Math 1500: Tips for Distance Assignment 2 (classroom sections should take a look, too)

Published: Mon, 02/20/17

Try a Free Sample of Grant's Audio Lectures
(on sale for only $25)
Don't have my book or audio?  You can download a free sample of my book and audio lectures containing Lessons 1 and 2:
Did you read my tips on how to study and learn this course?  If not, here is a link to those important suggestions:
Did you miss my Tips for Assignment 1? Click here.
The department posted SOLUTIONS for Assignment 1 (these are not my solutions). Click here.
Tips for Assignment 2
Here is a link to the actual assignment, in case you don't have it:
Study Lesson 4 (The Definition of Derivative), Lesson 5 (The Differentiation Rules), Lesson 6 (Implicit Differentiation), and Lesson 7 (Related Rates) from my Intro Calculus book to prepare for this assignment.
Question 1
Classic defintion of derivative question.  Similar to my Lesson 4, question 2(b).  Make sure you read the section on Simplifying Triple Deckers.
Question 2
Classic differentiation rules practice as I teach in Lesson 5.
Question 3
These are trig limits using the principles I illustrate in Lesson 2, question 16.  Both are a matter of exploiting the sinh/h pattern.  Make sure you state right at the beginning that the limit of sinh/h as h approaches 0 = 1 (in other words state the limit I tell you to memorize on the first page of Lesson 2).  It is important you state that known limit to justify your answers.  Also, be sure to state the limit for h/sinh is 1 as h approaches 0 if you exploit that pattern like I do in my 16(b).

Note that part (b) is really just the sinh/h stuff again. There is just also a bit of factoring to do.
Question 4
Read my section on Velocity and Acceleration starting on page 149.  Look at my Lesson 5, question 5 and Practise Problems 86 and 87.

Part (a)
v is simply the derivative of H(t); v = H'(t).

Part (b)
The rock stops rising when its velocity is 0.  Find t where v=0. Just leave the answer as a mess. You can't be expected to get an exact answer without a calculator and calculators aren't allowed on the exam. You can use a calculator to give a neater, rounded off answer, but state the perfect answer, too.

Part (c)
The rock hits the ground when H=0.  Find t when H=0.  If you do it correctly, there will be two answers for t, but one of those answers will clearly be inappropriate.  That is because the rock is on the ground twice, once at the start, and once at the end.
Question 5
Classic tangent line application of derivatives.  Like my Lesson 5, question 2 and Practice Problems 75 to 82.
Question 6
Look at my Lesson 5, question 6 and Practise Problem 88.
Question 7
Classic implicit diff as taught in my Lesson 6.  Be sure you also look at my Practise Problem 11, 13, and 15 for similar examples.
Question 8
Classic related rates (Lesson 7) similar to my Practise Problem 14. Also look at Lecture Problem 5 and Practise Problem 13 for more examples using similar triangles.  Note there are two different kinds of shadow problems.
  1. Light up in the air casting shadow on the ground.  My Lecture Problem 5 and Practise Problem 13 are examples of this.
  2. Light down on the ground casting shadow on a vertical wall or screen. My Practise Problem 14 is an example.
All shadow problems exploit similar triangles to set up the key equation.
Question 9
This is kind of similar to my Lesson 7, Lecture Problem 6, but with a twist.  The key to their problem is that you can use that diagonal line drawn from the origin to P to act as the hypotenuse of a right triangle. You can label the horizontal leg of that triangle as x and the vertical leg as y.  The key fact is that x and y are exactly the same as the x and y coordinates of any point on that given curve.  If you start at the origin, you can walk x along horizontally, and y up vertically, landing at the point (x,y) on the curve. And you are given how x and y are related on that curve.