CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I

Nadine Yamout

University of New South Wales

February, 2017

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

NUMBERS

• Natural Numbers: The most basic counting numbers.

N = {1, 2, 3, 4, ...}

• Integers: Natural numbers augmented by the number zero and by

the negatives of natural numbers.
Z = {..., −3, −2, −1, 0, 1, 2, 3, ...}

• Rational Numbers: Formed by taking the ratio of integers.

Q = { ba : a, b ∈ Z; b 6= 0}

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

NUMBERS

• Irrational Numbers: Numbers that cannot be written as ratio of

integers. p
P include 2, e , π

• Real Numbers: The set of all rational and irrational numbers.

R = {Q, P}

• Complex Numbers: Includes imaginary numbers which are

numbers whose
p squares are negative numbers.
C = {a + b −1 : a, b ∈ R}

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

VOCABULARY OF SETS

DEFINITION
A set is any well-specified collection of elements.

EXAMPLE
• The set of students in a class.
• The set of cars in Australia.

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

VOCABULARY OF SETS

• A set may contain:

• finitely many elements: the set of people in the room.
• infinitely many elements: the set of real numbers.

• For any set A and element a, we write:

• a∈A to indicate that a is a member of the set A.
• a∈
6 A to indicate that a is not a member of the set A.

• A set that contains no elements is called an empty set or a null

set and is denoted by φ .

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

OPERATIONS WITH SETS

Given two sets A and B , new sets can be formed through the following
set operations on A and B :
• Union: A ∪ B is the set of all elements that are either in A or in B
(or in both).
A ∪ B = {x : x ∈ A or x ∈ B }
• Intersection: A ∩ B is the set of all elements that are common to
both A and B .
A ∩ B = {x : x ∈ A and x ∈ B }
• Minus: A − B is the set of elements of A that are not in B .
A − B = {x : x ∈ A and x 6∈ B }

EXAMPLE
Consider the sets A = {1, 2, 3, 4} and B = {3, 4, 5, 6}. Compute A ∪ B ,
A ∩ B , and A − B .

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

EUCLIDEAN N-SPACE

DEFINITION
Euclidean n-space Rn is defined as the set of all n-tuples (x1 , ..., xn ) of
real numbers xi .
Rn := {(x1 , ..., xn ) : xi ∈ R, i = 1, ..., n}
An element of Rn is often called a point in Rn or a vector in Rn .

EXAMPLE
• R: The line 3: point in R
2
• R : The plane (2, 5): vector in R2
• R3 : The space (6, 9, 5): vector in R3

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

ALGEBRA OF VECTORS

Given two vectors x and y , with x , y ∈ Rn , new vectors can be formed

through the following vector operations on x and y :
• Addition: x + y is the vector formed by adding separately the
corresponding coordinates of the vectors x and y .
x + y = (x1 , ..., xn ) + (y1 , ..., yn ) = (x1 + y1 , ..., xn + yn )
• Subtraction: x − y is the vector formed by subtracting separately
the corresponding coordinates of the vectors x and y .
x − y = (x1 , ..., xn ) − (y1 , ..., yn ) = (x1 − y1 , ..., xn − yn )
• Scalar Multiplication: rx is the vector formed by multiplying
separately each coordinate of the vector x by the scalar r .
rx = r (x1 , ..., xn ) = (rx1 , ..., rxn )

EXAMPLE
Consider the vectors x = (2, 3, 7) and y = (4, 8, 1). Compute x + y ,
x − y , and 2x .

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

NORM

DEFINITION
In Rn , the length of a vector x ∈ Rn , usually called the norm kx k of x ,
is defined by
q
kx k = x12 + x22 + · · · + xn2

EXAMPLE
Compute the norm of the vector x = (2, 3, 5).

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

NORM

THEOREM
For all x , y ∈ Rn and α ∈ R, the norm k.k satisfies the following
properties:
• kx k ≥ 0
• kx k = 0 if and only if x = 0
• kαx k = |α|. kx k
• kx + y k ≤ kx k + ky k (Triangle Inequality)

EXAMPLE
Consider the vectors x = (1, 0) and y = (0, 1). Show the Triangle
Inequality for these two vectors.

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

DOT PRODUCT

DEFINITION
Given x , y ∈ Rn , the dot product or inner product of the vectors x and
y , denoted by x · y , is defined as
x · y = (x1 , ..., xn ) · (y1 , ..., yn ) = x1 y1 + · · · + xn yn

Remark: The norm and the dot product are related through the
p
following identity: kx k = x · x .

