Tangent Lines

2006 Michael Aryee(aryeemic@shu.
edu) Derivative Page 1

Worksheet ____

The slope of a line

Slope of a line is a measure of the "steepness" of a line. We can determine the slope of a line by
finding the ratio of the change in the y-coordinate to the change in the x-coordinate. The change
in the y-coordinate between two points on a line measures the distance the line rises or falls and
is called the rise, denoted by Ay. The change in the x-coordinate between two points on a line
measures the horizontal distance as we move from left to right and is called the run, denoted by
Ax.

Given two points P
1
(x
1
, y
1
) and P
2
(x
2
, y
2
), and we can illustrate the slope of the line joining the
two points on a graph.

If P
1
(x
1
, y
1
) and P
2
(x
2
, y
2
) are two distinct points on a non vertical line (x
1
=x
2
), the slope
of the line is given by the ratio:

1 2
1 2
x x
y y
m
= =
x
y
A
A
=
run
rise

2006 Michael Aryee(aryeemic@shu.edu) Derivative Page 2

Slopes of different lines

If y increases as x increases, the slope is positive, and the line rises to the right. If y decreases as x
increases, the slope is negative, and the line falls to the right. If y remains constant as x increases,
the slope is zero and the line is parallel to the x-axis.

Example

Find the slope of the line joining the points (-3, 5) and (-2, -8).

Solution:

x y
1
st
point
-3 5
2
nd
point
-2 -8
Achange Ax = x
2
x
1

= -2 (-3)
= -2 + 3
= 1

Ay = y
2
y
1

= -8 5
= -13

1 2
1 2
x x
y y
m
= =
x
y
A
A

1
13
= = -13


A secant line, usually referred to as a secant, is a straight line passing through two points of a
curve, or joining two points on a function. The diagram below shows an example of a secant line
L passing through two points, P(c, f(c)) and Q(x, f(x)).

Calculating the slope,
PQ
m , of the line L that passes through P(c, f(c)) and Q(x, f(x)).

Since we have two points, we can now calculate the slope,
PQ
m , of the line L that passes through
P(c, f(c)) and Q(x, f(x)).

The slope of the secant line is also called the average rate of change, the difference quotient, or
simply the slope.

In general to determine the average rate of change of one quantity (say y) per unit change of
another quantity (say x), find the difference in the values of y at the end and beginning of the
interval, and divide the result by the length of the interval.

x y
Point Q
x f(x)
Point P
c f(c)
Achange Ax = x c

Ay = f(x) f(c)

Slope:
PQ
m =
x
y
A
A
=
c x
c f x f
) ( ) (

Secant Lines


1. A ball is thrown upward from the ground with an initial velocity of 160 ft/sec. Its height above
the ground, in feet, t seconds later is given by
s(t) = -16t
2
+ 160t.

Find the average velocity of the ball from 2 seconds to 4 seconds after release.

Solution:

2. The population P (in thousands) of Belgium from 1992 to 2000 is shown in the table below.
(These are midyear estimates.)

Year 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000
Population (P) 10,036 10,109 10,152 10,175 10,186

Find the average rate of growth of the population from the 1994 to 1998.

Solution:

x y
Point Q
4 s(4) =-16(4)2 + 160(4) = 384
Point P
2 s(2) =-16(2)2 + 160(2) = 256
Achange Ax = 4 2 = 2

Ay = s(4) s(2) = 384-256 = 228

Slope = average velocity

PQ
m =
x
y
A
A
= 114
2
228
2 4
) 2 ( ) 4 (
= =
s s
ft per second

x y (in thousands)
Point Q
1998 P(1998) = 10,175
Point P
1994 P(1994) = 10,109
Achange Ax =
1994 1998 = 4

Ay = P(1998) P(1994)
= 10,175 10,109 = 66

Slope = average rate of growth

PQ
m =
x
y
A
A
= 5 . 16
4
66
1994 1998
) 1994 ( ) 1998 (
= =
P P

Therefore, between 1994 and 1998, the population grew by
16500 people per year.
Examples


Calculus deals with movement of objects, (or changing quantities) and the shapes of the curves
that record these movements (or changes). The shape of a curve gives us a complete record of the
motion of an object. For example, given a curve, we can make verbal statements concerning an
objects speed or how the object has moved (or changed) over a period of time. One branch of
calculus that focuses on rate of change of all kinds of moving objects is called differential
calculus.

Differential calculus allows us to make statements about curves and movement by indicating
whether the curve is rising or falling as it passing through a particular point. Usually, we think of
a curve being traced out from left to right.

