<< Chapter < Page Chapter >> Page >

Finding the domain of a composite function involving radicals

Find the domain of

( f g ) ( x )   where f ( x ) = x + 2   and   g ( x ) = 3 x

Because we cannot take the square root of a negative number, the domain of g is ( , 3 ] . Now we check the domain of the composite function

( f g ) ( x ) = 3 x + 2   or ( f g ) ( x ) = 5 x

The domain of this function is ( , 5 ] . To find the domain of f g , we ask ourselves if there are any further restrictions offered by the domain of the composite function. The answer is no, since ( , 3 ] is a proper subset of the domain of f g . This means the domain of f g is the same as the domain of g , namely, ( , 3 ] .

Got questions? Get instant answers now!
Got questions? Get instant answers now!

Find the domain of

( f g ) ( x )   where f ( x ) = 1 x 2   and   g ( x ) = x + 4

[ 4 , 0 ) ( 0 , )

Got questions? Get instant answers now!

Decomposing a composite function into its component functions

In some cases, it is necessary to decompose a complicated function. In other words, we can write it as a composition of two simpler functions. There may be more than one way to decompose a composite function , so we may choose the decomposition that appears to be most expedient.

Decomposing a function

Write f ( x ) = 5 x 2 as the composition of two functions.

We are looking for two functions, g and h , so f ( x ) = g ( h ( x ) ) . To do this, we look for a function inside a function in the formula for f ( x ) . As one possibility, we might notice that the expression 5 x 2 is the inside of the square root. We could then decompose the function as

h ( x ) = 5 x 2  and  g ( x ) = x

We can check our answer by recomposing the functions.

g ( h ( x ) ) = g ( 5 x 2 ) = 5 x 2
Got questions? Get instant answers now!
Got questions? Get instant answers now!

Write f ( x ) = 4 3 4 + x 2 as the composition of two functions.

Possible answer:

g ( x ) = 4 + x 2 h ( x ) = 4 3 x f = h g

Got questions? Get instant answers now!

Access these online resources for additional instruction and practice with composite functions.

Key equation

Composite function ( f g ) ( x ) = f ( g ( x ) )

Key concepts

  • We can perform algebraic operations on functions. See [link] .
  • When functions are combined, the output of the first (inner) function becomes the input of the second (outer) function.
  • The function produced by combining two functions is a composite function. See [link] and [link] .
  • The order of function composition must be considered when interpreting the meaning of composite functions. See [link] .
  • A composite function can be evaluated by evaluating the inner function using the given input value and then evaluating the outer function taking as its input the output of the inner function.
  • A composite function can be evaluated from a table. See [link] .
  • A composite function can be evaluated from a graph. See [link] .
  • A composite function can be evaluated from a formula. See [link] .
  • The domain of a composite function consists of those inputs in the domain of the inner function that correspond to outputs of the inner function that are in the domain of the outer function. See [link] and [link] .
  • Just as functions can be combined to form a composite function, composite functions can be decomposed into simpler functions.
  • Functions can often be decomposed in more than one way. See [link] .

Section exercises

Verbal

How does one find the domain of the quotient of two functions, f g ?

Find the numbers that make the function in the denominator g equal to zero, and check for any other domain restrictions on f and g , such as an even-indexed root or zeros in the denominator.

Got questions? Get instant answers now!

Questions & Answers

how do you get the 2/50
Abba Reply
number of sport play by 50 student construct discrete data
Aminu Reply
width of the frangebany leaves on how to write a introduction
Theresa Reply
Solve the mean of variance
Veronica Reply
Step 1: Find the mean. To find the mean, add up all the scores, then divide them by the number of scores. ... Step 2: Find each score's deviation from the mean. ... Step 3: Square each deviation from the mean. ... Step 4: Find the sum of squares. ... Step 5: Divide the sum of squares by n – 1 or N.
kenneth
what is error
Yakuba Reply
Is mistake done to something
Vutshila
Hy
anas
hy
What is the life teble
anas
hy
Jibrin
statistics is the analyzing of data
Tajudeen Reply
what is statics?
Zelalem Reply
how do you calculate mean
Gloria Reply
diveving the sum if all values
Shaynaynay
let A1,A2 and A3 events be independent,show that (A1)^c, (A2)^c and (A3)^c are independent?
Fisaye Reply
what is statistics
Akhisani Reply
data collected all over the world
Shaynaynay
construct a less than and more than table
Imad Reply
The sample of 16 students is taken. The average age in the sample was 22 years with astandard deviation of 6 years. Construct a 95% confidence interval for the age of the population.
Aschalew Reply
Bhartdarshan' is an internet-based travel agency wherein customer can see videos of the cities they plant to visit. The number of hits daily is a normally distributed random variable with a mean of 10,000 and a standard deviation of 2,400 a. what is the probability of getting more than 12,000 hits? b. what is the probability of getting fewer than 9,000 hits?
Akshay Reply
Bhartdarshan'is an internet-based travel agency wherein customer can see videos of the cities they plan to visit. The number of hits daily is a normally distributed random variable with a mean of 10,000 and a standard deviation of 2,400. a. What is the probability of getting more than 12,000 hits
Akshay
1
Bright
Sorry i want to learn more about this question
Bright
Someone help
Bright
a= 0.20233 b=0.3384
Sufiyan
a
Shaynaynay
How do I interpret level of significance?
Mohd Reply
It depends on your business problem or in Machine Learning you could use ROC- AUC cruve to decide the threshold value
Shivam
how skewness and kurtosis are used in statistics
Owen Reply
yes what is it
Taneeya
Got questions? Join the online conversation and get instant answers!
Jobilize.com Reply
Practice Key Terms 1

Get Jobilize Job Search Mobile App in your pocket Now!

Get it on Google Play Download on the App Store Now




Source:  OpenStax, College algebra. OpenStax CNX. Feb 06, 2015 Download for free at https://legacy.cnx.org/content/col11759/1.3
Google Play and the Google Play logo are trademarks of Google Inc.

Notification Switch

Would you like to follow the 'College algebra' conversation and receive update notifications?

Ask