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

DOT PRODUCT

THEOREM
For all x , y , z ∈ Rn and α ∈ R, the dot product satisfies the following
properties:
• x ·y =y ·x
• x · (y + z) = x · y + x · z
• (αx) · y = x · (αy ) = α(x · y )
• |x · y | ≤ kx k ky k (Cauchy-Shwarz Inequality)

EXAMPLE
Compute the dot product of the vectors x = (1, 0, 5) and y = (3, 6, 1).

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

DOT PRODUCT

THEOREM
Let x and y be two vectors in Rn and let θ ∈ [0, 2π] be the angle
between x and y . Then
x · y = kx k ky k cos θ

The theorem implies that:

• x ·y >0⇒ the angle between x and y is acute.

• x ·y <0⇒ the angle between x and y is obtuse.
• x · y = ± kx k ky k ⇒ the vectors x and y are collinear.
• x · y = 0 ⇒ the vectors x and y are orthogonal.

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

METRIC

DEFINITION
Given x , y ∈ Rn , the distance between the vectors x and y , denoted by
d(x , y ), is defined as
p
d(x , y ) = (x1 − y1 )2 + · · · + (xn − yn )2
The distance function d is called the metric.

EXAMPLE
In R2 , choose two points x = (x1 , x2 ) and y = (y1 , y2 ) with x1 − y1 = a
and x2 − y2 = b. Then Pythagoras states that
p p
d(x , y ) = (x1 − y1 )2 + · · · + (xn − yn )2 = a2 + b 2

Remark: The metric and the norm are related through the following
identity: d(x , y ) = kx − y k .

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

FUNCTIONS

DEFINITION
Let X and Y be two sets. Then, f is a function from the domain X to
the range Y if for each x ∈ X , there exists a unique y ∈ Y which is
assigned by f to x .

DEFINITION
Two functions f : X → Y and g : X → Y are equal if f (x) = g (x) for all
x ∈ X.

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

COMPOSITE FUNCTIONS

DEFINITION
Let f : X → Y and g : Y → Z be two functions. Then the composition
of f and g is a mapping h = g ◦ f : X → Z where h(x) = g [f (x)].

• Remark: It must be the case that the domain of g is the range of

f in the composition g ◦ f
• If f : X → X and g : X → X , then two different compositions exist
• composition of f and g : g ◦ f : X → X
• composition of g and f : f ◦ g : X → X

EXAMPLE
Consider f : R → R and g : R → R defined by
f (x) = x 3 + x 4 g (x) = x + 1

Compute g ◦ f and f ◦ g .

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

DIFFERENTIATION RULES

THEOREM
Suppose that k is an arbitrary constant and that f : R → R and
g : R → R are differentiable functions at x then,
d d d


• dx f (x) ± g (x) = dx f (x) ± dx g (x)

d d


• dx kf (x) = k dx f (x)

d d d




• dx f (x).g (x) = dx f (x) g (x) + f (x) dx g (x)

d d



d f (x)
dx f (x) g (x) − f (x) dx g (x)
• dx =
g (x) g (x)2

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

DIFFERENTIATION RULES

THEOREM
Suppose that k is an arbitrary constant and that f : R → R and
g : R → R are differentiable functions at x then,
d d



• dx f (x)k = kf (x)k −1 dx f (x)

d


• dx x k = kx k −1

d
d dx f(x)


• dx ln(f (x)) =
f (x)

d d




• dx exp(f (x)) = dx f (x) exp f (x)

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

FUNCTIONS FROM Rm TO R

DEFINITION
A function from Rm to R (sometimes called a real-valued function of
m variables) is a rule which associates to each point in Rm some point
in R. We write
f : Rm → R
to indicate that f (x) ∈ R is defined for x ∈ Rm .

EXAMPLE
A function f : R2 → R given by
f (x , y ) = x 2 + 2y 3
where (x , y ) ∈ R2

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

DIRECTIONAL DERIVATIVE

DEFINITION
For any vector v , the direction d is given by normalizing v to a unit
length:
v
d=
kv k

EXAMPLE
Find the direction of the vector v = (1, 2).

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

DIRECTIONAL DERIVATIVE

DEFINITION
For a function f : Rm → R and a direction d , define
f (a + sd) − f (a)
f 0 (d , a) = lim
s →0 s
provided the limit exists. This limit is called the directional derivative
of the function f at the point a in the direction d .

