Score:

Name:

Business Calculus, Summer 2004

Midterm 2

Instructions: This exam should be taken in 1 hour. Calculators and one hand-written page of notes are allowed. Use the back of the
page if you need extra space.

1. (20pts.) Find the derivative of

2

f (x) =

xex ln 2x
x3 + 1

Solution: The derivative of the numerator is


2
d
d
d  x2 
d  x2

xe ln 2x =
e
(x)ex + x
(ln 2x)
dx
dx
dx
dx
2
2
1
= ex + xex (2x)
(2)
2x
2
2
1
= ex + 2x2 ex
x
and the derivative of the denominator is 3x2 . Therefore the answer is, by using the quotient rule,
 2

 2

2
ex + 2x2 ex x1 (x3 + 1) xex ln 2x (3x2 )
f (x) =
(x3 + 1)2
2

ex (2x5 2x3 + 2x2 + 1) x2

=
(x3 + 1)2

1
x

+ 3x2 ln 2x

2. (20pts.) A rectangular box with an open top and square bottom is to be formed using just 48 square feet of
cardboard. How should the height h and base length l be chosen so as to maximize the volume of the box?
Solution: The base of the box has area l2 , and each of the four sides has area hl. Therefore the total area is
2
2
l2 + 4hl, and the question tells us that l2 + 4hl = 48. Therefore h = 48l
4l . The volume of the box is hl , and
subbing in the formula for h we have
l(48 l2 )
l3
48 l2 2
l =
= 12l .
4l
4
4

V (l) = hl2 =

To maximize this we solve V (l) = 0. We have

3
V (l) = 12 l2 = 0
4
which gives l2 = 16, and therefore l = 4. Then from this we get
h=

48 l2
48 16
=
= 2.
4l
16

So the volume maximizing dimensions are a height of 2 feet and a base length of 4 feet. We can be sure this a
maximum since there is only one critical point and the problem intuitively has a maximum and no minimum.

3. (10 pts.) Find the absolute maximum and absolute minimum value of f (x) = x2 + 16
x on the interval 1 x 4.
The critical points are found by solving f (x) = 0, or
16
=0
x2
16
2x = 2
x
x3 = 8

2x

x=2
Since this is a bounded interval we can solve for the max and min by comparing the values of f at the critical
points and the endpoints. We have f (1) = 1 + 16 = 17, f (2) = 4 + 8 = 12, and f (4) = 16 + 4 = 20. So the
max value of 20 occurs at x = 4 and the min value of 12 occurs at x = 2.
4. (10 pts.) Let f (x) = x3 + 3x2 + 5x 1. Find the equation of the tangent line to y = f (x) at the point (1, 8).
The point (1, 8) is on the tangent line so we only need to find the slope, which is given by the derivative.
Computing that f (x) = 3x2 + 6x + 5, we see f (1) = 3 + 6 + 5 = 14, so the equation of the tangent line is
y 8 = 14(x 1), or y = 14x 6.
5. (10 pts.) $500 invested at an interest rate of r (as a decimal) compounded monthly will grow to A =


r 14
500 1 + 12
after 14 years. Find the instantaneous rate of change of A with respect to r.

Solution: The instantaneous rate of change is of course the derivative, which we can find using the chain rule.
We have

r 
r 13 d 
dA
1+
= 500(14) 1 +
dr
12
dr
12

r 13 1
= 500(14) 1 +
12
12
r 13
1750 
1+
=
3
12

6. (15 pts.) Find the critical points of f (x) = 41 x4 x3 + x2 7. Then use either the first derivative sign test or
the second derivative test to classify them as maxes, mins or nothing points.
Solution: The critical points are found by solving f (x) = 0, which gives
x3 3x2 + 2x = 0
x(x2 3x + 2) = 0
x(x 2)(x 1) = 0.
So the critical points are x = 0, x = 1, and x = 2. Now we use the second derivative test to classify the points.
We have f (x) = 3x2 6x + 2, and then f (0) = 2, f (1) = 1, and f (2) = 2. Hence there are mins at x = 0
and x = 2, and a max at x = 1.
7. (15 pts.) In high gear a truck has a minimum speed of
10 miles per hour. When travelling x miles per hour in
high gear the truck burns gas at the rate of 13 900
x + x gallons per mile. Gas costs $2 a gallon and the driver
is paid $15 an hour. He has to make a 500 mile trip, but he can never exceed 60 miles per hour. What speed
x minimizes the total cost of the trip?
Solution: As in the question let x be the speed travelled, and note that the question restricts our domain to
500
7500
10 x 60. First observe that the trip will take 500
x hours, so the drivers total wages will be

x (15) = x
dollars. The gas cost depends on the number of gallons required, and since he uses 31 900
+
x
gallons
per
mile
x
for each of the 500 miles, the total gas required is


500 900
+x
3
x
which costs (since gas is $2 a gallon)
1000
3


900
300, 000 1000
+x =
+
x.
x
x
3

The total cost of the trip is therefore

C(x) =

300, 000 1000

7500
307, 500 1000
+
x+
=
+
x.
x
3
x
x
3

To maximize this we solve C (x) = 0, which is

307, 500 1000

+
=0
x2
3
1000
307, 500
=
2
x
3
3 307, 500
2
=x
1000
922.5 = x2
30.37 = x

So the minimizing speed would appear to be x = 30.37, but we should somehow verify that is in fact a minimum.
One way is to notice that since this a bounded interval for x, we only need to compare the value of C at the
critical points and the endpoints. We have C(10) = 34, 083.33, C(30.37) = 20248.45, and C(60) = 25125.
Hence the speed of 30.37 actually does minimize the cost.