Why is my proof for “if $0 leqslant x leqslant 2$, then $-x^3 + 4x + 1 > 0$” is false?
$begingroup$
$$text{if $0 leqslant x leqslant 2$, then $-x^3 + 4x + 1 > 0$}$$
$$x(4-x^2)>-1$$
$$x>dfrac{1}{x^2-4}$$ if the last statement is smaller than $x$ then it is also smaller than $2$ because of first statement ($0 leqslant x leqslant 2$):
$$dfrac{1}{x^2-4}<2$$
$$1<2x^2-8$$
$$4.5<x^2$$
$$-2.121<x<2.121$$
Which contradicts the first statement because $x$ cannot be greater than $2$. My proof is wrong but why? (I took that question from Math for Computer Science book p. 12)
discrete-mathematics proof-verification
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
$$text{if $0 leqslant x leqslant 2$, then $-x^3 + 4x + 1 > 0$}$$
$$x(4-x^2)>-1$$
$$x>dfrac{1}{x^2-4}$$ if the last statement is smaller than $x$ then it is also smaller than $2$ because of first statement ($0 leqslant x leqslant 2$):
$$dfrac{1}{x^2-4}<2$$
$$1<2x^2-8$$
$$4.5<x^2$$
$$-2.121<x<2.121$$
Which contradicts the first statement because $x$ cannot be greater than $2$. My proof is wrong but why? (I took that question from Math for Computer Science book p. 12)
discrete-mathematics proof-verification
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
You divide by 0 when x = 2.
$endgroup$
– William Elliot
Dec 15 '18 at 10:42
$begingroup$
In your third line you (must have) assumed $4-x^2>0$
$endgroup$
– lcv
Dec 15 '18 at 10:55
add a comment |
$begingroup$
$$text{if $0 leqslant x leqslant 2$, then $-x^3 + 4x + 1 > 0$}$$
$$x(4-x^2)>-1$$
$$x>dfrac{1}{x^2-4}$$ if the last statement is smaller than $x$ then it is also smaller than $2$ because of first statement ($0 leqslant x leqslant 2$):
$$dfrac{1}{x^2-4}<2$$
$$1<2x^2-8$$
$$4.5<x^2$$
$$-2.121<x<2.121$$
Which contradicts the first statement because $x$ cannot be greater than $2$. My proof is wrong but why? (I took that question from Math for Computer Science book p. 12)
discrete-mathematics proof-verification
$endgroup$
$$text{if $0 leqslant x leqslant 2$, then $-x^3 + 4x + 1 > 0$}$$
$$x(4-x^2)>-1$$
$$x>dfrac{1}{x^2-4}$$ if the last statement is smaller than $x$ then it is also smaller than $2$ because of first statement ($0 leqslant x leqslant 2$):
$$dfrac{1}{x^2-4}<2$$
$$1<2x^2-8$$
$$4.5<x^2$$
$$-2.121<x<2.121$$
Which contradicts the first statement because $x$ cannot be greater than $2$. My proof is wrong but why? (I took that question from Math for Computer Science book p. 12)
discrete-mathematics proof-verification
discrete-mathematics proof-verification
edited Dec 15 '18 at 11:33
egreg
181k1485203
181k1485203
asked Dec 15 '18 at 10:28
Ahmet SoyyiğitAhmet Soyyiğit
133
133
$begingroup$
You divide by 0 when x = 2.
$endgroup$
– William Elliot
Dec 15 '18 at 10:42
$begingroup$
In your third line you (must have) assumed $4-x^2>0$
$endgroup$
– lcv
Dec 15 '18 at 10:55
add a comment |
$begingroup$
You divide by 0 when x = 2.
$endgroup$
– William Elliot
Dec 15 '18 at 10:42
$begingroup$
In your third line you (must have) assumed $4-x^2>0$
$endgroup$
– lcv
Dec 15 '18 at 10:55
$begingroup$
You divide by 0 when x = 2.
$endgroup$
– William Elliot
Dec 15 '18 at 10:42
$begingroup$
You divide by 0 when x = 2.
