Q. Let f(x)={x+5−2x+1k for x≥−5,x=−1 for x=−1f is continuous for all x>−5.What is the value of k ?Choose 1 answer:(A) −4(B) 2(C) 0(D) 4
Define Limit Approach: To find the value of k that makes f(x) continuous at x=−1, we need to ensure that the limit of f(x) as x approaches −1 from the left is equal to the value of f(x) at x=−1.
Find Limit Expression: First, we will find the limit of the function as x approaches −1 from the left. This means we will use the piece of the function defined for x≥−5 and x=−1, which is the rational expression x+5−2x+1.
Algebraic Manipulation: To find the limit as x approaches −1, we can try direct substitution to see if the expression is defined at x=−1. Substituting x=−1 into the expression gives us (0)/(4−2)=0/0, which is an indeterminate form. This means we need to use algebraic manipulation to simplify the expression before finding the limit.
Rationalize Denominator: To eliminate the indeterminate form, we can multiply the numerator and denominator by the conjugate of the denominator. The conjugate of x+5−2 is x+5+2. This will help us rationalize the denominator.
Simplify Expression: Multiplying the numerator and denominator by the conjugate, we get:(x+5−2)(x+5+2)(x+1)(x+5+2)
Cancel Terms: Simplifying the denominator using the difference of squares, we get:(x+5)−4(x+1)(x+5+2)
Substitute x=−1: Further simplifying the denominator, we get: x+1(x+1)(x+5+2)
Determine Value of k: Now we can cancel out the (x+1) terms in the numerator and denominator, as long as x is not equal to −1 (which is not a problem since we are considering the limit as x approaches −1, not the value at x=−1): x+5+2
Check Answer Choices: Now we can substitute x=−1 into the simplified expression to find the limit: −1+5+2=4+2=2+2=4
Check Answer Choices: Now we can substitute x=−1 into the simplified expression to find the limit: −1+5+2=4+2=2+2=4Since f(x) is continuous at x=−1, the limit as x approaches −1 from the left must be equal to the value of f(x) at x=−1. Therefore, k must be equal to 4.
Check Answer Choices: Now we can substitute x=−1 into the simplified expression to find the limit: −1+5+2=4+2=2+2=4 Since f(x) is continuous at x=−1, the limit as x approaches −1 from the left must be equal to the value of f(x) at x=−1. Therefore, k must be equal to 4. We can now check the answer choices to see which one matches our result. The correct answer is (D) 4.