EXAMPLE
Find the directional derivative of the function f (x1 , x2 ) = x1 x2 at the
point a = (a1 , a2 ) in the directions of the vectors
• u = (1, 0)
• v = (1, 2)

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

PARTIAL DERIVATIVE

DEFINITION
Consider the function f : Rm → R. We define the j th partial derivative
of f at the point a to be the directional derivative of f at a with
respect to the vector ej , provided this derivative exists; and we denote
it by Dj f (a). That is,

f (a + sej ) − f (a)
Dj f (a) = lim
s →0 s
Remark: To calculate the partial derivative of a function f with
respect to any variable, pretend the other variables are constant and
differentiate f .
EXAMPLE
Using two different methods, find the partial derivatives at the point
a = (a1 , a2 ) of the function f (x1 , x2 ) = 2x12 x2 + 5x1

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

PARTIAL DERIVATIVE

DEFINITION
Consider the function f : Rm → R. We define the gradient vector of f
at the point a as

∇f (a) = [D1 f (a), D2 f (a), ..., Dm f (a)]

EXAMPLE
Find the gradient vector at the point a = (a1 , a2 ) of the function
f (x1 , x2 ) = x12 x23 + x1 exp(x2 )

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

HIGHER ORDER PARTIAL DERIVATIVES

DEFINITION
Consider the function f : R2 → R. Since f (x1 , x2 ) is a function of two
variables, then the partial derivatives D1 f (x1 , x2 ) and D2 f (x1 , x2 ) are
also functions of two variables. Hence, they can be differentiated again
with respect to x1 and x2 at the point a. That is, we define

∂ 2 f (a) ∂ 2 f (a)
D11 f (a) = D12 f (a) =
∂ x12 ∂ x1 ∂ x2

∂ 2 f (a) ∂ 2 f (a)
D21 f (a) = D22 f (a) =
∂ x2 ∂ x1 ∂ x22

EXAMPLE
Find the second-order partial derivatives at the point a = (a1 , a2 ) of
the function f (x1 , x2 ) = 2x12 x2 + 5x1

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

HIGHER ORDER PARTIAL DERIVATIVES

DEFINITION
Consider the function f : Rm → R. The m × m matrix representing the
second-order partial derivatives of the function f at the point a is
called the Hessian matrix of f :
···
 
D11 f (a) D12 f (a) D1m f (a)
 D21 f (a) D22 f (a) ··· D2m f (a) 
Hf (a) =  .. .. .. .. 

. . . .

Dm1 f (a) Dm2 f (a) ··· Dmm f (a)

EXAMPLE
Find the Hessian matrix at the point a = (a1 , a2 ) of the function
f (x1 , x2 ) = x12 x23 + x1 exp(x2 )

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

FUNCTIONS FROM Rm TO Rn

DEFINITION
A function from Rm to Rn (sometimes called a vector-valued function
of m variables) is a rule which associates to each point in Rm some
point in Rn . We write
f : Rm → Rn
to indicate that f (x) ∈ Rn is defined for x ∈ Rm .

EXAMPLE
A function f : R3 → R2 given by
f (x , y , z) = (x 2 + 3yz , z 3 + xyz)
where (x , y , z) ∈ R3

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

PARTIAL DERIVATIVES

DEFINITION
Consider the function f : Rm → Rn . If the partial derivative of the
component function fi of f exists at the point a, then one can form
the matrix that has Dj fi (a) as its entry in row i and column j . This
n × m matrix is called the Jacobian matrix of f :
D1 f1 (a) D2 f1 (a) · · ·
 
Dm f1 (a)
 D1 f2 (a) D2 f2 (a) · · · Dm f2 (a) 
Jf (a) =  .. .. .. .. 

. . . .

D1 fn (a) D2 fn (a) · · · Dm fn (a)

EXAMPLE
Find the Jacobian matrix at the point a = (a1 , a2 , a3 ) of the function
f (x1 , x2 , x3 ) = (x1 + 3x2 x3 , exp(x2 ) + 5x12 x2 x3 )

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT

REFERENCES

• Alpha Chiang, Fundamental Methods of Mathematical

Economics, Third Edition, McGraw-Hill, 1984.
• Carl Simon and Lawrence Blume, Mathematics for Economists,
New York: Norton, 1994.
• Jianfei Shen, Mathematics for Economics and Finance, University
of New South Wales, 2012.
• Knut Sydsæter, Peter Hammond, Atle Seierstad, and Arne Strom,
Further Mathematics for Economic Analysis, Second Edition,
Prentice Hall, 2008.
• Malcom Pemberton snd Nicholas Rau, Mathematics for
Economists: An Introductory Textbook, Manchester University
Press, 2001.

CALCULUS AND FUNCTIONS I NADINE YAMOUT