Suppose
be a function satisfying these conditions:
1) f(x) is continuous in the closed interval [a, b]
2) f(x) is differentiable in the open interval a < x < b
Then according to Lagrange’s Theorem, there exists at least one point ‘c’ in the open interval (a, b) such that:
We can visualize Lagrange’s Theorem by the following figure
In simple words, Lagrange’s theorem says that if there is a path between two points A(a, f(a)) and B(b, f(a)) in a 2-D plain then there will be at least one point ‘c’ on the path such that the slope of the tangent at point ‘c’, i.e., (f ‘ (c)) is equal to the average slope of the path, i.e.,
Example: Verify mean value theorem for f(x) = x2 in interval [2,4].
Solution: First check if the function is continuous in the given closed interval, the answer is Yes. Then check for differentiability in the open interval (2,4), Yes it is differentiable.
f(2) = 4
and f(4) = 16
Mean value theorem states that there is a point c Є (2, 4) such that
But
which implies c = 3. Thus at c = 3 Є (2, 4), we have
This article has been contributed by Saurabh Sharma.
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