MAT 114, Week 10

Dr. Miles Askes

Stellenbosch University

1. Infinite Limits; Vertical Asymptotes

Definition 1.1

The vertical line x = a is called a vertical asymptote of the curve y = f (x) if at least one of
the following statements is true:

limx→a f (x) = ∞ limx→a− f (x) = ∞ limx→a+ f (x) = ∞

limx→a f (x) = −∞ limx→a− f (x) = −∞ limx→a+ f (x) = −∞

2x
Example 1.1 Does the curve y = x−3 have a vertical asymptote?

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2. Limits at Infinity; Horizontal Asymptotes

Let’s begin by investigating the behavior of the function f defined by

x2 − 1
f (x) =
x2 + 1
as x becomes large.
x f (x)
0 -1
±1 0
±2 0.600000
±3 0.800000
±4 0.882353
±5 0.923077
±10 0.980198
±100 0.999800
±1000 0.999998

You can see that as x grows larger and larger, the values of f (x) get closer and closer to 1. In fact, it
seems that we can make the values of f (x) as close as we like to 1 by taking x sufficiently large. This
situation is expressed symbolically by writing

lim f (x) = 1 and lim f (x) = 1

x→−∞ x→∞

x2 − 1
lim =1
x→∞ x2 + 1

Also, we see this from the graph:

y
1

Definition 2.1

The line y = L is called a horizontal asymptote of the curve y = f (x) if

lim f (x) = L or lim f (x) = L

x→∞ x→−∞

Vertical Asymptotes: Undefined Behavior

Vertical asymptotes occur where the function becomes undefined. This usually happens when the de-
nominator of a rational function is zero. At the point where the denominator is zero, you’d be dividing
by zero, which is undefined in mathematics. Therefore, the function cannot have a defined value at that
specific x-value, and the graph cannot cross the vertical asymptote. In essence, the function is “blowing
up” toward infinity (positive or negative) as it approaches that x-value.
Horizontal Asymptotes: Long-Term Trend

Horizontal asymptotes describe the behavior of a function as x approaches positive or negative infinity.
They represent the “long-term” trend of the function. The function’s value approaches the horizontal

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asymptote as x gets extremely large or extremely small. However, the function can cross the horizontal
asymptote at finite x-values. The horizontal asymptote only dictates the behavior at the ”ends” of the
graph. It is the long term trend, and not a local restriction. Think of it as a race. A car might cross the
finish line multiple times during practice, but at the end of the race, it will approach the finish line, and
that is the horizontal asymptote. Note the following graph has got a horizontal asymptote:

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Example 2.1 Find limx→∞ x and limx→−∞ x1 .

Theorem 2.1
If r is a positive rational number, then
1 1
lim =0 and lim = 0, provided xr exists for all negative x
x→∞ xr x→−∞ xr
1
More generally, if limx→±∞ f (x) = ±∞, then limx→±∞ f (x) = 0.

The Limit Laws from Week 4 are also valid for limits at infinity. For limits at infinity of rational functions,
divide by an appropriate power of x above and below. Then apply the limit laws together with the above
theorem.

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Example 2.2 Evaluate
3x2 − x − 2
lim
x→∞ 5x2 + 4x + 1

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Example 2.3 Find the horizontal asymptotes of the graph of the function
√
2x2 + 1
f (x) =
3x − 5

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 Example 2.4 Determine the following limits, if they exist.
√
1. limx→−∞ ( x2 + 1 − x)
√
2. limx→∞ ( x2 + 1 − x)

Slant Asymptotes
Some curves have asymptotes that are oblique, that is, neither horizontal nor vertical. If

lim [f (x) − (mx + b)] = 0

x→∞

where m ̸= 0, then the line y = mx + b is called a slant asymptote because the vertical distance between
the curve y = f (x) and the line y = mx + b approaches 0, as in the graph below. (A similar situation
exists if we let x → −∞.) In the case of rational functions, slant asymptotes occur when the degree of
the numerator is one more than the degree of the denominator. In such a case the equation of the slant
asymptote can be found by long division as in the following example.

f (x)

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Example 2.5 Determine the slant asymptote of

x3
f (x) =
x2 + 1

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 Example 2.6 Determine the slant asymptote of

2x4 + x3 − 1
f (x) =
x3 + 1

Infinite Limits at Infinity

The notation

lim f (x) = ∞
x→∞

is used to indicate that the values of f (x) become large as x becomes large. Similar meanings are attached
to the following symbols:

lim f (x) = ∞ lim f (x) = −∞ lim f (x) = −∞

x→−∞ x→∞ x→−∞

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Example 2.7 Find limx→∞ x2 − x

x2 +x
Example 2.8 Find limx→∞ 3−x

Example 2.9 Determine

1. limx→−∞ (x4 − 2x2 + 2x)
2. limx→−∞ (x5 + 3x3 − x + 1)

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3. Curve Sketching

So far we have been concerned with some particular aspects of curve sketching: domain, range, limits,
continuity, and asymptotes, derivatives, tangents, extreme values, intervals of increase and decrease,
concavity and points of inflection. It is now time to put all of this information together to sketch graphs
that reveal the important features of functions.
You might ask: Why don’t we just use a graphing calculator or computer to graph a curve? Why do we
need to use calculus?
It’s true that technology is capable of producing very accurate graphs. But even the best graphing devices
have to be used intelligently. It is easy to arrive at a misleading graph, or to miss important details of a
curve, when relying solely on technology. The use of calculus enables us to discover the most interesting
aspects of graphs and in many cases to calculate maximum and minimum points and inflection points
exactly instead of approximately.

