Reading Assignments
Math 104 Calculus II, Spring 2020

This page uses MathJax to display mathematical notation, so please let me know if any part isn't clear.

Be sure to check back, because there will certainly be some changes during the semester.

All numbers indicate sections from APEX Calculus, Version 4.0, and check the Errata for corrections to the text.

For Friday January 24 (Due 1/23 @ midnight)

Section 6.1 Substitution

Reading Questions

  1. Substitution attempts to undo one of the techniques of differentiation. Which one is it?
  2. Use u-substitution to find an antiderivative of \( f(x) = 5x^4 \sin(x^5) \)
  3. Explain why \( \dst \int 2x\cos(x^2) \sin(x^2)^2 dx\) and \( \dst\int \frac{(\ln(x)+1)^2}{x} dx \) are essentially the same integral after performing a substitution.

Submit answers through onCourse

For Monday January 27 (Due 1/26 @ midnight)

Section 2.7 Derivatives of Inverse Functions

Reading Questions

  1. Why do you think we are studying the inverse trig functions now?
  2. Find an antiderivative of \( f(x) = \dst \frac{3x^2}{ 1 + x^6}\)

Submit answers through onCourse

For Wednesday January 29 (Due 1/28 @ midnight)

Section 6.2 Integration by Parts

Reading Questions

  1. Integration by parts attempts to undo one of the techniques of differentiation. Which one is it?
  2. Use integration by parts to find an antiderivative of \(f(x) = 2x e^{x}\)

Submit answers through onCourse

For Friday January 31

Section 6.2 Integration by Parts

Re-read the section, but no Reading Questions for today

For Monday February 3 (Due 2/2 @ midnight)

Section 5.5 Numerical Integration

Reading Questions

  1. Why would you ever want to numerically approximate an integral?
  2. Let \( \mathcal{I} = \dst\int_0^{\pi} \sin(x^2) dx\).
    1. Which would you expect to be MOST accurate in approximating \( \mathcal{I} \) : a Right Hand approximation \( R_n\), a Trapezoidal approximation \(T_n\), or a Simpson's approximation \(S_n\)? Why?
    2. Which would you expect to be LEAST accurate in approximating \( \mathcal{I} \) : a Right Hand approximation \( R_n\), a Trapezoidal approximation \(T_n\), or a Simpson's approximation \(S_n\)? Why?

Submit answers through onCourse

For Wednesday February 5 (Due 2/4 @ midnight)

Section 7.2 Volume by Cross-Sectional Area; Disk and Washer

Reading Questions

  1. Let R be the rectangle formed by the x-axis, the y-axis, and the lines y=1 and x=4. Describe the shape of the solid formed when R is rotated about the x-axis.
  2. Let T be the triangle formed by the lines y=2x, x=2 and the x-axis. Describe the shape of the solid formed when T is rotated about the line y = -1.

Submit answers through onCourse

For Friday February 7

Section 7.2 Volume by Cross-Sectional Area; Disk and Washer

Re-read the section, but no Reading Questions for today

For Monday February 10 (Due 2/9 @ midnight)

Section 7.4 Arc Length and Surface Area

Reading Questions

  1. Set up the integral that gives the length of the curve \( y=\sin(2x)\) from \(x=0\) to \( x=2\pi\).
  2. Set up the integral that gives the surface area of the surface formed when the curve \( y=x^2 + 2\) from \(x=0\) to \(x=3\) is rotated about the x-axis.

Submit answers through onCourse

For Wednesday February 12 (Due 2/11 @ midnight)

Section 6.8 Improper Integration

Reading Questions

  1. Explain why \( \dst\int_1^{\infty} \frac{1}{x^2} dx \) is improper.
  2. Explain why \( \dst\int_0^1 \frac{1}{x^2} dx \) is improper.
  3. Explain why \( \dst\int_{-1}^1 \frac{1}{x^2} dx \) is improper.

