Module 3

The Critical Points Of A Function

MATH 4: APPLIED MATHEMATICS

Mary Jane Alivio - Bundac

Faculty Member, Mathematics Department
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Topics:
Lesson 3.1 Rules for Derivatives
Lesson 3.2 Critical Points of a Function by First Derivative Test
Lesson 3.3 Critical Points of a Function by Second Derivative Test

Learning Outcomes

After completing the study of this module, you should be able to:

✓ Find the critical point/s using first derivative test

✓ Find the critical point/s using second derivative test
✓ Graph the functions; and
✓ interpret the critical points as well as possible uses for them in everyday world.

OVERVIEW

As mentioned earlier in the previous module, price affects the break-even point and
profit. Therefore, it is necessary to make a thorough investigation on “how much is the
possible maximum profit” that could be generated before lowering the price.

In this module we will study the Critical Point/s of a Function as a candidate for an
extreme-values, that is, either a maximum or minimum value by the use of the preliminary
concepts of the differentiations.

Since a non-linear function is calculus based, the maximum or minimum point is found
by the use of derivatives. Thus, it is important to study the rules of derivatives for a better
understanding in finding the extreme-values of a function.

Critical points are the points on the graph where the function’s rate of change is altered.
These critical points are useful in determining extrema and solving optimization problems. A
value in which it is large as possible in maximization point and as small as possible in
minimization point.

Consider the situation below:

“Let’s say you brought a new dog, and went down to the local hardware store and
bought a brand new fence for your yard, but alas, it doesn’t come assembled. Of course, this
means that you get to fence in whatever size lot you want with restrictions of how much fence
you have. Wouldn’t you want to maximize the amount of space your dog had to run?
Critical points can tell you the exact dimensions of your fenced-in yard that will give
you the maximize area
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Lesson 3.1 Rules for Derivatives

Here are some of the very important terminologies and its definitions that we
need to consider in this lesson.

Slope – is a ratio between the change of the output (y) and the change of the input (x).
Tangent Line – is a line that touches the curve at only one point. A line that always
goes through and follows the direction of the curve.
Normal Line – is a line perpendicular to the tangent line.
Derivative - is a slope of a line tangent to the curve.

Other terms used with the same meaning as derivative:

• Rate of Change
• Change of Speed (Velocity)
• Change of Velocity (Accelaration)
• Marginal Profit
• Marginal Revenue
• Marginal Cost

The following are the notations of functions and their corresponding derivatives:

Functions First Derivatives Second Derivatives

y dy/dx ; y ‘ d2y/dx2 ; y “
f(x) f ‘(x) f “(x)
R(x) R’(x) R”(x)
C(x) C’(x) C”(x)
P(x) P’(x) P”(x)

A variable other than x is often used as the independent variable. For instant, if y = f(t)
gives population growth as a function of time t, then the derivative of y with respect to t could
be written
f ‘(t), dy
dt

Other variables also may be used to name the function, as in g(x) or h(x).

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Now we will use the definition

f ‘(x) = lim h → 0 f(x + h) – f(x)

h

to develop some rules for finding derivatives more easily than by the four-step process given
the above formula.

The first rule tells how to find the derivative of a constant function defined by f(x) = k,
where k is a constant real number. Since f(x + h) is also k, by definition f ‘(x) is

f ‘(x) = lim h → 0 f(x + h) – f(x)

h

= lim h → 0 k – k
h

= lim h → 0 0
h

= lim h → 0 0

= 0,

establishing the following rule.

Basic Rules of Derivatives:

I. The Constant Rule

If f(x) = k, where k is any real number, then

f ‘ (x) = 0.

(The derivative of a constant is 0.)

Example: Find the derivative.

1. If f(x) = 9, then f ‘(x) = 0
2. If f(x) = -100, then f ‘(x) = 0
3. If f(x) = 32, then f ‘(x) = 0

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II. The Power Rule

If f(x) = xn, for any real number n, then

f ‘(x) = nxn-1,

(The derivative of f(x) = xn is found by multiplying by the exponent n and decreasing the
exponent on x by 1.)

Example: Find the derivative.

1. y = x5
dy/dx = 5x5-1
dy/dt = 5x4

2. y = t it implies that y = t1
dy/dt = 1t1-1
= t0 (by def’n. x0 = 1)
dy/dt = 1

3. f(x) = 1/x4 means that f(x) = x-4 (by def’n. x-n = 1/xn)
f ‘(x) = - 4x-4-1
f ‘(x) = - 4x-5 or – 4
x5

4. f(x) = √𝑥 is the same as f(x) = x1/2

f ‘(x) = ½ x1/2 – 1
= 1/2x-1/2
f ‘(x) = 1 or 1
2x 1/2 2√𝒙

III. The Constant Times a Function

Let k be a real number. If f(x) exists, then

f(x) = kxn
f ‘(x) = knxn-1.