Since the simplest curve of all is a straight line, let us begin by describing the motion of an object
using different straight lines as illustrated in the graphs below.

Note that the use of the words fast or slow is related to the steepness of the straight line.
The steepness of the straight line as we saw earlier on is an indication of the slope of the line.
Also note that, the above straight lines only describe the motion of objects that moved in a
regular way, that is, object that moves with a steady speed. In general, if an object moves with a
steady (or constant) speed, then its motion will always show on a graph as a straight line.

The question that remains to be answered is: what about the motion of objects that moved in an
irregular way, (or variable speed) that is, at one time stopping, and then starting, moving slow,
then fast, then slow, then fast again? We can determine whether or not the curve is rising or
falling at a particular point on the curve by studying the steepness of a small part of the curve
that encloses this point.
Tangents

To determine whether or not the curve is rising or falling at a particular point on the curve, we
can superimpose one of the above straight lines upon the curve so that it touches the curve at a
given point without crossing it.

Understanding the precise meaning to the word slope is of great importance to the study of the
tangent lines to a curve. In describing a curve, we are usually interested in determining the slope
of the tangent line to the curve at a given point.

The figure on the left shows a line tangent to the curve at the point P(c, f(c)) which lie on the
curve. As stated earlier, the straight line that
touches the curve at exactly one point is called
the tangent line at the given point. A tangent to a
curve at a point is a line that touches the curve,
going in the same direction as the curve at that
point.
The slope of the tangent line at any point on the
curve, also referred to as the slope of the curve
at that point, and can be determined by finding
the line through the given point that most closely
approximates the curve near the point.

More about tangent lines

The straight line that touches the curve at exactly one point is called the tangent lineat the
given point. A tangent to a curve at a point is a line that touches the curve, going in the
same direction as the curve at that point. The diagram below shows an example of a tangent
line. Remember that the curve is being traced from left to right.


To find the slope of a tangent line on a curve f at a given point P(c, f(c)) on the curve, we first
pick another point Q(x, f(x)) that lies on the curve and near P, and then consider the line L that
passes through these two points. The only reason for selecting a second point Q(x, f(x)) is to
allow us to find the slope of the line L since we need two points to find the slope of a line. The
line L is technically not a tangent line, (it is a secant line), since it does not touch the curve at
exactly one point but crosses the line at two points. As the two points are brought together (or,
more precisely, as one is brought towards the other), the secant line tends to become a tangent
line. In general, a tangent line is the limit of a secant line.

In the diagram, the nearer to P that we move Q, the more the curve between the two points will
look like a straight line and the closer will the slope of the line L be to the actual slope or tangent
line. Thus, the calculated slope
PQ
m provides an estimate of the slope of the tangent line at a
given point P(c, f(c)) that lies on the curve. Since we would like our estimate to be somewhat
very close to the actual value, we must choose or move Q to be very close to P.

In fact, we can always get a better estimate each time we can choose or move Q even closer to P
than the previously selected value of Q. This means that as we choose Q closer and closer to P,
the slope of the line L that passes through the points P and Q should be getting closer and closer
to the slope of the tangent line. Thus, as Q approaches P along the curve, the slope of the line L
that passes through the points P(c, f(c)) and Q(x, f(x)), the calculated slope
PQ
m =
c x
c f x f
) ( ) (

will approach a certain number m, where the number m is defined to be the slope of the tangent
line at the point P(c, f(c)). Clearly, the slope of the tangent line at the point P(c, f(c)) is a
limiting situation and can be defined as follows:

Finding the slope of a tangent line


Find an equation of the tangent line to the curve f(x) = x
2
at the P(1, 1).
Solution:

To find the slope of a tangent line on a curve f at a given point P(1, 1) on the curve, we first pick
another point Q(x, f(x)) that lies on the curve and near P, and then consider the line L that passes
through P(1, 1) and Q(x, f(x)).

PQ
P(c, f(c)) and Q(x, f(x)).

We can now take the limit of the slope,
PQ
m , to get the slope of the tangent line, m.
m =
1
lim
x
PQ
m =
1
lim
x
1
1
2
x
x
=
1
lim
x
) 1 (
) 1 )( 1 (
+
x
x x
=
1
lim
x
) 1 ( + x = 2.

This gives the value of the slope of the tangent line at the point P(1, 1) to be m = 2.

Finally, we must find the equation of the tangent line.