$endgroup$
– William Elliot
Dec 15 '18 at 10:42
$begingroup$
In your third line you (must have) assumed $4-x^2>0$
$endgroup$
– lcv
Dec 15 '18 at 10:55
$begingroup$
In your third line you (must have) assumed $4-x^2>0$
$endgroup$
– lcv
Dec 15 '18 at 10:55
add a comment |
4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
You made two mistakes and recovered:
$$dfrac{1}{x^2-4}<2 notRightarrow 1<2(x^2-4) (text{it must be} 1color{red}>2(x^2-4), text{because} x^2-4le 0)\
4.5<x^2 notRightarrow -2.121<x<2.121 (text{it must be} 4.5color{red}>x^2 Rightarrow -2.121<x<2.121)$$
Alternatively, you can prove it as follows:
$$-x^3 + 4x + 1 > 0 iff x^3-4x-1<0 iff x(x-2)(x+2)<1 iff \
x(x-2)(x+2)le 0<1 text{for} 0le xle 2 text{(why?)}$$
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
You are correct that $-3/sqrt2<x<3/sqrt2$ because $x$ still lies between $0$ and $2$. You have found a wider bound for $x$, but it is not wrong. Note that the larger interval does not mean that $x$ takes all values between $pm3/sqrt2$.
An analogy could be that $x=3$, and we know that $2<x<4$. But it is also true that $-1<x<7$, or even $-infty<x<infty$.
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
So, does the last statement mean "x can be any number between -2.121 and 2.121" or "x is one of the numbers between -2.121 and 2.121 but we don't know which number is it" ?
$endgroup$
– Ahmet Soyyiğit
Dec 15 '18 at 11:15
$begingroup$
We know that $0le xle2$. Therefore the last statement is saying that $x$ can be a set of numbers between $pm2.121$ but is restricted to $[0,2]$ due to the criterion at the start.
$endgroup$
– TheSimpliFire
Dec 15 '18 at 11:17
add a comment |
$begingroup$
Stating that a statement is smaller than a number makes no sense.
And from the fact that $dfrac1{x^2-4}<2$ together with $0leqslant xleqslant2$, you can't deduce that $dfrac1{x^2-4}<x$.
Finally, from $dfrac1{x^2-4}<2$, what you deduce is that $1>x(x^2-4)$, since $x^2-4<0$.
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
1 + 4x - x$^3$ = 1 + x(4 - x$^2$).
For all x in [0,2], 0 < x, 0 < 4 - x$^2$.
Desired conclusion quickly follows.
$endgroup$
add a comment |
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4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
4 Answers
4
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
$begingroup$
You made two mistakes and recovered:
$$dfrac{1}{x^2-4}<2 notRightarrow 1<2(x^2-4) (text{it must be} 1color{red}>2(x^2-4), text{because} x^2-4le 0)\
4.5<x^2 notRightarrow -2.121<x<2.121 (text{it must be} 4.5color{red}>x^2 Rightarrow -2.121<x<2.121)$$
Alternatively, you can prove it as follows:
$$-x^3 + 4x + 1 > 0 iff x^3-4x-1<0 iff x(x-2)(x+2)<1 iff \
x(x-2)(x+2)le 0<1 text{for} 0le xle 2 text{(why?)}$$
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
You made two mistakes and recovered:
$$dfrac{1}{x^2-4}<2 notRightarrow 1<2(x^2-4) (text{it must be} 1color{red}>2(x^2-4), text{because} x^2-4le 0)\
4.5<x^2 notRightarrow -2.121<x<2.121 (text{it must be} 4.5color{red}>x^2 Rightarrow -2.121<x<2.121)$$
Alternatively, you can prove it as follows:
$$-x^3 + 4x + 1 > 0 iff x^3-4x-1<0 iff x(x-2)(x+2)<1 iff \
x(x-2)(x+2)le 0<1 text{for} 0le xle 2 text{(why?)}$$
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
You made two mistakes and recovered:
$$dfrac{1}{x^2-4}<2 notRightarrow 1<2(x^2-4) (text{it must be} 1color{red}>2(x^2-4), text{because} x^2-4le 0)\
4.5<x^2 notRightarrow -2.121<x<2.121 (text{it must be} 4.5color{red}>x^2 Rightarrow -2.121<x<2.121)$$
Alternatively, you can prove it as follows:
$$-x^3 + 4x + 1 > 0 iff x^3-4x-1<0 iff x(x-2)(x+2)<1 iff \
x(x-2)(x+2)le 0<1 text{for} 0le xle 2 text{(why?)}$$
$endgroup$
You made two mistakes and recovered:
$$dfrac{1}{x^2-4}<2 notRightarrow 1<2(x^2-4) (text{it must be} 1color{red}>2(x^2-4), text{because} x^2-4le 0)\
4.5<x^2 notRightarrow -2.121<x<2.121 (text{it must be} 4.5color{red}>x^2 Rightarrow -2.121<x<2.121)$$
Alternatively, you can prove it as follows:
$$-x^3 + 4x + 1 > 0 iff x^3-4x-1<0 iff x(x-2)(x+2)<1 iff \
x(x-2)(x+2)le 0<1 text{for} 0le xle 2 text{(why?)}$$
answered Dec 15 '18 at 11:32
farruhotafarruhota
20.2k2738
20.2k2738
add a comment |
add a comment |
$begingroup$
You are correct that $-3/sqrt2<x<3/sqrt2$ because $x$ still lies between $0$ and $2$. You have found a wider bound for $x$, but it is not wrong. Note that the larger interval does not mean that $x$ takes all values between $pm3/sqrt2$.
