This is a line that goes through the origin and makes an angle of with the positive
. Or, in other words it is a line through the origin with slope of tan .
=
This is easy enough to convert to Cartesian coordinates to = .
So, this is a vertical line.
=
Likewise, this converts to = , and so it is a horizontal line.

Circles

Lets take a look at the equations of circles in polar coordinates.

= .
This equation is saying that no matter what angle weve got the distance from the origin
must be a. If you think about it that is exactly the definition of a circle of radius a centered
at the origin.

So, this is a circle of radius a centered at the origin. This is also one of the reasons why we
might want to work in polar coordinates. The equation of a circle centered at the origin has
a very nice equation, unlike the corresponding equation in Cartesian coordinates.

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 = 2 cos
This is a circle of radius |a| and center (, 0).
Note that a might be negative (as it was in our example above) and so the absolute value
bars are required on the radius. They should not be used however on the center.
= 2 sin .
This is a circle of radius |b| and center (0, ).
= 2 cos + 2 sin
This is a combination of the previous two and by completing the square twice it can be
shown that this is a circle of radius2 + 2 and center (, ).
In other words, this is the general equation of a circle that isnt centered at the origin.

Cardioids and Limacons

These can be broken up into the following three cases.

Cardioids: = cos and = sin .( = )

These have a graph that is vaguely heart shaped and always passthrough the origin.
They can also be considered as in the form = (1 + cos ) or = (1 + sin )

Limacons with an inner loop : = cos and = sin . ( < )

These will have an inner loop and will always contain the origin.

Limacons without an inner loop : = cos and = sin . ( > )

These do not have an inner loop and do not contain the origin.

Lemniscate:

The curves given by 2 = 2 cos 2 or 2 = 2 sin 2 are called Lemniscate.

Both the curves have similar characteristics.

For both of them, = () = ( + 2), . Hence, we need to consider the values of

between 0 2 only.

Also, both curves pass through the pole, with ranging from .

Rose curves:

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These curves are given by = sin or = cos , > 0, .
The name is due to the fact that the graph consists of equally spaced, identical loops, originating
at the pole, making it look like a flower.
The number of petals (or loops) is , if , but 2 if .

TRACING A CURVE: (POLAR COORDINATES)

The following points should be taken care while tracing a curve in polar coordinate:

SYMMETRY:
Symmetric about the initial line: On replacing by , if the equation of the curve
remains unchanged ,the curve is symmetric about the initial line.
Symmetric about pole: On replacing by , if the equation of the curve remains
unchanged ,the curve is symmetric about the pole.

Symmetric about the initial line = : On replacing by and by , if the

equation of the curve remains unchanged ,the curve is symmetric about the line = .
2

POLE:
Curve passes through the pole:If for some value of the value of becomes zero,
then the curve is passing through the pole.
Tangent at the pole:
Putting = 0, the real value of give the tangents at the pole.(say in the form = )
SPECIAL POINTS ON THE CURVE:
Consider some values of and the corresponding values of . Prepare table and use it
in shaping out the curve.

Use the formula tan = and find the point at which tan = 0 . At this point

the tangent to the curve coincides with the initial line or is perpendicular to is
respectively.
REGION:
Determine the region in which no portion of the curve lie, by finding the value of for
which is imaginary.
If the maximum numerical value of is , then the curve lies entirely within the circle
= .
CARTESIAN EQUATION:

In certain cases it is convenient to convert the given equation into Cartesian equation.

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Illustration:

1. Trace the curve = ( + )

Symmetry:
On replacing by , the equation remains unchanged, therefore the curve is symmetric
about the initial line.
Pole:
When = , cos = 1. Which gives = 2(1 + cos ) = 0. Thus, the curve passes
through the pole and the line = is tangent at the pole.
Special point:
The following table gives some values of and

2
0
3 2 3

4 3 2 1 0

Using the symmetry with respect to the initial line, we can obtain the complete shape of the
curve.

Now, tan = tan = cot ( 2) = tan ( 2 + 2)

= +
2 2

Now,tan = = =0
2

Thus, at the point (4,0), the tangent is perpendicular to the initial line.

Also, tan = 0 = 0 =

Hence, at the point (0, ), the tangent coincides with the initial line.

Region:

The maximum numerical value of is 4. Hence the curve entirely lies within the circle = 4.

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 Figure 9.

2. Trace the Lemniscate of Bernoulli = .

Symmetry:
On replacing by , the equation remains unchanged, therefore the curve is
symmetric about the initial line.
Also, on replacing by and by , the equation remains unchanged, therefore the
curve is symmetric about the line = .
Also, the curve is symmetric about the pole.
Pole:

= 0 cos 2 = 0 = . Hence, the curve passes through the pole.
4

Also, the tangents at the pole are the lines = 4 .

Special point:
The following table gives some values of and

0
8 6 4

1 0
(2)4 2

Since, the curve meets the initial line at two points (0, 4 ) and (, 0) and is

symmetric about the initial line, a loop exists between the points and .
Tangents:
2 sin 2
2 = 2 cos 2 2 = 22 sin 2 = .

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 2 2 cos 2
tan = tan = = = cot 2 = tan ( + 2).
2 sin 2 2 sin 2 2

= 2 + 2 .

Now,tan = 2
2 = 0 = 0.

Thus, the tangent at point (, 0) is perpendicular to the initial line = 0

Now, for = 4
tan = 0. Thus, the tangent at point (0, 4 ) coincides with the initial

line = 0.

Due to symmetry, the curve is discussed only between = 0 to = .
2

Region:
Since the maximum numerical value of cos 2 is 1, the maximum value of is . Thus,
the whole curve lies within a circle with center at the pole and radius .
Also,

cos 2 < 0if4 < < 2 (Due to symmetry, considering only between =

0 = 2 )

Thus, 2 < 0, when << .
4 2

Hence, the curve does not exists between << .
4 2

Figure 10.

Exercise:

Trace the following curve.

1. = 3(1 sin ) 2. = 2 + 3 cos 3. 2 = 9 cos(2) 4. = sin 3

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