(The derivative of a constant times a function is the constant times the derivative of the
function.)

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Example: Find the derivative.

1. y = 6x4
dy/dx = 6(4)x4-1
dy/dx = 24x3

2. y = - 5x-5
dy/dx = 25x-6 or
dy/dx = 25
x6

3. f(x) = ¾ x8
f ‘(x) = 6x7

4. f(x) = 5/x or f(x) = 5x-1

f ‘(x) = - 5x-2 or
f ‘(x) = - 5
x2

IV. The Sum or Difference Rule

If f(x) = u(x) ± v(x), and if u’(x) and v’(x) exist, then

f ’(x) = u’(x) ± v’(x).

(The derivative of a sum or difference of functions is the sum or difference of the

derivatives.)

Example: Find the derivative.

1. y = 6x5 + 4x4 – 3x3
dy/dx = 30x4 + 16x3 – 9x2

2. f(x) = 12x2 – ½ √𝑥 – 4 + 5x + 8
x
‘
f (x) = 24x – ¼ x + 4x-2 + 5 or
-1/2

f ‘(x) = 24x – 1 + 4 + 5 or
4x1/2 x2

3. f(x) = (2x2 + 3x)2 rewrite f(x) in its expanded form

f(x) = 4x4 + 12x3 + 9x2
f ‘(x) = 16x3 +36x2 + 18x

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V. The Product Rule

If f(x) = u(x) . v(x), and if u ’(x) and v ’(x) both exist, then

f ‘(x) = u(x) . v ‘(x) + v(x) . u ‘(x).

(The derivative of a product of two functions is the first function times the derivative of
the second, plus the second function times the derivative of the first.)

Example: Find the derivative.

1. y = (x2 + 2x) (3x2 + x)

Solution:
Let u(x) = x2 + 2x u ‘(x) = 2x + 2
v(x) = 3x2 + x v ‘(x) = 6x + 1

dy/dx = (x2 + 2x) (6x + 1) + (3x2 + x) (2x + 2)

= 6x3 +13x2 + 2x + 6x3 +8x2 + 2x (product of binomials)
3 2
= 12x + 21x + 4x (combined similar terms)
2
dy/dx = x(12x + 21x + 4)

2. f(x) = 4x3(x3 + x2)

Solution:
Let u(x) = 4x3 u ‘(x) = 12x2
v(x) = x3 + x2 v ‘(x) = 3x2 + 2x

f ‘(x) = 4x3(3x2 + 2x) + (x3 + x2) (12x2)

= 12x5 + 8x4 + 12x5 + 12x4
= 24x5 + 20x4
‘
f (x) = 4x4(6x + 5)

VI. The Quotient Rule

If f(x) = u(x) , and if u ’(x) and v ’(x) both exist, then
v(x)

f ‘(x) = v (x) . u ‘(x) - u(x) . v ‘(x)

[v(x)]2
(The derivative of a quotient of two functions is the denominator times the
derivative of the numerator minus the numerator times the derivative of the
denominator all divided by the square of the denominator.)
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Example: Find the derivative.

1. y = 5x2 – x
x2 + x

Solution:
Let u(x) = 5x2 – x u ‘(x) = 10x – 1
v(x) = x2 + x v ‘(x) = 2x + 1

dy/dx = (x2 + x) (10x – 1) – (5x2 – x) (2x + 1)

[x2 + x]2

= (10x3 + 9x2 – x) – (10x3 + 3x2 – x) (product of binomials)

[x2 + x]2

= 10x3 + 9x2 – x - 10x3 - 3x2 + x (removed grouping symbol)

[x2 + x]2

dy/dx = (6x2) / [x2 + x]2

2. f(x) = x3 + 2x2
2x3 + x2

Solution:
Let u(x) = x3 + 2x2 u ‘(x) = 3x2 + 4x
v(x) = 2x3 + x2 v ‘(x) = 6x2 + 2x

f ‘(x) = (2x3 + x2) (3x2 + 4x) – (x3 + 2x2) (6x2 + 2x)

[2x3 + x2]2
f ‘(x) = (6x5 + 11x4 + 4x3) – (6x5 + 14x4 + 4x3)
[2x3 + x2]2

= 6x5 + 11x4 + 4x3 – 6x5 - 14x4 - 4x3)

[2x3 + x2]2

f ‘(x) = (- 3x4) / [2x3 + x2]2

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Exercises:

Find the derivative of each of the function defined as follows.

