CHAPTER

Limits and Continuity

1
1.1 A BRIEF PREVIEW OF CALCULUS: TANGENT LINES
AND THE LENGTH OF A CURVE
1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT
1.3 COMPUTATION OF LIMITS
1.4 CONTINUITY AND ITS CONSEQUENCES
1.5 LIMITS INVOLVING INFINITY; ASYMPTOTES

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 2
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

The Limit: Informal Idea

In this section, we develop the notion of limit using some
common language and illustrate the idea with some
simple examples.

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 3
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

The Limit: Informal Idea

Suppose a function f is defined for all x in an open
interval containing a, except possibly at x = a.

If we can make f (x) arbitrarily close to some number L

(i.e., as close as we’d like to make it) by making x
sufficiently close to a (but not equal to a), then we say
that L is the limit of f (x), as x approaches a, written

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 4
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

The Limit: Informal Idea

For instance, we have

since as x gets closer and closer to 2, f (x) = x2 gets closer

and closer to 4.

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 5
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.1 Evaluating a Limit

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 6
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.1 Evaluating a Limit

Solution

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 7
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.1 Evaluating a Limit

Solution

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 9
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.1 Evaluating a Limit

Solution

Since the two one-sided limits

of f (x) are the same, we
summarize our results by saying
that

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 11
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.1 Evaluating a Limit

Solution
We can also determine the limit algebraically.

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 12
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.2 A Limit that Does Not Exist

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 15
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.2 A Limit that Does Not Exist

Solution

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 16
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

A limit exists if and only if both corresponding one-sided

limits exist and are equal. That is,

In other words, we say that

if we can make f (x) as close as we might like to
L, by making x sufficiently close to a (on either side of a),
but not equal to a.
© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 13
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.3 Determining Limits Graphically

Use the graph to determine

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 18
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.3 Determining Limits Graphically

Solution

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 19
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.4 A Limit Where Two Factors Cancel

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 16
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.4 A Limit Where Two Factors Cancel

Solution
From the left:

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 21
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.4 A Limit Where Two Factors Cancel

Solution
From the right:

Conjecture:
© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 22
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.4 A Limit Where Two Factors Cancel

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 23
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.4 A Limit Where Two Factors Cancel

Solution
Algebraic cancellation:

Likewise:

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 24
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.5 A Limit That Does Not Exist

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 21
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.5 A Limit That Does Not Exist

Solution
From the right:

Conjecture:
© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 26
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.5 A Limit That Does Not Exist

Solution
From the left:

Conjecture:
© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 27
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

EXAMPLE 2.5 A Limit That Does Not Exist

Solution

Conjecture:

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 28
 1.2 THE CONCEPT OF LIMIT

REMARK 2.1
Computer or calculator computation of limits is
unreliable.

We use graphs and tables of values only as (strong)

evidence pointing to what a plausible answer might be.

To be certain, we need to obtain careful verification of

our conjectures. We explore this in sections 1.3–1.7.

© The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. Slide 25