Submit answers through onCourse

For Friday Feburary 14 (Due 2/13 @ midnight)

Section 6.8 Improper Integration

Reading Questions


Suppose f and g are continuous and \( 0 < f(x) < g(x)\) for \( x > 0\).
  1. If the improper integral \( \int_1^{\infty} g(x) dx \) converges, what can you conclude about the improper integral \( \int_1^{\infty} f(x) dx \)?
  2. If the improper integral \( \int_1^{\infty} f(x) dx \) diverges, what can you conclude about the improper integral \( \int_1^{\infty} g(x) dx \) ?
  3. If the improper integral \( \int_1^{\infty} f(x) dx \) converges, what can you conclude about the improper integral \( \int_1^{\infty} g(x) dx \) ?

Submit answers through onCourse

For Monday February 17

Q & A for Exam 1. No Reading Assignment for today.

For Wednesday February 19 (Due 2/18 @ midnight)

Section 8.1 Sequences

Reading Questions

  1. Does the following sequence converge or diverge? Be sure to explain your answer.
    1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, . . .
  2. Find a symbolic expression for the general term \(a_n\) of the sequence \[\{ a_n\} = \{1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, \ldots \} \]

Submit answers through onCourse

For Friday February 21 (Due 2/20 @ midnight)

Section 8.2 Infinite Series

Reading Questions

  1. There are two sequences associated with every series. What are they?
  2. Does the geometric series \( \dst \sum_{n=0}^{\infty} \left( \frac{1}{4}\right)^n\) converge or diverge? Why?
  3. Does the geometric series \( \dst \sum_{n=0}^{\infty} \left( \frac{\pi}{e}\right)^n\) converge or diverge? Why?

Submit answers through onCourse

For Monday February 24 (Due 2/23 @ midnight)

Section 8.2 Infinite Series

Reading Questions

  1. What does the nth-Term Theorem tell you about the series \( \dst \sum 2^n \)?
  2. What does the nth-Term Theorem tell you about the series \( \dst \sum \frac{1}{n} \)?

Submit answers through onCourse

For Wednesday February 26 (Due 2/25 @ midnight)

Section 8.3 Integral and Comparison Tests

Reading Questions

  1. What does the Integral Test tell you about the series \( \dst \sum \frac{1}{n^3} \)?

  2. What does the Integral Test tell you about the series \( \dst \sum \frac{1}{\sqrt{n}} \)?

Submit answers through onCourse

For Friday February 28

Section 8.3 Integral and Comparison Tests

Re-read the section, but no Reading Questions for today

For Monday March 2

Section 8.3 Integral and Comparison Tests

Re-read the section, but no Reading Questions for today

For Wednesday March 4 (Due 3/3 @ midnight)

Section 8.5 Alternating Series and Absolute Convergence

Reading Questions

Consider the series \( \sum_{n=1}^\infty (-1)^n \frac{1}{n^2}\)
  1. Why does this series converge?
  2. How closely does \( S_{50}\), the 50th partial sum, approximate the value of the series? Why?

Submit answers through onCourse

For Friday March 6 (Due 3/5 @ midnight)

Section 8.6 Power Series

Reading Questions

  1. How do power series differ from the series we have looked at up to this point?
  2. What is the interval of convergence of a power series? Explain in your own words.

Submit answers through onCourse

March 9 - 13

Spring Break. Surprisingly, no Reading Assignments.

For Monday March 16 (Due 3/15 @ midnight)

Section 8.7 Taylor Polynomials Section 8.8 Taylor Series

Reading Questions

  1. What is the difference between a Taylor polynomial and a Taylor series?
  2. What is the difference between a Taylor series and a Maclaurin series?
  3. Why would you ever want to compute a Taylor series for a function like sin(x)?

Submit answers through onCourse

For Wednesday March 18

Section 8.8 Taylor Series

Reread the section. No Reading Questions for today.

For Friday March 20 (Due 3/19 @ midnight)

Section 12.1 Introduction to Multivariable Functions

Reading Questions

  1. Describe the level curves of the function \(f(x,y)= x^2 + y^2\)
  2. Describe the level curves of the function \(g(x,y)= x^2 - y\)

Submit answers through onCourse

For Monday March 23

Q & A for Exam 2. No Reading Assignment for today.