1. y = 3x3 – x2 - x
12

2. y = 6x4 + 4x-5

3. f(x) = - 100√𝑥 – 11x2/3

𝑥2
4. f(x) = x4 – 5x3 + +5
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5. f(x) = - 2x3/2 + 8x-5

6. f(x) = (3x2 + 2) (2x – 1)

7. f(x) = -12x3(2x3 + 3x2)

8. f(x) = (x + 1) (√𝑥 + 2)

9. h(t) = 5 – 3t
4+t

10. g(x) = (2x2 + 3x)

(3x2 – 4x)

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Assignment:

Solve the problems as application of differentiation.

1. Average Profit The total profit (in hundreds of pesos) from selling x self-help
books is
P(x) = 5x – 6 ,
2x + 2

Find the average profit from each sales level.

a. 8 books b. 15 books c. x books
a. Find the marginal average profit function?
b. Is this a reasonable function for profit? Why or why not?

2. Employee Training A company that manufactures bicycle has determined that

a new employee can assemble M(d) bicycles per day after d days of on-the-job
training, where
M(d) = 100d2__ ,
3d2 + 10

a. Find the rate of change function for the number of bicycles assembled with
respect to time.
b. Find and interpret M ‘(2) and M ‘(5).

3. Muscle Reaction When a certain drug is injected into a muscle, the muscle
responds by contracting. The amount of contraction, s (in millimeters) is
released to the concentration of the drug, x (in millimeters) by

𝑥
s(x) = ,
𝑚+𝑛𝑥

where m and n are constants.

a. Find s ‘(x).
b. Find the rate of contraction when the concentration of the drug is 50 ml,
m = 10, and n = 3.

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4. Bacteria Population Assume that the total number (in millions) of bacteria
present in a culture at a certain time t (in hours) is given by

N(t) = (t – 10)2 (2t) + 50.

a. Find N ‘(t).

Find the rate at which the population of bacteria is changing at the following
times.
b. 8 hours
c. 11 hours
d. The answer in part b is negative, and the answer in part c is positive. What
does this mean in terms of the population of bacteria?

5. Vehicle Waiting The average number of vehicles waiting in a line to enter a

parking ramp can be modelled by the function

𝑥2
f(x) = ,
2(1−𝑥)

where x is a quantity between 0 and 1 known as the traffic intensity. Find the
rate of change of the number of vehicles in line with respect to the traffic
intensity for the following values of intensity.
a. x = 0.1 b. x = 0.6

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Lesson 3.2 Critical Points by First Derivative Test

Finding the largest and smallest values of function that is, the maximum and minimum
values has extensive application. The first and second derivatives of a function are tools of
calculus that gives us information about the shape of a graph that may be helpful in finding
maximum and minimum values of functions and graphing functions.

Increasing and Decreasing Functions

Definition:
A function f is increasing on interval (I), if for every a and b in I, if a < b, then f(a) < f(b).

f(b)
increasing

f(a)
a b
(If the input a is less than the input b, then the output for a is less than the output for b.)

A function f is decreasing on interval (I), if for every a and b in I,

If a < b, then f(a) > f(b).

f(a)

decreasing
f(b)
a b

(If the input a is less than the input b, then the output for a is greater than the output for
b.)

Note: The directions of inequalities stay the same for an increasing function, but they differ for a
decreasing function.

Theorem 1: The use of derivatives to determine whether a function is increasing or

decreasing
a. If f ‘(x) > 0 for all x in an interval I, then f is increasing on I.
b. If f ‘(x) < 0 for all x in an interval I, then f decreasing on I.

Critical Points
Definition:
A critical point of a function is an interior point c of its domain at which the tangent to the
graph is horizontal or at which the derivatives does not exist. That is, c is a critical point if
f ‘(c) = 0 or f ‘(c) = does not exist.
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Definition:
Suppose that f is a function whose value f(c) exists at input c in an interval I in the
domain of f.
Then:
a. f(c) is a relative minimum if there exists an open interval I, containing c in the domain
such that f(c) ≤ f(c), for all x in I,
b. f(c) is a relative maximum if there exists an open interval I, containing c in the
domain such that f(c) ≥ f(c), for all x in I.

Theorem 2:
If a function f has a relative extreme value f(c), then c is a critical point, so
f ‘(c) = 0 or f ‘(c) = does not exist.

Exercises:

f(c) Sign of f ’(x) Sign of f ’(x) Graph over the interval

for x in (a , c) for x in (c , b) (a , b)

Relative Minimum - +

a c b

Relative Maximum + -

a c b

No Relative Minima or - -
Maxima

a c b

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No Relative Minima or + +
Maxima

a c b

Theorem 3: The First-Derivative Test for Relative Extrema

For any continuous function f that has exactly one critical point c in an open interval (a, b):
F1: f has a relative minimum at c if f ‘(x) < 0 on (a, c) and f ‘(x) > 0 (c, b). That is, f is
decreasing to the left of c and increasing to the right of c.
F2: f has a relative maximum at c if f ‘(x) > 0 on (a, c) and f ‘(x) < 0 (c, b). That is, f is
increasing to the left of c and decreasing to the right of c.
F3: f has neither a relative maximum nor a relative minimum if f ‘(x) has the same sign
on (a, c) as on (c, b).