An analogy could be that $x=3$, and we know that $2<x<4$. But it is also true that $-1<x<7$, or even $-infty<x<infty$.
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
So, does the last statement mean "x can be any number between -2.121 and 2.121" or "x is one of the numbers between -2.121 and 2.121 but we don't know which number is it" ?
$endgroup$
– Ahmet Soyyiğit
Dec 15 '18 at 11:15
$begingroup$
We know that $0le xle2$. Therefore the last statement is saying that $x$ can be a set of numbers between $pm2.121$ but is restricted to $[0,2]$ due to the criterion at the start.
$endgroup$
– TheSimpliFire
Dec 15 '18 at 11:17
add a comment |
$begingroup$
You are correct that $-3/sqrt2<x<3/sqrt2$ because $x$ still lies between $0$ and $2$. You have found a wider bound for $x$, but it is not wrong. Note that the larger interval does not mean that $x$ takes all values between $pm3/sqrt2$.
An analogy could be that $x=3$, and we know that $2<x<4$. But it is also true that $-1<x<7$, or even $-infty<x<infty$.
$endgroup$
$begingroup$
So, does the last statement mean "x can be any number between -2.121 and 2.121" or "x is one of the numbers between -2.121 and 2.121 but we don't know which number is it" ?
$endgroup$
– Ahmet Soyyiğit
Dec 15 '18 at 11:15
$begingroup$
We know that $0le xle2$. Therefore the last statement is saying that $x$ can be a set of numbers between $pm2.121$ but is restricted to $[0,2]$ due to the criterion at the start.
$endgroup$
– TheSimpliFire
Dec 15 '18 at 11:17
add a comment |
$begingroup$
You are correct that $-3/sqrt2<x<3/sqrt2$ because $x$ still lies between $0$ and $2$. You have found a wider bound for $x$, but it is not wrong. Note that the larger interval does not mean that $x$ takes all values between $pm3/sqrt2$.
An analogy could be that $x=3$, and we know that $2<x<4$. But it is also true that $-1<x<7$, or even $-infty<x<infty$.
$endgroup$
You are correct that $-3/sqrt2<x<3/sqrt2$ because $x$ still lies between $0$ and $2$. You have found a wider bound for $x$, but it is not wrong. Note that the larger interval does not mean that $x$ takes all values between $pm3/sqrt2$.
An analogy could be that $x=3$, and we know that $2<x<4$. But it is also true that $-1<x<7$, or even $-infty<x<infty$.
answered Dec 15 '18 at 10:35
TheSimpliFireTheSimpliFire
12.4k62460
12.4k62460
$begingroup$
So, does the last statement mean "x can be any number between -2.121 and 2.121" or "x is one of the numbers between -2.121 and 2.121 but we don't know which number is it" ?
$endgroup$
– Ahmet Soyyiğit
Dec 15 '18 at 11:15
$begingroup$
We know that $0le xle2$. Therefore the last statement is saying that $x$ can be a set of numbers between $pm2.121$ but is restricted to $[0,2]$ due to the criterion at the start.
$endgroup$
– TheSimpliFire
Dec 15 '18 at 11:17
add a comment |
$begingroup$
So, does the last statement mean "x can be any number between -2.121 and 2.121" or "x is one of the numbers between -2.121 and 2.121 but we don't know which number is it" ?
