Samantha R.

Selman March 22, 2012 Synopsis: Knowing it all About Calculus Summary of Chapter Seven An exponential function is any function that can be written in the form f(x)=bx. In this example b is a positive real number (other than one) and is referred to as the base. When graphing an exponential function, keep in mind that f(x) is the equivalent of the y-coordinate. If you have exponential function y=5x, its inverse would be x=5y. The inverse of an exponential function is called a logarithmic function. The expression y=logax is read y is the logarithm to the base a of x and is equal to the equation x=a . Essentially, we raise y to a to get x. Lets look at a few examples. If 8=2 3 is the exponential function, log28=3 is the logarithmic function. If a=b c is the exponential function, logba=c is the logarithmic function. In this manner, logarithms can be changed into exponential form, or vice-versa, quickly and easily.
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You will often find yourself needing to simplify logarithmic functions. Say you are given the function log3x=2; to find x you must first change the logarithm into exponential form. This would give you 32=x. Since we know that three squared is nine, x would equal nine. Other times you will need to simplify logarithmic functions containing two or more logarithms. For example, log 3(log6 6). The only thing you need to remember is to start at the innermost point and work outwards. The solution to this problem is shown below: log3(log6 6) = log3(1) 3x= 1 x = 0 Below are three important yet basic properties of logarithms. (1) The logarithm of a product is the sum of the logarithms. (2) The logarithm of a quotient is the difference of the logarithms. (3) Finally, the logarithm of a number raised to a power is the product of the power and the logarithm of the number. In mathematical form, these are the three basic properties: (1*) logb(xy) = logb x + logb y (2*) logb (x/y) = logb x logb y (3*) logb xr = r logb x Please note that in the above examples x, y, and b are positive real numbers. The variable b is not equal to one and r is a real number. The number e (stay with me) is the base of a special type of logarithm called the natural logarithm. The value of e is approximately 2.718282. Natural logarithms may confuse the beginner at first; instead of using the abbreviation log, natural logarithms use the abbreviation ln. Plus, in addition to the properties shown on above, natural logarithms have the following three properties: (1) ln e = 1 (2) ln ek = k (3) ln 1 = 0