Now, we are given P(1, 1), that is, x
1
= 1, y
1
= 1, and m = 2, so that the equation of the tangent
line to the curve f(x) = x
2
at the P(1, 1) is given by

) (
1 1
x x m y y =

y 1 = 2(x 1)

y = 2x 1

x y
Point Q
x x
2
Point P
1 1
Achange Ax = x 1

Ay = x
2
1

Slope:
PQ
m =
x
y
A
A
=
1
1
2
x
x

Example:


Find an equation of the tangent line to the curve f(x) = x
2
+ x + 3 at the P(2, 9).
Solution:

through P(2, 9) and Q(x, f(x)).

PQ
P(2, 9) and Q(x, f(x)).

PQ

m =
2
lim
x
PQ
m =
2
lim
x
2
6
2
+
x
x x
=
2
lim
x
) 2 (
) 3 )( 2 (
+
x
x x
=
2
lim
x
) 3 ( + x = 5.

This gives the value of the slope of the tangent line at the point P(2, 9) to be m = 5.

Finally, we must find the equation of the tangent line. Now, we are given P(2, 9), that is, x
1
= 2,
y
1
= 9, and m = 5, so that the equation of the tangent line to the curve f(x) = x
2
at the P(2, 9) is
given by
) (
1 1
x x m y y =

y 9 = 5(x 2)

y = 5x 1

x y
Point Q
x x
2
+ x + 3
Point P
2 9
Achange Ax = x 2

Ay = ( x
2
+ x + 3)

9
= x
2
+ x 6

Slope:
PQ
m =
x
y
A
A
=
2
6
2
+
x
x x

Example:


Find the equation of the tangent lines to the curve f(x) =
1
2
x
at P(3, 1 ).
Solution:

through P(3, 1) and Q(x, f(x)). Since we have two points, we can now calculate the slope,
PQ
m , of
the line L that passes through P(3, 1) and Q(x, f(x)).

PQ

m =
3
lim
x
PQ
m =
3
lim
x

) 3 (
1
) 1 (
) 3 (
x x
x
=
3
lim
x
) 1 (
1
x
=
) 1 3 (
1
=
2
1

We can now find the equation of the tangent line. Now, we are given P(3, 1), that is, x
1
= 3,
y
1
= 1, and m =
2
1
, so that the equation of the tangent line to the curve f(x) =
1
2
x
at the
P(3, 1) is given by

) (
1 1
x x m y y = y 1 =
2
1
(x 3) y 1 =
2
1
x
2
3
y =
2
1
x
2
1

x y
Point Q
x
1
2
x

Point P
3 1
Achange Ax = x - 3

Ay =
1
2
x
1
1

=
) 1 (
) 3 (
) 1 (
3
) 1 ( 1
) 1 ( 1 2

x
x
x
x
x
x

Slope:
PQ
m =
x
y
A
A
=
) 3 (
) 1 (
) 3 (
x
x
x
=
) 3 (
1
) 1 (
) 3 (
x x
x

Example:


There is another expression of the slope of a tangent line that is easier to use.

We let h = x c
so that
x = c + h

(h

is the length of the interval between the fixed point P(c, f(c)) and the variable Q(x, f(x))).

Substituting into the slope formula
PQ
m =
c x
c f x f
) ( ) (

we have
PQ
m =
h
c f h c f ) ( ) ( +
.

Since the slope of the tangent line is the limit of a slope of the secant line, our definition for the
slope of the tangent linebecomes:

So far, we know that the slope of the tangent line is given by the formula:

h
c f h c f
h
) ( ) (
lim
0
+

We can generalize this formula so that it applies to any point by replacing c by x.

Definition of the Derivative of a function
Another notation for the slope of the tangent line

By replacing c by x, the slope of the tangent line becomes

h
x f h x f
h
) ( ) (
lim
0
+
.

This new function (that it applies to any point) is called the derivativeof f at the point P(x, f(x)).

Thus, our definition for the derivative of f (slope of the tangent line) becomes:

When the limit of f exist at x = c, we can conclude that the function f is differentiable at x=c,
and ) (c f ' is called the derivative of f at c or the derivative of f with respect to x at c. The
process of finding the derivative of f at c is called differentiation.

Symbols used to denote differentiation

These are the most common symbols used to denote differentiation.

y' (read y prime),

) (x f ' (read f prime of x)

y D
x
(read derivative of y with respect to x).

dx
dy
(read derivative of y with respect to x).


