Continuous function: Difference between revisions
(Created page with "==Definition for functions of one variable== ===At a point=== Consider a function <math>f</math> and a real number <math>c</math> such that <math>f</math> is defined in an [[op...") |
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| 3 || in terms of left and right continuity || <math>f</math> is both left and right continuous at <math>c</math>. | | 3 || in terms of left and right continuity || <math>f</math> is both left and right continuous at <math>c</math>. | ||
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| 4 || <math>\ | | 4 || <math>\varepsilon-\delta</math> || For every <math>\epsilon > 0</math>, there exists <math>\delta > 0</math> such that for all <math>x</math> satisfying <math>|x - c| < \delta</math> (i.e., <math>x \in (c - \delta,c + \delta)</math>), we have <math>|f(x) - f(c)| < \epsilon</math> (i.e., <math>f(x) \in (f(c) - \epsilon,f(c) + \epsilon)</math>). | ||
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| 4' || <math>\ | | 4' || <math>\varepsilon-\delta</math> (variant) || For every <math>\epsilon > 0</math>, there exists <math>\delta > 0</math> such that for all <math>x</math> satisfying <math>0 < |x - c| < \delta</math> (i.e., <math>x \in (c - \delta,c + \delta) \setminus \{ c \}</math>), we have <math>|f(x) - f(c)| < \epsilon</math> (i.e., <math>f(x) \in (f(c) - \epsilon,f(c) + \epsilon)</math>). | ||
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| 5 || in terms of centered open balls (same as <math>\epsilon-\delta</math> without the symbols)|| For every open ball (i.e., [[open interval]]) centered at <math>f(c)</math>, there is an open ball (i.e., [[open interval]]) centered at <math>c</math> such that the image of the open ball centered at <math>c</math> lies inside the open ball centered at <math>f(c)</math>. <toggledisplay>The ''open ball'' centered at <math>f(c)</math> is the interval <math>(f(c) - \epsilon,f(c) + \epsilon)</math> and the ''open ball'' centered at <math>c</math> is the interval <math>(c - \delta, c + \delta)</math>.</toggledisplay> | | 5 || in terms of centered open balls (same as <math>\epsilon-\delta</math> without the symbols)|| For every open ball (i.e., [[open interval]]) centered at <math>f(c)</math>, there is an open ball (i.e., [[open interval]]) centered at <math>c</math> such that the image of the open ball centered at <math>c</math> lies inside the open ball centered at <math>f(c)</math>. <toggledisplay>The ''open ball'' centered at <math>f(c)</math> is the interval <math>(f(c) - \epsilon,f(c) + \epsilon)</math> and the ''open ball'' centered at <math>c</math> is the interval <math>(c - \delta, c + \delta)</math>.</toggledisplay> |
Revision as of 22:20, 3 October 2012
Definition for functions of one variable
At a point
Consider a function and a real number such that is defined in an open interval containing . We say that is continuous at if it satisfies the following equivalent definitions:
No. | Shorthand | What the definition says |
---|---|---|
1 | in terms of limits | . In words, the limit of as exists and equals the value of the function at . |
2 | in terms of one-sided limits | . In words, the left hand limit of at , the right hand limit of at , and the value of at are all equal. |
3 | in terms of left and right continuity | is both left and right continuous at . |
4 | For every , there exists such that for all satisfying (i.e., ), we have (i.e., ). | |
4' | (variant) | For every , there exists such that for all satisfying (i.e., ), we have (i.e., ). |
5 | in terms of centered open balls (same as without the symbols) | For every open ball (i.e., open interval) centered at , there is an open ball (i.e., open interval) centered at such that the image of the open ball centered at lies inside the open ball centered at . [SHOW MORE] |
6 | in terms of not necessarily centered open balls | For every open ball (i.e., open interval) containing , there is an open ball containing such that the image of the open ball containing lies inside the open ball containing . |
On an interval
Consider an interval, which may be open or closed at either end, and may stretch to on the left or on the right. A function from such an interval to the real numbers is termed continuous if it satisfies the following two conditions:
- It is continuous (in the sense of continuous at a point) at all points in the interior of the interval, i.e., all points such that there is an open ball containing the point lying inside the domain interval.
- It has the appropriate one-sided continuity at endpoints: If the interval has a left endpoint (e.g., the interval is of the form , , or , then it must be right continuous at the left endpoint ( in all three example intervals). If the interval has a right endpoint (e.g., the interval is of the form , , or ), then it must be left continuous at the right endpoint ( in all three example intervals).