Guidelines for Sketching a Curve

The following checklist is intended as a guide to sketching a curve y = f (x) by hand. Not every item
is relevant to every function. (For instance, a given curve might not have an asymptote or possess
symmetry.) But the guidelines provide all the information you need to make a sketch that displays the
most important aspects of the function.

A Domain It’s often useful to start by determining the domain D of f , that is, the set of values of x
for which f (x) is defined.
B Intercepts The y-intercept is f (0) and this tells us where the curve intersects the y-axis. To find
the x-intercepts, we set y = 0 and solve for x. (You can omit this step if the equation is difficult to
solve.)
C Symmetry
(a) If f (−x) = f (x) for all x in D, that is, the equation of the curve is unchanged when x is
replaced by −x, then f is an even function and the curve is symmetric about the y-axis. This
means that our work is cut in half. If we know what the curve looks like for x ⩾ 0, then we
need only reflect about the y-axis to obtain the complete curve.
(b) If f (−x) = −f (x) for all x in D, then f is an odd function and the curve is symmetric about
the origin. Again we can obtain the complete curve if we know what it looks like for x ⩾ 0.
(c) If f (x + p) = f (x) for all x in D, where p is a positive constant, then f is a periodic function
and the smallest such number p is called the period. For instance, y = sin x has period 2π and
y = tan x has period π. If we know what the graph looks like in an interval of length p, then
we can use translation to visualize the entire graph.
D Asymptotes
(a) Horizontal Asymptotes. Recall that if either limx→∞ f (x) = L or limx→−∞ f (x) = L,
then the line y = L is a horizontal asymptote of the curve y = f (x). If it turns out that
limx→∞ f (x) = ∞ (or −∞), then we do not have an asymptote to the right, but this fact is
still useful information for sketching the curve.
(b) Vertical Asymptotes. Recall that the line x = a is a vertical asymptote if at least one of
the following statements is true:

limx→a+ f (x) = ∞ limx→a− f (x) = ∞

limx→a+ f (x) = −∞ limx→a− f (x) = −∞

(For rational functions you can locate the vertical asymptotes by equating the denominator to
0 after canceling any common factors. But for other functions this method does not apply.)
Furthermore, in sketching the curve it is useful to know exactly which of the statements above
are true. If f (a) is not defined but a is an endpoint of the domain of f , then you should
compute limx→a− f (x) or limx→a+ f (x), whether or not this limit is infinite.

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 (c) Slant Asymptotes. These are dealt with in a similar manner.
E Intervals of Increase or Decrease Use the I/D Test. Compute f ′ (x) and find the intervals
on which f ′ (x) is positive ( f is increasing) and the intervals on which f ′ (x) is negative ( f is
decreasing).
F Local Maximum or Minimum Values Find the critical numbers of f [the numbers c where
f ′ (c) = 0 or f ′ (c) does not exist]. Then use the First Derivative Test. If f ′ changes from positive
to negative at a critical number c, then f (c) is a local maximum. If f ′ changes from negative
to positive at c, then f (c) is a local minimum. Although it is usually preferable to use the First
Derivative Test, you can use the Second Derivative Test if f ′ (c) = 0 and f ′′ (c) ̸= 0. Then f ′′ (c) > 0
implies that f (c) is a local minimum, whereas f ′′ (c) < 0 implies that f (c) is a local maximum.
G Concavity and Points of Inflection Compute f ′′ (x) and use the Concavity Test. The curve is
concave upward where f ′′ (x) > 0 and concave downward where f ′′ (x) < 0. Inflection points occur
where the direction of concavity changes.

H Sketch the Curve Using the information in items A-G, draw the graph. Sketch the asymptotes as
dashed lines. Plot the intercepts, maximum and minimum points, and inflection points. Then make
the curve pass through these points, rising and falling according to E, with concavity according to
G, and approaching the asymptotes.

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 2x2
Example 3.1 Use the guidelines to sketch the curve y = x2 −1

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 cos x
Example 3.2 Sketch the graph of f (x) = 2+sin x

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Example 3.3 Sketch the graph of y = ln 4 − x2

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 x2
Example 3.4 Sketch the graph of f (x) = x−1

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