Suppose y = 2x
2
5x 4. Find
dx
dy
and evaluate this derivative at x = 2.
Solution:

dx
dy
=
h
h h xh
h
5 2 4
lim
2
0
+
=
h
h x h
h
) 5 2 4 (
lim
0
+
=
0
lim
h
(4x +2h 5)

dx
dy
= 4x 5

If x = 2, then ) 2 ( f ' = 4(2) 5 = 8 5 = 3.

Using the definition of derivative, find the derivative of the following function.

f(x) = 3

Solution:

) (x f ' =
h
x f h x f
h
) ( ) (
lim
0
+
=
0
lim
h
h
0
= 0. Thus, ) (x f ' = 0.

x y
Point Q
x + h f(x + h) = 2(x + h)
2
5(x + h) 4
= 2x
2
+ 4xh + 2h
2
5x 5h 4
Point P
x f(x) = 2x
2
5x 4
Achange Ax = (x + h) x
= h

Ay = (2x
2
+ 4xh + 2h
2
5x 5h 4) (2x
2
5x 4)

= 4xh + 2h
2
5h

Slope:
PQ
m =
x
y
A
A
=
h
h h xh 5 2 4
2
+

x y
Point Q
x + h f(x + h) = 3
Point P
x f(x) = 3
= h

Ay = 3 3 = 0

Slope:
PQ
m =
x
y
A
A
=
h
0
= 0
Example:
Example:


Using the definition of derivative, find the derivative of y =
1
2
x
.
Solution:

) (x f ' =
h
x f h x f
h
) ( ) (
lim
0
+
=
0
lim
h
(
+

) 1 )( 1 (
2
x h x

=
(

) 1 )( 1 (
2
x x

=
2
) 1 (
2
x

x y
Point Q
x + h
f(x + h) =
1 ) (
2
+ h x
=
1
2
+ h x

Point P
x
f(x) =
1
2
x

= h

Ay =
1
2
+ h x

1
2
x

=
) 1 )( 1 (
) 1 ( 2 ) 1 ( 2
+
+
x h x
h x x

=
) 1 )( 1 (
2 2 2 2 2
+
+
x h x
h x x

=
) 1 )( 1 (
2
+

x h x
h

Slope:
PQ
m =
x
y
A
A
=
h
x h x
h
) 1 )( 1 (
2
+

=
(
+

) 1 )( 1 (
2 1
x h x
h
h
=
(
+

) 1 )( 1 (
2
x h x

Example:


When dealing with average rate of change, the rate is always over some fixed interval of given
values. However, there are situations where we are only interested in the rate at an instance and
not over a range of values. The rate at an instant is called the instantaneous rate. For example,
if a driver looks at his or her speedometer and observes that the needle points at 65 mph, it
implies the driver is driving 65 miles per hour at that instant. It is important to note that speed
always involves two times, the beginning time and the end of interval time. When we calculate
speed, we are interested in how far an object goes in a certain time interval. The speed at an
instant does not imply that the time allowed between the beginning and the end of interval is
zero, since that would lead to a division by zero, which is not allowed in mathematics.

Rather, the speed at an instant means that we are considering only shorter and shorter intervals
of time between the beginning time and the end of interval time, so that the speed has less and
less opportunity to vary, resulting in a value that is a good estimate of the true speed over a very
short interval.

For example, instead of just keeping Ax as a fixed interval, we can consider the average rate of
change over smaller and smaller intervals by letting h

(the length of each interval) to approach
zero.

By letting Ax or h becomes smaller and smaller and approaches zero, we are actually taking the
limit of the average rate of change
x
y
A
A
. The limit of the average rate of change is called the
instantaneous rate. The instantaneous rate is also known as the derivative of the curve since it
is a derived function obtained from the original function, and is often written as
dx
dy
.

If the limit of the average rate of change exist at a particular point P(x, f(x)), then we define the
instantaneous rateas

dx
dy
=
h
x f h x f
h
) ( ) (
lim
0
+

You will observe that the formula for finding instantaneous rate is the same as the formula for
finding slope of the tangent line.

Instantaneous rate of change


When we compute average velocities over shorter and shorter time intervals [c, c + h], that is, as
h approaches 0, the quantity
h
c f h c f ) ( ) ( +
approaches a particular number m. The number m
is called the instantaneous velocity or simply velocity.

Thus, we define the velocity (or the instantaneous velocity) v(c) at t = c to be the limit of the
average velocity.

A ball is thrown up into the air from the ground, its distance (in feet) from the starting point after
t seconds have elapsed is given by the formula f(t) =125t 16t
2
.

