is it necessary (1 Viewer)

kaz1

et tu
Joined
Mar 6, 2007
Messages
6,960
Location
Vespucci Beach
Gender
Undisclosed
HSC
2009
Uni Grad
2018
not when the function in the log is an absolute positive function like x2+1
 

hup

Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2011
Messages
250
Gender
Undisclosed
HSC
N/A
so if you have like
you have to say ln |x-1| ?
 

cutemouse

Account Closed
Joined
Apr 23, 2007
Messages
2,250
Gender
Undisclosed
HSC
N/A
Well, you can use absolute values. If you don't and you get a negative value inside the function and you recombine the expression using log laws then you should get a positive value inside the log function (ie. the -ve's will cancel).
 

apollo1

Banned
Joined
Sep 19, 2011
Messages
938
Gender
Male
HSC
2011
so if you have like
you have to say ln |x-1| ?
the solutions in the Maths association of NSW 4U past paper book have the absolute value signs so im guessing they are required. my school never really bothered though.
 

Omnipotence

Kendrick Lamar
Joined
Feb 7, 2009
Messages
5,327
Location
Sydney
Gender
Male
HSC
2011
Uni Grad
2016
You do need absolute signs. I lost marks for it, because I did brackets instead.
 

D94

New Member
Joined
Oct 5, 2011
Messages
4,426
Gender
Male
HSC
N/A
Yes, for integration/volume/area questions. Essentially, integration is finding the area underneath a curve, so you will have cases where there is a negative value in the logarithm which would make it impossible, so using absolute value signs are necessary.

If it's just a value, ie. ln(2), then it's not required.
 

rawrence

Member
Joined
Sep 14, 2010
Messages
171
Location
Auxiliary Circle
Gender
Male
HSC
2011
Yes, but you don't use it in mechanics question. It's important to leave it out from those solutions.

Otherwise, integrands and other algebraic applications should have it.

But I really don't think markers will deduct without them, unless of course it alters the actual solution which it rarely does unless your evaluation has like "ln(-1)", then you'd probably realise you need those abs values.
 

cutemouse

Account Closed
Joined
Apr 23, 2007
Messages
2,250
Gender
Undisclosed
HSC
N/A
But I really don't think markers will deduct without them, unless of course it alters the actual solution which it rarely does unless your evaluation has like "ln(-1)", then you'd probably realise you need those abs values.
You will never get ln(-1) as your final answer. You might get something like ln(-1) - ln(-2), which combines to be ln(-1/-2) = ln(1/2), ie. the negative signs cancelling out after applying log laws...
 

Shadowdude

Cult of Personality
Joined
Sep 19, 2009
Messages
12,146
Gender
Male
HSC
2010
In school, didn't do it. At university, they drum it into you that you must always use the absolute value signs. ALWAYS.

So whichever, for now.
 

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Users: 0, Guests: 1)

Top