MAT00005C

UNIVERSITY OF YORK

BA, BSc and MMath Examinations 2015

MATHEMATICS
Real Analysis

Time Allowed: 3 hours.

Answer all questions.

Each question carries 25 marks.
Please write your answers in ink; pencil is acceptable for graphs and diagrams. Do not
use red ink.
The marking scheme shown on each question is indicative only.
Calculators may not be used.

Page 1 (of 5) Turn over

 MAT00005C

1 (of 4). (a) Define the terms supremum and infimum, as applied to a non-empty and
bounded set S of real numbers. What are the maximum and minimum
of S when they exist? [4]

(b) For the following sets, write down their supremum and infimum if they
exist. You are not required to justify your answers.
S1 = {x ∈ R : x3 + x > 0} and S2 = {x ∈ R : (x − 1)2 < 4} .
[4]

(c) State the definition of convergence of a sequence of real numbers (an )n∈N
to a limit a ∈ R, and use this definition to show that
n3 1
→ as n → ∞ .
2n3 − 1 2
[7]

(d) Determine the limit as n → ∞ of the following sequences. Make free

use of standard combination rules and standard limits, briefly indicating
which results you are using; “ε” arguments are not required.
1 + nn − n 4n4 + n2
an = n , bn = .
2 + 2nn + n! 1 + n5 + n
[4]

(e) (i) Determine whether the following series converges:

∞
X (−1)n
.
n=0
log(n + 2)

[2]

(ii) What is meant by the radius of convergence of a power series

∞
X
an (x − x0 )n
n=0

(including the cases 0 and ∞)? Find the radius of convergence of

the series: ∞
X (−1)n
(x − 2)n .
n=0
(2n)!
[4]

Page 2 (of 5)
 MAT00005C

2 (of 4). (a) Let f : J → R be a real function defined on the non-empty open interval
J ⊂ R. Give the ε, δ definition for the limit of f (x) to be L as x tends
to a ∈ J. [3]

(b) Using the ε, δ definition of limit show that the function f : R → R given
by f (x) = 2x3 satisfies
lim f (x) = 2 .
x→1

[5]

(c) Let f : J → R be a real function defined on the non-empty open interval

J ⊂ R. Give the definition for f to be differentiable at a point a ∈ J.
[3]

(d) Using the definition of derivative, show that

2
f (x) =
1 + x2
is differentiable for all x ∈ R and compute the derivative f 0 (x). [6]

(e) Give the definition of a partition P of the compact interval [a, b]. Give
the definitions of the lower sum L(P, f ) and upper sum U (P, f ) of a
bounded function f : [a, b] → R. Define the quantities Lba (f ) and Uab (f ).
What does it mean for f to be Riemann integrable? [8]

Page 3 (of 5) Turn over

 MAT00005C

3 (of 4). (a) Suppose S is a bounded, non-empty subset of R consisting of non-

negative numbers. Define

T = {x2 : x ∈ S} .

Show that
2
sup(T ) = sup(S) .
[8]

(b) By expanding the numerator and denominator into n factors, show that
if n ≥ 3 then
2n 4
≤ .
n! n
n
Deduce that 2 /n! → 0 as n → ∞. [5]

(c) Using any of the convergence tests show that

∞
X 1
j 2/3
j=1

diverges and
∞
X 4j + 3
j=1
j5 + j3 + 1

converges. [6]

(d) Show that √

n+1
inf √ = 1.
n∈N n
[6]

Page 4 (of 5)
 MAT00005C

4 (of 4). (a) Suppose f : R → R satisfies

(i) limx→0 f (x) = 1 , and
(ii) f (x + y) = f (x)f (y) , for all x, y ∈ R .
Show that f is continuous at all x ∈ R and f (x) > 0 for all x ∈ R. [8]

(b) Let α and β be two real constants. Define a function f by:


α(x − 1)2 if x < 1 ,
f (x) =
β(x − 1) if x ≥ 1 .

Using the definition of differentiability, show that if β is not equal to

zero, then f is not differentiable at x = 1. [5]

(c) State the Mean Value Theorem. Use it to show that if a function
f : (a, b) → R is differentiable with f 0 (x) ≤ 0 for all x ∈ (a, b), then
f is decreasing. [5]

(d) State Riemann’s criterion of integrability. Let t ∈ (a, b) be fixed. Sup-

pose g : [a, b] → R is a function such that g(x) = 0 for all x 6= t. Show
Rb
that g is Riemann integrable on [a, b] and a g = 0. [7]

Page 5 (of 5) End of examination.