Find the instantaneous velocity of the ball:

a) 3 seconds after release. Is the ball still going up or coming down?

b) 4 seconds after release. Is the ball still going up or coming down?

c) When is the maximum height attained?

d) What is the balls initial speed?

Instantaneous velocity
Example of instantaneous velocity

Solution:

Here f(t) =125t 16t
2
. We need to find: v(c) =
0
lim
h
h
c f h c f ) ( ) ( +
.

Therefore, v(c) =
0
lim
h
h
h c h ) 16 32 125 (
=
0
lim
h
) 16 32 125 ( h c

v(c) = c 32 125

a) when c = 3, v(3) = ) 3 ( 32 125 = 29 ft/sec

Therefore, 3 second after the release, the instantaneous velocity is 29 ft/sec. Since the
velocity is positive, the ball is going up at that instant.

b) when c = 4, v(4) = ) 4 ( 32 125 = - 3 ft/sec

Therefore, 4 second after the release, the instantaneous velocity is -3 ft/sec. Since the
velocity is negative, the ball is falling at that instant.

c) The ball is going up when the velocity v(c) is positive, and is going down when the
velocity v(c) is negative. The ball must attain its maximum when the velocity is zero (i.e.
v(c) = 0).

Therefore, for maximum, we have,
v(c) = c 32 125 = 0 c = 3.90625 seconds.

We substitute this time c = 3.9062 seconds into f(t)

f(3.9062) = 125(3.90625 ) 16(3.90625)
2
= 244.14 feet.

d) When c = 0, v(0) = ) 0 ( 32 125 = 125. The balls initial speed is 125 ft/sec.

x y
Point Q
c + h f(c + h) = 125(c + h) 16(c + h)
2

= ) 2 ( 16 125 125
2 2
h ch c h c + + +
=
2 2
16 32 16 125 125 h ch c h c +
Point P
c f(c) = 125c 16c
2
.
Achange Ax = (c + h) c
= h

Ay = f(c + h) f(c) =
2
16 32 125 h ch h

Slope:
PQ
m =
x
y
A
A
=
h
h ch h
2
16 32 125
=
h
h c h ) 16 32 125 (


1. Find the equation of the curve f(x) = x
2
+ x + 3 at the following points
a) P(1, 5) b). P(-1, 3) c) P(2, 9).

2. Find the equation of the graph of f at the point P(x, f(x)) in the following cases:
a. f(x) = 3 x
2
, x = -2. b) f(x) =
x
1
, x = 3.

c) f(x) = -7x + 6, x = 4 d) f(x) = x , x =
2
1
.

e) f(x) = sin x, x =
4
t
f) f(x) = cos x, x = 0

3. Find an equation of the tangent line to the curve f(x) =
x 3 1
5
at the P(2,-1).

4. Find an equation of the tangent line to the curve f(x) = 2 3x
2
at the P(1,-1).

Questions about tangent lines


1. Using the definition of derivative, find the derivative of

(a) f(x) = 2x 5

(b) f(x) = x
2

(c) f(x) = x
2
x

(d) f(x) = x
2
x - 6

(e) f(x) = -5x

(f) f(x) = 5

(g) Compute ) 2 ( f ' for each function.

Questions about the definition of derivative

2. Using the definition of derivative, find the derivative of

a) y =
1
3
+ x

b) y =
x 1
2

c) y =
5
4
x

d) c) y = 3 + x


1. A ball is thrown upward from the ground with an initial velocity of 160 ft/sec. Its height
above the ground, in feet, t seconds later is given by
s(t) = -16t
2
+ 160t.

Find the instantaneous velocity of the ball:

a) 2 seconds after release. Is the ball still going up or coming down?

b) 4 seconds after release. Is the ball still going up or coming down?


d) What is the balls initial speed?

e) When does the ball hit the ground, i.e. when the height equal to zero.

2. A ball is thrown up into the air from the ground, its distance from the starting point after t
seconds is given by the formula y = 52t 16t
2
.

a) Find the average speed of the ball from t = 2 to t = 4.

b) Find the instantaneous velocity of the ball 2 seconds after release.


3. The displacement (in feet) of a certain particle moving in a straight line is given by
s = t + t
2
, where t is measured in seconds. Find:

a) Find the average speed of the ball from t = 1 to t = 2.

b) Find the instantaneous velocity of the ball 2 seconds after release.

c) When is the maximum distance attained?

Questions about velocity

Tangent Lines

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2006 Michael Aryee(aryeemic@shu.

edu) Derivative Page 1

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