Lesson 2.3 - AP Precalculus - Calc Medic
Lesson 2.3 - AP Precalculus - Calc Medic
Symmetry in everyday language refers to a sense of harmonious and beautiful proportion and
balance. There’s even research says that we rate symmetric faces as being more attractive!
Today we will investigate further what it means for functions to be symmetric and how we
might predict the symmetry of a graph from its equation.
1. The graph of 𝑓(𝑥) = 𝑥 ! − 2 is below. What do you notice about the symmetry of 𝑓?
4. Given an equation of a function, how could you check if the function has y-axis symmetry
without looking at a graph?
5. The graph of 𝑔(𝑥) = 𝑥 " − 4𝑥 is below. What do you notice about the symmetry of 𝑔?
8. Given an equation of a function, how could you check if the function is symmetric across the
origin without looking at a graph?
9. How symmetric is Anne Hathaway’s face? (See photo above). How can you tell?
Lesson 2.3 – Even and Odd Functions
QuickNotes
2. If (3, −18) is on the graph of an even function, what other point is guaranteed to be on the
graph?
4. True or false: If the statement is true, explain why it must be true using the definitions of
even and odd functions. If it is false, provide a counterexample.
a. All even functions go through the origin.
b. If each term in a polynomial function has an even exponent, the function is even.