Multiple-Choice Test

Chapter 05.01
Background on Interpolation
1.

The number of polynomials that can go through two fixed data points (x1 , y1 ) and
(x2 , y2 ) is
(A) 0
(B) 1
(C) 2
(D) infinite

2.

A unique
points.
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

polynomial of degree __________________ passes through n + 1 data

n +1
n + 1 or less
n
n or less

3.

The following function(s) can be used for interpolation:

(A) polynomial
(B) exponential
(C) trigonometric
(D) all of the above

4.

Polynomials are the most commonly used functions for interpolation because they are
easy to
(A) evaluate
(B) differentiate
(C) integrate
(D) evaluate, differentiate and integrate

5.

Given n + 1 data points ( x0 , y0 ), ( x1 , y1 ),......, ( xn 1 , yn 1 ), (xn , yn ) , assume you pass a

function f (x) through all the data points. If now the value of the function f (x) is
required to be found outside the range of the given x -data, the procedure is called
(A) extrapolation
(B) interpolation
(C) guessing
(D) regression
Given three data points (1,6), (3,28), and (10, 231), it is found that the function
y = 2x 2 + 3x + 1 passes through the three data points. Your estimate of y at x = 2 is
most nearly
(A) 6
(B) 15
(C) 17
(D) 28

6.

05.01.1

Multiple-Choice Test
Chapter 05.02
Direct Method of Interpolation
1.

A unique polynomial of degree ________________ passes through n + 1 data points.

(A) n + 1
(B) n + 1 or less
(C) n
(D) n or less

2.

The following data of the velocity of a body is given as a function of time.

Time (s)
0 15 18 22 24
Velocity (m/s) 22 24 37 25 123
The velocity in m/s at 16 s using linear polynomial interpolation is most nearly
(A) 27.867
(B) 28.333
(C) 30.429
(D) 43.000

3.

The following data of the velocity of a body is given as a function of time.

Time (s)
0 15 18 22 24
Velocity (m/s) 22 24 37 25 123
The velocity in m/s at 16 s using quadratic polynomial interpolation is most
nearly
(A) 27.867
(B) 28.333
(C) 30.429
(D) 43.000

4.

The following data of the velocity of a body is given as a function of time.

Time (s)
0 15 18 22 24
Velocity (m/s) 22 24 37 25 123
Using quadratic interpolation, the interpolant
v(t ) = 8.667t 2 349.67t + 3523, 18 t 24
approximates the velocity of the body. From this information, the time in seconds at
which the velocity of the body is 35 m/s during the above time interval of t = 18 s to
t = 24 s is
(A) 18.667
(B) 20.850
(C) 22.200
(D) 22.294

05.02.1

05.02.2

Chapter 05.02

5.

The following data of the velocity of a body is given as a function of time.

Time (s)
0 15 18 22 24
Velocity (m/s) 22 24 37 25 123
One of the interpolant approximations for the velocity from the above data is given as
v(t ) = 8.6667t 2 349.67t + 3523, 18 t 24
Using the above interpolant, the distance in meters covered by the body between
t = 19 s and t = 22 s is most nearly
(A) 10.337
(B) 88.500
(C) 93.000
(D) 168.00

6.

The following data of the velocity of a body is given as a function of time.

Time (s)
0 15 18 22 24
Velocity (m/s) 22 24 37 25 123
If you were going to use quadratic interpolation to find the value of the velocity at
t = 14.9 seconds, what three data points of time would you choose for interpolation?
(A) 0, 15, 18
(B) 15, 18, 22
(C) 0, 15, 22
(D) 0, 18, 24

For a complete solution, refer to the links at the end of the book.

Multiple-Choice Test
Chapter 05.04
Lagrange Method of Interpolation
1.

A unique polynomial of degree ______________ passes through n + 1 data points.

(A) n + 1
(B) n
(C) n or less
(D) n + 1 or less

2.

Given the two points [a, f (a )], [b, f (b )] , the linear Lagrange polynomial f1 ( x ) that
passes through these two points is given by
xa
xb
(A) f1 (x ) =
f (b )
f (a ) +
ab
a b
x
x
(B) f1 (x ) =
f (b )
f (a ) +
ba
ba
f (b ) f (a )
(C) f1 ( x ) = f (a ) +
(b a )
ba
xa
xb
(D) f1 (x ) =
f (b )
f (a ) +
ba
a b

3.

The Lagrange polynomial that passes through the 3 data points is given by

x
y

15 18 22
24 37 25

f 2 ( x ) = L0 ( x )(24 ) + L1 (x )(37 ) + L2 (x )(25)

The value of L1 ( x ) at x = 16 is most nearly
(A) 0.071430
(B) 0.50000
(C) 0.57143
(D) 4.3333

05.04.1

05.04.2

4.