$endgroup$
– Ahmet Soyyiğit
Dec 15 '18 at 11:15
$begingroup$
We know that $0le xle2$. Therefore the last statement is saying that $x$ can be a set of numbers between $pm2.121$ but is restricted to $[0,2]$ due to the criterion at the start.
$endgroup$
– TheSimpliFire
Dec 15 '18 at 11:17
$begingroup$
So, does the last statement mean "x can be any number between -2.121 and 2.121" or "x is one of the numbers between -2.121 and 2.121 but we don't know which number is it" ?
$endgroup$
– Ahmet Soyyiğit
Dec 15 '18 at 11:15
$begingroup$
So, does the last statement mean "x can be any number between -2.121 and 2.121" or "x is one of the numbers between -2.121 and 2.121 but we don't know which number is it" ?
$endgroup$
– Ahmet Soyyiğit
Dec 15 '18 at 11:15
$begingroup$
We know that $0le xle2$. Therefore the last statement is saying that $x$ can be a set of numbers between $pm2.121$ but is restricted to $[0,2]$ due to the criterion at the start.
$endgroup$
– TheSimpliFire
Dec 15 '18 at 11:17
$begingroup$
We know that $0le xle2$. Therefore the last statement is saying that $x$ can be a set of numbers between $pm2.121$ but is restricted to $[0,2]$ due to the criterion at the start.
$endgroup$
– TheSimpliFire
Dec 15 '18 at 11:17
add a comment |
$begingroup$
Stating that a statement is smaller than a number makes no sense.
And from the fact that $dfrac1{x^2-4}<2$ together with $0leqslant xleqslant2$, you can't deduce that $dfrac1{x^2-4}<x$.
Finally, from $dfrac1{x^2-4}<2$, what you deduce is that $1>x(x^2-4)$, since $x^2-4<0$.
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
Stating that a statement is smaller than a number makes no sense.
And from the fact that $dfrac1{x^2-4}<2$ together with $0leqslant xleqslant2$, you can't deduce that $dfrac1{x^2-4}<x$.
Finally, from $dfrac1{x^2-4}<2$, what you deduce is that $1>x(x^2-4)$, since $x^2-4<0$.
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
Stating that a statement is smaller than a number makes no sense.
And from the fact that $dfrac1{x^2-4}<2$ together with $0leqslant xleqslant2$, you can't deduce that $dfrac1{x^2-4}<x$.
Finally, from $dfrac1{x^2-4}<2$, what you deduce is that $1>x(x^2-4)$, since $x^2-4<0$.
$endgroup$
Stating that a statement is smaller than a number makes no sense.
And from the fact that $dfrac1{x^2-4}<2$ together with $0leqslant xleqslant2$, you can't deduce that $dfrac1{x^2-4}<x$.
Finally, from $dfrac1{x^2-4}<2$, what you deduce is that $1>x(x^2-4)$, since $x^2-4<0$.
answered Dec 15 '18 at 10:38
José Carlos SantosJosé Carlos Santos
160k22127232
160k22127232
add a comment |
add a comment |
$begingroup$
1 + 4x - x$^3$ = 1 + x(4 - x$^2$).
For all x in [0,2], 0 < x, 0 < 4 - x$^2$.
Desired conclusion quickly follows.
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
1 + 4x - x$^3$ = 1 + x(4 - x$^2$).
For all x in [0,2], 0 < x, 0 < 4 - x$^2$.
Desired conclusion quickly follows.
$endgroup$
add a comment |
$begingroup$
1 + 4x - x$^3$ = 1 + x(4 - x$^2$).
For all x in [0,2], 0 < x, 0 < 4 - x$^2$.
Desired conclusion quickly follows.
$endgroup$
1 + 4x - x$^3$ = 1 + x(4 - x$^2$).
For all x in [0,2], 0 < x, 0 < 4 - x$^2$.
Desired conclusion quickly follows.
answered Dec 15 '18 at 11:02
William ElliotWilliam Elliot
8,0862720
8,0862720
add a comment |
add a comment |
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$begingroup$
You divide by 0 when x = 2.
$endgroup$
– William Elliot
Dec 15 '18 at 10:42
$begingroup$
In your third line you (must have) assumed $4-x^2>0$
$endgroup$
– lcv
Dec 15 '18 at 10:55