MATH 154 Lecture 1: MATH 154 D100-Lecture 1- Polynomials and Rational Functions

• School: Simon Fraser University
• Department: Mathematics
• Course: MATH 154
• Professor: Yusuf Tuncer

Document Summary

Math 154 d100- lecture 1-polynomials and rational functions. Power function: a function using the form f(x)=cxn, where c and n are both constants. Examples: given the function y=5x7, c=5 and n=7, x=independent variable, given the function y=100, c=100 and n=0 because our variable x is to the power of 0. This function can also be written as y=100x0: given the function y= 5 x, c=5 and n=1/2. We can also write this function as y=5x1/2. Polynomial: the sum of multiple power functions with positive integer exponents. The degree of the polynomial is the largest exponent of x that also has a coefficient larger than 0. Rational function: a function that can be used as a quotient (result obtained from dividing) of two polynomials. Where the equations will look like f/g (f and g are letters that temporarily replace the polynomials so that we can get a better understanding of what a rational function is)