 SOLUTIONS MAT00005C

1. (a) The supremum of a non-empty and bounded set is the least upper bound
and the infimum is the greatest lower bound. The minimum is the infimum
when the infimum belongs to the set, and the maximum is the supremum
 
when the supremum belongs to the set. 4 Marks 

(b) Note that S1 = (0, ∞), so it is not bounded above and has no supremum,
and also it has infimum 0. For S2 we have: x ∈ S2 if and only if |x − 1| < 2.
This is equivalent to −1 < x < 3, so the infimum of S2 is −1 and the
 supre-
mum is 3. 4 Marks 

(c) The sequence (an )n∈N converges to a as n → ∞ if for every ε >

 0 there
exists Nε ∈ N such that if n > Nε then |an − a| < ε. 2 Marks 

Let an = n3 /(2n3 − 1) and let a = 1/2. Given ε > 0, working backwards we

have
 n3
   
1   1 
|an − a| < ε ⇔  3 −  < ε ⇔  2(2n3 − 1)  < ε .
 
2n − 1 2
The latter inequality is equivalent to n3 > (1/2)(1+1/(2ε)), or n > ((1/2)(1+
1/(2ε)))1/3 . By the Archimedean property, there exists Nε ∈ N such that
Nε > ((1/2)(1 + 1/(2ε)))1/3 , and by the above, if n > Nε then |an  − a| < ε.
So an converges to 1/2 as n → ∞. 5 Marks 

(d) We have for the sequence an :

1 + nn − n 1/nn + 1 − n/nn 0+1−0 1
an = n n
= n n n
→ = ,
2 + 2n + n! 2 /n + 2 + n!/n 0+2+0 2
using combination rules and the fact that nn grows faster to ∞ than n, 2n and
n!. Now for the sequence bn we have:
4n4 + n2 4/n + 1/n3 0+0 0
bn = 5
= 5 4
→ = = 0,
1+n +n 1/n + 1 + 1/n 0+1+0 1
using combination rules and the fact that n5 grows faster to ∞ than 4
 n ,n 
2

and n. 4 Marks 

(e) (i) Leibniz test: note that log(n + 2) are positive for n ≥ 0 and are increas-
ing, so the terms of the given series alternate in sign, decrease in magnitude
 
and tend to zero, so the series converges. 2 Marks 

(ii) The radius of convergence of the given power series is 0 if the series con-
verges only when x = x0 and it is ∞ when the series converges for all x ∈ R.

7
 SOLUTIONS MAT00005C

Otherwise, it is the number R > 0 satisfying that the series converges

 if
|x − x0 | < R and diverges if |x − x0 | > R. 2 Marks 

For the given series, we use the ratio test:

 (−1)n+1 (x − 2)n+1 . (−1)n (x − 2)n 
 
 
 (2(n + 1))! (2n)! 
(2n)! 1
= |x − 2| = |x − 2| → 0 as n → ∞ .
(2n + 2)! (2n + 2)(2n + 1)
So the series converges absolutely for all x. Hence the radius of convergence
 
is R = ∞. 2 Marks 
 
Total: 25 Marks 

2. (a) f (x) → L as x → a if for every ε > 0 there exists δε > 0 such that
0 < |x − a| < δε ⇒ x ∈ J and |f (x) − L| < ε .
 
3 Marks 

(b) We have L = 2 and we require |f (x) − L| < ε. Working backwards we

have (we may assume ε < 2)
|2x3 − 2| < ε ⇔ |x3 − 1| < ε/2
⇔ −ε/2 < x3 − 1 < ε/2
⇔ 1 − ε/2 < x3 < 1 + ε/2
⇐ (1 − ε/2)1/3 < x < (1 + ε/2)1/3
⇔ −1 + (1 − ε/2)1/3 < x − 1 < −1 + (1 + ε/2)1/3 .
Now choose
δε = min{1 − (1 − ε/2)1/3 ; −1 + (1 + ε/2)1/3 } > 0 .
By the above computation we have |x − 1| < δε implies |f (x) − 2|< ε. So
f (x) → 2 as x → 1. 5 Marks 

