Thomas' Calculus 13th Edition

Published by Pearson
ISBN 10: 0-32187-896-5
ISBN 13: 978-0-32187-896-0

Chapter 2: Limits and Continuity - Section 2.3 - The Precise Definition of a Limit - Exercises 2.3 - Page 66: 40

Answer

See explanations.

Work Step by Step

Step 1. Let $f(x)=\sqrt {4-x}, c=0, L=2$; the limit becomes $\lim_{x\to c}f(x)=L$ Step 2. For a given small value $\epsilon\gt0$, we need to find a value $\delta\gt0$ so that for all $x$ when $0\lt |x-c|\lt \delta$, we have $|f(x)-L|\lt\epsilon$ Step 3. The last inequality from the last step gives $|\sqrt {4-x}-2|\lt\epsilon$ which gives $-\epsilon\lt \sqrt {4-x}-2\lt\epsilon$ or $2-\epsilon\lt \sqrt {4-x}\lt2+\epsilon$ Step 4. Assume $x\leq4$; we can get $(2-\epsilon)^2\lt4-x \lt(2+\epsilon)^2$ which leads to $4-(2+\epsilon)^2\lt x\lt4-(2-\epsilon)^2$ Step 5. Compare the result from step 4 with the requirement for the value $\delta$ in step 2; we can set $\delta$ as the smaller value of $|4-(2+\epsilon)^2|$ and $|4-(2-\epsilon)^2|$ Step 6. With the setting of the $\delta$ value, we can go backwards through the steps of 4,3,2 to reach a conclusion that for all $x$ when $0\lt |x|\lt \delta$, we have $|\sqrt {4-x}-2|\lt\epsilon$ which proves the limit statement.
Update this answer!

You can help us out by revising, improving and updating this answer.

Update this answer

After you claim an answer you’ll have 24 hours to send in a draft. An editor will review the submission and either publish your submission or provide feedback.