Question

How does the vertical line test help to identify functions?

Solution

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Answered 1 year ago
Answered 1 year ago

For a given relation, we can always plot that relation on the XYXY-plane as follows: If yy is an output corresponding to an input value xx, then we plot the point (x,y)(x,y) on the XYXY-plane.

Now by definition of a function, there can't be any points of the form (x,y1)(x,y_1) and (x,y2)(x,y_2) for y1y2y_1\neq y_2. This in terms of the vertical line test says that the vertical line through (x,0)(x,0) can't intersect more than one point of the plotted function on the XYXY-plane.

Thus we can identify functions using the vertical line test.

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