Chapter 05.04

The following data of the velocity of a body is given as a function of time.

Time ( s )
Velocity ( m s )

10
22

15
24

18
37

22
25

24
123

A quadratic Lagrange interpolant is found using three data points, t = 15 , 18 and 22.
From this information, at what of the times given in seconds is the velocity of the body
26 m/s during the time interval of t = 15 to t = 22 seconds.
(A) 20.173
(B) 21.858
(C) 21.667
(D) 22.020
5.

The path that a robot is following on a x, y plane is found by interpolating four data
points as
x
y

2
4.5 5.5 7
7.5 7.5 6
5

y ( x ) = 0.15238 x 3 2.2571x 2 + 9.6048 x 3.9000

The length of the path from x = 2 to x = 7 is

(7.5 7.5)2 + (4.5 2)2

(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
6.

2
7

2
7

(6 7.5)2 + (5.5 4.5)2

(5 6)2 + (7 5.5)2

1 + (0.15238 x 3 2.2571x 2 + 9.6048 x 3.9000) 2 dx

1+ (0.45714x2 4.5142x + 9.6048)2 dx

(0.15238 x

2.2571x 2 + 9.6048 x 3.9000)dx

The following data of the velocity of a body is given as a function of time.

Time (s)
0 15 18 22 24
Velocity (m/s) 22 24 37 25 123
If you were going to use quadratic interpolation to find the value of the velocity at
t = 14.9 seconds, what three data points of time would you choose for interpolation?
(A) 0, 15, 18
(B) 15, 18, 22
(C) 0, 15, 22
(D) 0, 18, 24

For a complete solution, refer to the links at the end of the book.

Chapter 05.05
Spline Method of Interpolation
1.

The following n data points, (x1 , y1 ) , ( x2 , y2 ) , .. (xn , yn ) , are given.

conducting quadratic spline interpolation the x -data needs to be
(A) equally spaced
(B) placed in ascending or descending order of x -values
(C) integers
(D) positive

2.

In cubic spline interpolation,

(A) the first derivatives of the splines are continuous at the interior data points
(B) the second derivatives of the splines are continuous at the interior data
points
(C) the first and the second derivatives of the splines are continuous at the
interior data points
(D) the third derivatives of the splines are continuous at the interior data points

3.

The following incomplete y vs. x data is given.

x 1 2 4
6
7
y 5 11 ???? ???? 32
The data is fit by quadratic spline interpolants given by
f (x ) = ax 1 , 1 x 2
f ( x ) = 2 x 2 + 14 x 9, 2 x 4
f (x ) = bx 2 + cx + d , 4 x 6
f ( x ) = 25 x 2 303 x + 928, 6 x 7
where a, b, c, and d are constants. The value of c is most nearly
(A) 303.00
(B) 144.50
(C) 0.0000
(D) 14.000

4.

For

The following incomplete y vs. x data is given.

x 1 2 4
6
7
y 5 11 ???? ???? 32
The data is fit by quadratic spline interpolants given by
f (x ) = ax 1, 1 x 2 ,
f ( x ) = 2x 2 + 14x 9, 2 x 4
f (x ) = bx 2 + cx + d, 4 x 6
f ( x ) = ex 2 + fx + g, 6 x 7

where a, b, c, d, e, f , and g are constants. The value of

05.05.1

(A) 144.50
(B) 4.0000
(C) 3.6000
(D) 12.200

df
at x = 2.6 most nearly is
dx

05.05.2
5.

Chapter 05.05
The following incomplete y vs. x data is given.
x 1 2 4
6
7
y 5 11 ???? ???? 32
The data is fit by quadratic spline interpolants given by
f (x ) = ax 1, 1 x 2 ,
f ( x ) = 2 x 2 + 14 x 9, 2 x 4
f (x ) = bx 2 + cx + d , 4 x 6
f ( x ) = 25 x 2 303 x + 928, 6 x 7

where a, b, c, and d are constants. What is the value of

3.5

f (x )dx ?

1.5

Path of a Robot
8
6

6.

(A) 23.500
(B) 25.667
(C) 25.750
(D) 28.000
A robot needs to follow a path that passes consecutively through six points as shown
in the figure. To find the shortest path that is also smooth you would recommend
which of the following?
(A) Pass a fifth order polynomial through the data
(B) Pass linear splines through the data
(C) Pass quadratic splines through the data
(D) Regress the data to a second order polynomial

4
2
0
0

10
x

15