Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Calculus of a Single Variable, Chapter 2, 2.4, Section 2.4, Problem 79

You need to find the equation of the tangent line to the given curve, at the point (pi/4,1) , using the formula:
f(x) - f(pi/4) = f'(pi/4)(x - pi/4)
You need to notice that f(pi/4) = 1.
You need to evaluate the derivative of the given function, using chain rule, such that:
f'(x) = ((tan x)^2)' => f'(x) = 2tan x*(tan x)'
f'(x) = 2tan x*(1/(cos^2 x))
You need to evaluate f'(x) at x = pi/4 , hence, you need to replace pi/4 for x in equation of derivative:
f'(pi/4) = 2tan (pi/4)*(1/(cos^2 (pi/4)))
f'(pi/4) = 2*1*1/(((sqrt2)/2)^2) => f'(pi/4) = 4
You need to replace the values into equation of tangent line, such that:
f(x) - 1 = 4(x - pi/4) => f(x) = 4x - pi + 1
Hence, evaluating the equation of the tangent line to the given curve, at the given point, yields f(x) = 4x - pi + 1.

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