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4.3 Vocabulary |
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Asymptote |
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An asymptote of a curve is a way of describing its behavior far away from the origin or very close to a specific value by comparing it to another curve. For many rational functions, the asymptotes are vertical or horizontal lines. As the input tends toward positive or negative infinity, the outputs get arbitrarily close to the horizontal asymptote. As the inputs get arbitrarily close to the vertical asymptote, the outputs tend toward positive or negative infinity. The graph of a function and its vertical asymptote(s) never meet. A graph may cross a horizontal asymptote.
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Domain of a function |
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Set of inputs of a function. With traditional notation, the domain is the set of x values that result in real number outputs. |
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Function |
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A function is a process or rule which assigns to each element x in a set A exactly one element, called f(x), in a set B. The set A is called the domain of the function and the set B is called the range. |
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Leading coefficient |
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In a polynomial function, the leading coefficient is the non-zero coefficient of the term with the highest degree. |
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Least common denominator |
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The least common denominator of rational expressions is the product that uses each factor the greatest number of times it occurs in the factorizations of all denominators. |
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Rational function |
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A rational function is a function of the form |
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