Thomas' Calculus 13th Edition

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

Chapter 4: Applications of Derivatives - Section 4.1 - Extreme Values of Functions - Exercises 4.1 - Page 192: 70

Answer

Yes, $f(-c)$ is also a local maximum.

Work Step by Step

Step 1. Given $f(x)$ be an even function, we have $f(-x)=f(x)$. Step 2. Assume the function has a local maximum at $x=c$; we have within an open interval $(a,b)$ ($a\lt c\lt b$), $f(c)\geq f(x)$ Step 3. The symmetry of the function indicates a reflection around the y-axis; we have for the interval of $(-b,-a)$ ($-b\lt -c\lt -a$), $f(-c)=f(c)\geq f(x)=f(-x)$ which means that $f(-c)$ is also a local maximum.
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