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Quotient Rule Worksheet

The document discusses the quotient rule for logarithms which states that the logarithm of a quotient can be written as the difference of logarithms. It provides examples of using the quotient rule to simplify logarithmic expressions and write logarithmic differences as a single logarithm. The document also contains practice problems for students to use the quotient rule to simplify logarithmic expressions involving fractions, products, and algebraic expressions.

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Ailyn Ocomen
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166 views5 pages

Quotient Rule Worksheet

The document discusses the quotient rule for logarithms which states that the logarithm of a quotient can be written as the difference of logarithms. It provides examples of using the quotient rule to simplify logarithmic expressions and write logarithmic differences as a single logarithm. The document also contains practice problems for students to use the quotient rule to simplify logarithmic expressions involving fractions, products, and algebraic expressions.

Uploaded by

Ailyn Ocomen
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Quotient Rule of Logarithms


logb xy  logb x  logb y

Part I) Model Problems


Part II) Warm Up Problems
Part III) Practice problems
Part IV) Algebraic problems
Part V) Challenge Problems
Part VI) Answer Key

Relevant urls:
Log Rules: www.mathwarehouse.com/logs/

Online Scientific/Graphing Calculator


http://www.meta-calculator.com/online/

(yes, it can graph logarithms!)


Quotient Rule for Logarithms
For logarithms of any base, you can rewrite the logarithm of a quotient as the difference of
logarithms.

In other words, for any positive numbers X and Y and any positive base b, the following formula
is true:
X
logb   = logbX – logbY
Y 
Example 1

 5
Simplify log2   .
 8
 5 Use the Quotient Rule for Logarithms.
log2   = log25 – log28
 8

The answer is log25 – log28

In the following example you will evaluate the logarithm using known values.

Example 2

 3
Given log23 = 1.58 and log217 = 4.09, find log2   .
 17 
 3 Use the Quotient Rule for Logarithms.
log2   = log23 – log217
 17 
= 1.58 – 4.09 Substitute.
= –2.51 Simplify.

The answer is –2.51

The next example shows how to rewrite a difference as the logarithm of a single number.

Example 3

Write log235 – log25 as the logarithm of a single number.

 35  Use the Quotient Rule for Logarithms.


log235 – log25 = log2  
 5
= log27 Simplify.

The answer is log27


II. Warm Ups
Try the following exercises on your own.
Use the quotient rule for logarithms to simplify each expression.

 11  9
1. log2   = __________ 2. log2   = __________
 2  5

 4  18 
3. log2   = __________ 4. log2   = __________
 7  7

 16   25 
5. log2   = __________ 6. log2   = __________
 5  3

III. Practice Problems


Write the following differences as the logarithm of a single number.

7. log310 – log35 = __________ 8. log714 – log77 = __________

9. log56 – log511 = __________ 10. log324 – log36 = __________

11. log333 – log311 = __________ 12. log5100 – log525 = __________

IV. Algebraic Problems


Algebraic expressions can also be rewritten using the product rule for logarithms, as shown in the
following example.

Example 4

 xy 
Simplify log2 
 z 
.

 xy  Use the Quotient Rule for Logarithms.


log2   = log2(xy) – log2z
 z 
= log2x + log2y – log2z Use the Product Rule for Logarithms.

The answer is log2x + log2y – log2z

Use the quotient rule to simplify each expression.

 x  m
13. log2   = __________ 14. log2   = __________
 ab  p

 4  rs 
15. log2   = __________ 16. log2   = __________
x  16 
V.Extension Problems

 25 
17. Let logb5 = x and logb3 = y. What is the value of logb   in terms of x and y?
 3

18. Correct the error


There is an error in the student work shown below.

 7x 
Directions: Simplify log2 
 3 
.

7 x 
log2   = log2(7x) – log23
 3 
= log27 – log2x – log23

What is the error in the work above?

______________________________________________________________________

What should the student have done instead of what he or she did?

______________________________________________________________________

19. In Your Own Words


Tammy finds that when she takes the logarithm of a fraction between 0 and 1, the result is always
negative. Use your knowledge of the Quotient Rule for Logarithms to explain why this is true.

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________
Answer Key
1. log211 – log22 = log211 – 2
2. log29 – log25
3. log24 – log27 = 2 – log27
4. log218 – log27
5. log216 – log25 = 4 – log25
6. log225 – log23
7. log32
8. log22 = 1
9. log5(6/11)
10. log34
11. log33 = 1
12. log54
13. log2x – log2a – log2b
14. log2m – log2p
15. 2 – log2x
16. log2r + log2s – 4
17. 2x – y
18. The student incorrectly simplified log2(7x) as log27 – log2x.
19. Let M/N be a fraction between 0 and 1 (thus M < N). By the Quotient Rule for Logarithms,
log(M/N) equals log(M) – log(N). Since M < N, log(M) < log(N) and the difference log(M) –
log(N) is negative.

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