Department of Mathematics

IIT Guwahati
MA 102
January - May Semester 2011
Instructors: Dr. P.A.S. Sree Krishna and Dr. Shreemayee Bora
Assignment 2

1. Conclude whether the following statements are true or false (with justification):
xy
(a) (0, 0) is a boundary point of the domain of the function f (x, y) = x2 +y 2 .

(b) (3, 4) is an interior point of the domain of the function g(x, y) = √ 1 .

1+ 25−x2 −y 2
x−b
(c) (a, b) (a 6= b)is an interior point of the domain of the function h(x, y) = ln| y−a |.
(d) The region R = {(x, y) ∈ R2 : 2 ≤ y ≤ 5} (i) is not a closed region in the x − y plane. (ii)
is a bounded region in the x − y plane.
2. Make a sketch of the region S in R2 and explain by a geometric argument whether or not S is
(a) open (b) closed, where:
(a) S = {(x, y) ∈ R2 : 3x2 + 2y < 6}
(b) S = {(x, y) ∈ R2 : xy < 1}
(c) S = {(x, y) ∈ R2 : ey < x < 2, 0 < y < ln(2)}
3. Let A = {(x, y) ∈ R2 : x ∈ Q & y ∈ Q} (Q is the set of rational numbers)
(a) Show that every point of R2 is a boundary point of this set.
(b) Show that no point of A is an interior point.
4. Recall that a sequence of real numbers is defined to be a function from the set of natural
numbers to the set of real numbers. We can use the knowledge of convergence of real number
sequences to discuss convergence of a sequence of points in R2 as follows. A sequence of points
in R2 is a function from the set of natural numbers to the set R2 . Suppose f : N → R2 , then
f (1) = (x1 , y1 ), f (2) = (x2 , y2 ), ...f (n) = (xn , yn ).... So we can denote a sequence of points
in R2 simply as ((xn , yn ))n∈N or even more simply as ((xn , yn )). A sequence of points in R2 ,
((xn , yn )) is said to converge to a point (x0 , y0 ) ∈ R2 if and only if the real number sequences
(xn ) and (yn ) converge to x0 and y0 respectively.
Now suppose that f : R2 → R is given by f (x, y) = y − ex and suppose that ((xn , yn )) is
a sequence of points in R2 converging to (0, 0). Use the , N definition of convergence of a
sequence to show that the sequence of real numbers (f (xn , yn )) converges to −1.
Note: We can give an alternate definition of a limit of a real valued function of two variables
by using sequences: A function f : A ⊂ R2 → R is said to have a limit L as (x, y) approaches
(x0 , y0 ) if for every sequence of points in R2 , ((xn , yn )) that converges to (x0 , y0 ) such that
(xn , yn ) is in the domain of f for every n and (xn , yn ) 6= (x0 , y0 ) for any n, the sequence
(f (xn , yn )) converges to L.
−r 2
5. Find a value of n such that the function υ : R2 − (0, 0) → R given by υ(r, t) = tn e 4t satisfies
the equation:  
∂υ 1 ∂ ∂υ
= 2 r2
∂t r ∂r ∂r
6. Find the linearization of the following functions at the points indicated:
(a) f (x, y) = e3x−4y at the point (ln 3, ln 2)
sin (xy)
(b) g(x, y, z) = z at ( π2 , 1, 1)
7. Let f : A ⊂ R2 → R be continuous at an interior point (x0 , y0 ) of A. If f (x0 , y0 ) > 0, then
show that there is a disk of positive radius around (x0 , y0 ) such that f (x, y) > 0 for every
(x, y) in that disk.