Volume 1 Domain and Range
Volume 1 Domain and Range
The domain is the set of all possible x-values which will make the function
"work", and will output real y-values.
Example 1a
12345-1-2-3-4123xy
Domain: \displaystyle{x}\ge-{4}x≥−4
Interactive examples
Notes:
1. The enclosed (colored-in) circle on the point \displaystyle{\left(-
{4},{0}\right)}(−4,0). This indicates that the domain "starts" at this
point.
2. We saw how to draw similar graphs in section 4, Graph of a Function.
For a more advanced discussion, see also How to draw y^2 = x − 2.
Range
The range of a function is the complete set of all possible resulting values of
the dependent variable (y, usually), after we have substituted the domain.
The range is the resulting y-values we get after substituting all the possible x-
values.
Example 1b
12345-1-2-3-4123xy
Range: \displaystyle{y}\ge{0}y≥0
The curve goes on forever vertically, beyond what is shown on the graph, so
the range is all non-negative values of \displaystyle{y}y.
Example 2
The graph of the curve y = sin x shows the range to be betweeen −1 and 1.
12345-1-2-3-4-5-6-71-1xy
Range: \displaystyle-{1}\le{y}\le{1}−1≤y≤1
The domain of y = sin x is "all values of x", since there are no restrictions on
the values for x. (Put any number into the "sin" function in your calculator. Any
number should work, and will give you a final answer between −1 and 1.)
From the calculator experiment, and from observing the curve, we can see
the range is y betweeen −1 and 1. We could write this as −1 ≤ y ≤ 1.
Where did this graph come from? We learn about sin and cos graphs later
in Graphs of sin x and cos x
Note 1: Because we are assuming that only real numbers are to be used for
the x-values, numbers that lead to division by zero or to imaginary
numbers (which arise from finding the square root of a negative number) are
not included. The Complex Numbers chapter explains more about imaginary
numbers, but we do not include such numbers in this chapter.
Note 2: When doing square root examples, many people ask, "Don't we get 2
answers, one positive and one negative when we find a square root?" A
square root has at most one value, not two. See this discussion: Square Root
16 - how many answers?
Note 3: We are talking about the domain and range of functions, which
have at most one y-value for each x-value, not relations (which can have
more than one.).
Finding domain and range without using a graph
It's always a lot easier to work out the domain and range when reading it off
the graph (but we must make sure we zoom in and out of the graph to make
sure we see everything we need to see). However, we don't always have
access to graphing software, and sketching a graph usually requires knowing
about discontinuities and so on first anyway.
Example 3
In the numerator (top) of this fraction, we have a square root. To make sure
the values under the square root are non-negative, we can only
choose \displaystyle{x}x-values grater than or equal to -2.
Between \displaystyle{x}=-
{2}x=−2 and \displaystyle{x}={3}x=3, \displaystyle{\left({x}^{2}-
{9}\right)}(x2−9) gets closer to \displaystyle{0}0, so \displaystyle
f{{\left({x}\right)}}f(x) will go to \displaystyle-\infty−∞ as it gets
near \displaystyle{x}={3}x=3.
For very large \displaystyle{x}x, the top is large, but the bottom will be much
larger, so overall, the function value will be very small.
Show graph
Summary
In general, we determine the domain by looking for those values of the
independent variable (usually x) which we are allowed to use. (We have to
avoid 0 on the bottom of a fraction, or negative values under the square root
sign).
The range is found by finding the resulting y-values after we have substituted
in the possible x-values.
Exercise 1
Answer
Need Graph Paper?
Answer
Answer
(d) \displaystyle
f{{\left({x}\right)}}={x}^{2}+{4}f(x)=x2+4 for \displaystyle{x}>{2}x>2
Answer
Exercise 2
In case you missed it earlier, you can see more examples of domain and range in the
section Inverse Trigonometric Functions.
See also Domain and Range interactive applet.
We fire a ball up in the air and find the height h, in metres, as a function of
time t, in seconds, is given by
h = 20t − 4.9t2