Month: March 2023

Function Transformations as Composition

(A new question of the week) We have discussed transformations of functions and their graphs at length, but a recent question suggested a slightly different way to think about them.

Why Are Functions Defined as They Are?

Last week we looked at what functions are; but many students wonder why it all matters. What makes them useful? What makes functions worth distinguishing from non-functions? Why do we make the distinction we do? We love “why” questions, because they make us think more deeply!

What is a Function, Really?

A recent question, from Anindita, touched on the relationship of functions, relations, and rules. I referred to several answers we’ve given, which I’d long planned to put into a post (or two). This is it! We’ll start with a set of questions about what functions are.

A Hen and a Half …

Last week, we looked at problems involving some number of people making some number of things in some amount of time. In a classic twist on this problem, we’ll now examine several variants starting with “If a hen and a half can lay an egg and a half …”. Can we make sense of half-eggs …

A Hen and a Half … Read More »