For Wednesday March 25 (Due 3/24 @ midnight)

Section 12.3 Partial Derivatives

Reading Questions

  1. For a function \(f(x,y)\), what information does \( f_x(2,3)\) give?
  2. How many first-order partial derivatives does a function \(g(x,y)\) have? Why?
  3. How many second-order partial derivatives does a function \(g(x,y)\) have? Why?

Submit answers through onCourse

For Friday March 30

Section 12.3 Partial Derivatives

Reread the section. No new Reading Questions for today.

For Monday March 30 (Due 3/29 @ midnight)

Section 10.2 An Introduction to Vectors
Section 10.3 The Dot Product

Reading Questions

Let \( \vec{\,v_1}=\langle 2,3 \rangle\) and \( \vec{\,v_2}=\langle -6,4 \rangle\)
  1. Give the unit vector in the same direction as \( \vec{\,v_1} \)
  2. What is \( \vec{\,v_1} \cdot \vec{\,v_2}\ \)? What does this tell you about the vectors?

Submit answers through onCourse

For Wednesday April 1 (Due 3/30 @ midnight)

Section 11.2 Calculus and Vector-Valued Functions
Section 11.3 The Calculus of Motion

Reading Questions

Let \( \vec{\;r}(t) = \langle \sin(2t),t^2 \rangle \)
  1. Find \( \vec{\;r}\ ' (1)\)
  2. What is the velocity of \( \vec{\;r}(t)\) at time \( t=1\)?
  3. What is the speed of \( \vec{\;r}(t)\) at time \(t=1\)?

Submit answers through onCourse

For Friday April 3 (Due 4/2 @ midnight)

Section 12.6 Directional Derivatives

Reading Questions

  1. What does the directional derivative \( D_{\vec{\,u}} f(a,b)\) measure?
  2. If \(f(x,y) = 3xy^2 + 2x-4y^2\), what is \(\nabla f(x,y)\) ?

Submit answers through onCourse

For Monday April 6

Section 12.6 Directional Derivatives

Re-read the section, but no Reading Questions for today

For Wednesday April 8 (Due 4/7 @ midnight)

Section 12.8 Extreme Values

Reading Questions

  1. Where can the local extrema of a function f(x,y) occur?
  2. In Example 12.8.3, why does it make sense that the critical point (1,2) is called a "saddle point"?

For Friday April 10

Section 12.8 Extreme Values

Re-read the section, but no Reading Questions for today

For Monday April 13 (Due 4/12 @ midnight)

Section 13.1 Iterated Integrals and Area

Reading Questions

  1. What geometric value does the iterated intergral \( \dst\int_0^1 \int_{-x^2}^{x^2} 1 \ dy\ dx\) measure?
  2. Why would you want to switch the order of integration in an iterated integral?

Submit answers through onCourse

For Wednesday April 15 (Due 4/14 @ midnight)

Section 13.2 Double Integration and Volume

Reading Questions

  1. If \(f(x,y)\) is a function of two variables and \(R\) is a rectangle in the xy-plane, what does \( \int\int_R f(x,y)\, dA\) measure?
  2. Explain the idea of Fubini's Theorem in a couple of sentences in your own words.

Submit answers through onCourse

For Friday April 17

Section 13.2 Double Integration and Volume

Re-read the section, but no Reading Questions for today

For Monday April 20

Section 13.2 Double Integration and Volume

Re-read the section, but no Reading Questions for today

For Wednesday April 22 (Due 4/21 @ midnight)

Section 9.4 Introduction to Polar Coordinates

Reading Questions

  1. What do the coordinates \( (r,\theta)\) in polar coordinates measure?
  2. Is the graph of the polar function \( r = \cos(2\theta) \) the graph of a function y=f(x)? Explain.

For Friday April 24 (Due 4/23 @ midnight)

Section 13.3 Double Integration with Polar Coordinates

Reading Questions

  1. Describe the shape of a polar "rectangle."
  2. Why would you ever want to use polar coordinates to evaluate a double integral?

For Monday April 29

Q & A for Exam 3. No Reading Assignment for today.

For Wednesday April 29

For Friday April 24

Section 13.3 Double Integration with Polar Coordinates

Re-read the section, but no Reading Questions for today

For Friday May 3

The BIG Picture for the semester. No Reading Assignment for today.