(c) f is differentiable at a ∈ J if the following limit exists

f (a + h) − f (a)
f 0 (a) = lim .
h→0 h
 
f 0 (a) is called the derivative of f at the point a. 3 Marks 

8
 SOLUTIONS MAT00005C

(d) For f (x) = 2/(1 + x2 ) we have

 
f (x + h) − f (x) 1 2 2
= −
h h 1 + (x + h)2 1 + x2
2 (1 + x2 ) − (1 + (x + h)2 )
 
=
h (1 + (x + h)2 )(1 + x2 )
2 (1 + x2 ) − (1 + x2 + 2hx + h2 )
 
=
h (1 + (x + h)2 )(1 + x2 )
−2hx − h2
 
2 −4x − 2h
= 2 2
= .
h (1 + (x + h) )(1 + x ) (1 + (x + h)2 )(1 + x2 )
Taking the limit as h → 0 and using the algebra of limits, we conclude that
f is differentiable at all x ∈ R and
−4x
f 0 (x) = .
(1 + x2 )2
 
6 Marks 

(e) A partition of the interval [a, b] is a subset P = {x0 , x1 , . . . , xn } for which

a = x0 < x1 < . . . < xn = b.
 
1 Mark 
By definition, the lower sum is
n−1
X
L(P, f ) = mj (xj+1 − xj ),
j=0

where mj = inf{f (x) : xj ≤ x ≤ xj+1 },

 
1 Mark 
and the upper sum is
n−1
X
U (P, f ) = Mj (xj+1 − xj ),
j=0

where Mj = sup{f (x) : xj ≤ x ≤ xj+1 }.

 
1 Mark 
Define also the numbers
Lba (f ) = sup{L(P, f ) : all partitions P } ,
 
1 Mark 
and
Uab (f ) = inf{U (P, f ) : all partitions P } .

9
 SOLUTIONS MAT00005C

 
Mark  1
f is Riemann integrable if Lba (f ) = Uab (f ), in which case we define the
 integral
Rb
as a f = Lba (f ) = Uab (f ). 3
 Marks 
 
Total: 25 Marks 

3. (a) Let b = sup(S). Then x ≤ b for all x ∈ S. Since f (x) = x2 is strictly

increasing on (0, ∞) we see that x2 ≤ b2 for all x ∈ S. This shows that for
every y ∈ T , we have y ≤ b2 . Hence b2 is an upper bound for T . To show that
this is the least upper bound, suppose c is another upper bound for T . (Note
that since the elements of T are non-negative, we√have c ≥ 0.) So for every
y ∈ T we have y ≤ c. √Since the function g(x) = x √ is strictly increasing on
√ 2
√ ∞) we have y ≤ c. Putting y = x we get
(0, √ x ≤ c for all x ∈ S. Hence
c is an upper bound for S. Therefore, b ≤ c (since b is the least upper
bound for S). So applying f we obtain b2 ≤ c and then b2 is the least  upper
bound for T . 8 Marks 

(b) We have
2n 222 2 2
= ··· .
n! 123 (n − 1) n
The product of the first two terms is 2, and if n ≥ 3, each of the next (n − 3)
terms are less than 1, and the last term is 2/n, so we obtain
2n 2 4
0< ≤2 = .
n! n n
Since 4/n → 0 as n → ∞, by the Sandwich Theorem we conclude
 that
2n /n! → 0 as n → ∞. 5 Marks 

(c) Consider the series

∞ ∞
X 1 X 4j + 3
(1) 2/3
and (2)
j=1
j j=1
j5 + j3 + 1

we apply the Cauchy’s condensation test to (1) and the limit comparison test
to (2). In the case of (1) the condensed series is
∞ ∞
X
k 1 X
2 = 2k/3 .
k=1
22k/3 k=1

Since the latter series diverges, the condensed series diverges. Therefore, by
Cauchy’s condensation test the series (1) diverges. Another way of proving

10
 SOLUTIONS MAT00005C

this is to see that j 2/3 ≤ j for all j ∈ N, which implies 1/j 2/3 ≥ 1/j and then
n n
X 1 X 1
2/3
≥ ,
j=1
j j=1
j
P
for all n ∈ N. Since the harmonic series j≥1 1/j diverges, it follows that the
series (1) diverges by the comparison test.
Now for the series (2) we note that