Things to Remember to Find Relative Extrema:

*The derivative f ‘ is used to find the critical points of f.
*The test values, in the intervals defined by the critical points, are substituted into the
derivative f ‘, and the function values are found by using the original function f.
*Use the derivative f ‘ to find information about the shape of the graph of f.

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Example:

1. Find the relative extreme value (max. or min. value) of the function, if they exist. List your
answers in terms of ordered pairs. Then, sketch the graph.
f (x) = x3 + x2 – x + 2

2. A certain hill (with circular base along the sea,) which is an island whose ridge above the
sea can be approximated by a function
f(x) = 4X2 + 16X
where x is a unit distance in kilometer.

a. Determine the height of the hill. (The highest point on the ridge above the sea.)

b. At what point from the edge of the ridge along horizontal line the slope of the hill is
increasing?

c. The slope of the hill is decreasing?

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Assignment:

The population of the certain species can be estimated using mathematical model as a
function,
f(x) = x2 +400 x – 50,000 ; x > 0.

where x is the number of years.

a. How fast is the population changing thru times.

b. after how many years the species will have its complete extinction.

c. How long will the population be maximum.

d. identify the years where the population is increasing.

e. identify the period where the species ‘ population starts to decline.

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Solution for Examples 1 and 2.

1. f(x) = x3 + x2 – x + 1
a. Find the first derivative:
f ‘(x) = 3x2 + 2x – 1

b. Solve for the Critical Values (x’s) by letting either F ‘(x) = 0 or F ’(x) = does not exist.
We set F ‘(x) = 0 since the function F is not asymptotic.

f ‘(x) = 3x2 + 2x – 1
3x2 + 2x – 1 = 0 (Factor the trinomial)
(3x – 1) (x + 1) = 0 (equate each factor to zero to solve for x)
3x – 1 = 0 ; x + 1 = 0 (by transposition)
x = 1/3 ; x = -1
Hence, the C.V.: x = -1 ; x = 1/3

c. Solve for the Critic Points by Substituting the C.V. to the original function
f(x) = x3 + x2 -x + 2.
At x = -1: f(-1 ) = (-1)3 + (- 1)2 – (- 1) + 2
=3
At x = 1/3: f(1/3) = (1/3)3 + (1/3)2 – (1/3) + 2
= 1 (22/27) or 49/27

Hence, the Critical Points: (- 1, 3) ; (1/3, 1 22)

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d. Divide the real line into intervals using critical points.

A B C
(-∞, -1) (-1, 1/3) (1/3, +∞)
0 0
++++ - - - - - ++++

-1 1/3

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e. Examine the direction by substituting the assign value of x to the F ‘(x).

Tabulate the result:
f ‘(x) = (3x – 1) (x + 1)
Interval (-∞, -1) (-1,1/3) (1/3, +∞)
x-value x = -2 x=0 x=1
f ‘(x) f ‘(2)> 0 f ‘(0)<0 f ‘(1)>0
Sign + - +
result increasing decreasing increasing

f. Sketch the graph

. 3

+ - +

1.8 .

-1 1/3

2. f(x) = - 4x2 + 16x

f ‘(x) = - 8x + 16
Set f ‘(x) = 0
-8x + 16 = 0
-8(x - 2) = 0
x-2=0
x = 2 km. (Critical Value)

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a. Determine the height of the hill. (The highest point on the ridge above the sea.)
Substitute the C.V. x = 2 to the original function f(x).
Let y = f(x) is the height of the hill

y = f(x) = - 4x2 + 16x at x = 2

f(- 2) = - 4(2)2 + 16(2)
= 16 (max. Height of the hill above the sea)

b. At what point from the edge of the ridge along horizontal line the slope of the hill is
increasing?
(2, 16)
A B
(-∞, 2) 0 (2, ∞)
++++ ----

f ‘(x) = - 8x + 16
f ‘(1) = - 8(1) + 16; f ‘(3) = - 8(3) + 16
= 16 > 0 =-8<0
Interval (-∞, 2) (2, ∞)
x-value x=1 x=3
f ‘(x) f ‘(1) > 0 f ‘(3) < 0
Sign + -
Result increasing decreasing

Thus, at point before 2 km along the horizontal line, the slope of the hill is
increasing.

c. The slope of the hill is decreasing?

- At point above 2 km along the horizontal line, the slope of the hill is decreasing.

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