4j 5 + 3j 4

4j + 3 1
= → 4,
j5 + j3 + 1 j4 j5 + j3 + 1

1/j 4 is
P
so the series (2) converges by the limit comparison test (since

j≥1 
convergent and the series (2) has non-negative terms). 6
 Marks 

√ √ √ √
(d) Since n + 1 > n we conclude that n + 1/ n ≥ 1, so 1 is a lower
bound for the set. Now let b > 1 and we should show that b is not a lower
bound. Assume √
n+1 p
√ = 1 + 1/n ≥ b .
n
Then 1 + 1/n ≥ b2 and 1/n ≥ b2 − 1 > 0. This implies that n ≤ 1/(b2 − 1).
By the Archimedean property, this does not hold for every n ∈ N, so b cannot
be a lower bound. This shows that the greatest lower bound (infimum)
 is 1.
6 Marks 
 
Total: 25 Marks 

4. (a) First let us show that f is continuous at every x ∈ R. Consider the point
x + h for h small. Then

f (x + h) − f (x) = f (x)f (h) − f (x) = f (x)(f (h) − 1) .

Since limh→0 f (h) = 1 by hypothesis, we see that limh→0 f (x + h) =f (x), so
limy→x f (y) = f (x) and f is continuous at x ∈ R. 4 Marks 

Now, suppose that f (x) = 0 for some x ∈ R then

f (x + y) = f (x)f (y) = 0 ,

for all y ∈ R. This implies that f is identically zero. But limx→0 f (x) = 1
and hence this leads to a contradiction. Therefore f (x) 6= 0 for all x ∈ R.

11
 SOLUTIONS MAT00005C

By the Intermediate Value Theorem, since f is continuous, it may not change

 x ∈ R.
signs in R. Since limx→0 f (x) = 1 this implies that f (x) > 0 for all
4 Marks 

(b) Suppose β 6= 0. For the differentiability of f at x = 1 we need to consider

one-sided limits. We have
f (1 + h) − f (1) βh − 0
lim+ = lim+ =β
h→0 h h→0 h
while
f (1 + h) − f (1) αh2 − 0
lim− = lim− =0.
h→0 h h→0 h
Since the two one-sided limits exist but do not coincide (since β 6= 0), we
conclude that the two-sided limit
f (1 + h) − f (1)
lim
h→0 h
 
does not exist, i.e., f is not differentiable at x = 1. 5 Marks 

(c) The Mean Value Theorem states that if a function f : [a, b] → R is con-
tinuous on [a, b] and differentiable on (a, b) then there exists c ∈ (a, b) such
that
f (b) − f (a)
f 0 (c) = .
b−a
 
2 Marks 

Suppose f : (a, b) → R is differentiable and let a < x < y < b. Then by the
Mean Value Theorem there exists c ∈ (x, y) for which

f (y) − f (x)
= f 0 (c) ≤ 0.
y−x

Since y − x > 0 it follows that f (y) ≤ f (x). Since the choice of x< y was
arbitrary, f is decreasing on (a, b). 3 Marks 

(d) Riemann’s criterion for integrability states that a bounded function f : [a, b] →
R is Riemann integrable if and only if given any ε > 0 there exists a partition
Pε of [a, b] for which
U (Pε , f ) − L(Pε , f ) < ε.
 
2 Marks 

12
 SOLUTIONS MAT00005C

Now for the function g, consider the partition

Pδ = {r, t − δ, t + δ, s}.

Then
−2δ|g(t)| ≤ L(Pδ , g) ≤ U (Pδ , g) ≤ 2δ|g(t)| . (1)
So given ε > 0, we may choose δ small enough (for instance less than
ε/(4|g(t)|) for g(t) 6= 0, which we can assume to be true) such that U (Pδ , g) −
L(Pδ , g) < ε. By Riemann’s criterion for integrability, it follows that g is
integrable on [a, b]. Now the integral satisfies
Z b
L(Pδ , g) ≤ g ≤ U (Pδ , g).
a

From (1) we see that for every δ > 0,

Z b
−2δ|g(t)| ≤ g ≤ 2δ|g(t)| .
a
Rb  
Hence the only solution is a
g = 0. 5 Marks 
 
Total: 25 Marks 

13