Calculus and its Applications 2022-23

Unit 6 Worksheet
Sections 2.1, 2.2, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, and 2.8 from Volume 2 of OpenStax “Calculus” by Strang and Herman

Chapter 2 of Volume 2 in the textbook introduces applications of integration: areas between curves, volumes
by slicing, arc length, moments and centres of mass, and exponential growth and decay.

“Core” problems will be discussed in Week 6 workshops on

Tuesday, February 28, 2023.
If there is time, do attempt some of the “challenge” problems during the workshop, as well.

Worked solutions to all problems on the worksheet will be made available after the workshop.

“Core” problems (Aim to complete these during the workshop.)

Question 1. Determine, with explanation, whether the statements below are true or false.

a) Given n masses mi that are arranged on a number

Pn line at corresponding points xi , the moment of the
system with respect to the origin reads M = i=1 mi xi .
b) An investment of £500 yields more money after one year with an annual interest rate of 3% than it does
with a continuous interest rate of 2.5%.

Solution

a) The statement is true, and is contained verbatim in the assigned reading (Theorem 2.9).
b) The statement is true. After one year, an annual interest rate of 3% gives £500 · (1 + 0.03
1 )
1·1
=£515.00,
whereas a continuous interest rate of 2.5% gives £500 · e 0.025·1
≈£512.66, which is less.

Question 2. Find the area that is enclosed by the x-axis and the graph of f (x) = x3 − x2 − 2x between the
lines x = −1 and x = 1. (You should discuss your approach and include a sketch of the graph.)
Solution
By sketching the graph of f (x) = x(x + 1)(x − 2), you should see that the area between x = 0 and x = 1
lies below the x-axis.

1
The integral should then be split into two parts, with
Z 0 Z 1
5 13
f (x) dx = and f (x) dx = − .
−1 12 0 12
5 13
Hence, the total area is obtained as 12 + − 12 = 32 .
Question 3. The area between y = 4 − x2 and the x-axis is given by
Z 2
32
(4 − x2 ) dx = .
−2 3
Find the equation of the horizontal line y = c that cuts the area into equal parts.
Solution
Sketch the graph of√f (x) = 4 − x2 first and then find the points of intersection with the line y = c, which
are given by x = ± 4 − c; we will denote these points by x1 and x2 . The area between the line y = c and
y = f (x) is half of 32 16
3 , which is 3 . Hence, and by symmetry,
Z x2 Z x2
2 4 16
4 − x2 − c dx = (4 − c)3/2 =



4 − x − c dx = 2 ,
x1 0 3 3
√
where x2 = 4 − c. Solving the above for c, we find y = c = 4 − 42/3 ; see below for an illustration.

2
Question
√ 4. Determine the volume of the solid that is obtained by rotating the portion of the region bounded
by y = 3 x and y = x4 in the first quadrant about the y-axis.
Solution
You should sketch the region first; then, note that we need to write x = 4y and x = y 3 , as we are rotating
about the y-axis, which gives the cross-section
A(y) = π (4y)2 − (y 3 )2 = π(16y 2 − y 6 ).
 

To find the points of intersection, we solve

4y = y 3 ⇐⇒ y 3 − 4y = 0 ⇐⇒ y(y 2 − 4) = 0 ⇐⇒ y = 0, ±2.

As we are considering the first quadrant, we want y = 2; hence,

Z 2 Z 2  2
16 3 1 7
V = A(y) dy = π (16y 2 − y 6 ) dy = π y − y
0 0 3 7 0
512π
= .
21

When given the cross-section of an object, we can apply the methods used to estimate the area to estimate
the volume of an object. In the question below, we apply these ideas to find the volume of a halloumi, a type
of cheese from Cyprus.

Question 5. Consider a grilled halloumi of length 10 cm. The cross-sectional area of a slice cut x cm along
its length is (−x2 + 10x) cm squared, for each x between 0 and 10.

a) Write down an estimate for the volume of the halloumi by cutting it up into n equally thick pieces and
assuming that the cross-sectional area is constant on each piece.

3
 b) Express the following statement in mathematical terms: “We can approximate the volume of the halloumi
as closely as we wish by adding up the volumes of the pieces obtained by cutting the halloumi into
sufficiently many pieces of equal thickness and assuming the cross-section is constant for each piece.”
c) Find the volume of the halloumi.

Solution

a) Let f (x) = −x2 + 10x. Depending on whether one uses left endpoints or right endpoints to approximate
the volume, the expression one obtains is
n−1 n−1
X 10  10  X 10  i2 i 
f i = − 2 100 + 100 cm3
i=0
n n i=0
n n n

or
n n
X 10  10  X 10  i2 i 
f i = − 2 100 + 100 cm3 .
i=1
n n i=1
n n n
Pn
b) The volume of the halloumi is equal to limn→∞ i=1 10 i10


nf n . (Here, we have used right endpoints.)
Pn
c) We recall the formula i=1 i2 = n(n+1)(2n+1)
6 . Then, using right endpoints, we find
n
X 10  i2 i  1000 h 1 n(n + 1)(2n + 1) n(n + 1) i 500
lim − 100 + 100 = lim − + = .
n→∞
i=1
n n2 n n→∞ n2 n 6 2 3

500
Hence, the volume of the halloumi is 3 cm3 .

Question 6. The9 Great

March Pyramid
2014 of King Khufu was built of limestone in Egypt over a 20-year period, from
2580 BC to 2560 BC. Its base is square, with side length 756 ft, while its height when built was 481 ft.

I H

F G

D C

M J L

A B

a) Determine the area of a horizontal slice at height h above the ground.

b) Find the volume of the pyramid by slicing it into horizontal slices.

Solution

4
 a) To find the side length w of the square at height h, we consider
the triangle ELM, marked purple in the
w
figure. We have 481−h = 756 h
481 and, hence, w(h) = 756 1 − 481 . Thus, the area of the slice at height
 h

 2
h is w(h)2 = 756 1 − 481 .
b) To find the volume using horizontal slices, we first divide the interval [0, 481] into n subintervals of equal
length ∆h = 481 481
n . Then, we evaluate the volume of the horizontal slice at height hi = i n , which is
given by
h  hi i2
w(hi )2 ∆h = 756 1 − ∆h.
481
Hence, the volume of the pyramid is approximated by
n h
X  hi i2
Vn = 756 1 − ∆h.
i=1
481

To find the exact volume, we let ∆h go to zero, noting that that limit is precisely the definition of the
integral Z 481 h 
h i2
756 1 − dh = 91636272,
0 481
in cubic feet.

Question 7. Find the centre of mass of a 2-metre-long rod lying along the x-axis with its left end at the
origin in the following two cases.

a) The density is constant and the total mass is 5 kg. (Check any obvious solution by calculus.)
b) The density is a function δ(x) = 3x2 kg/m.

Solution

a) We expect the centre of mass to be in the middle of the rod, at x = 1 m. The density function is a
constant, with δ(x) = 25 kg/m. Then,
R2
moment 0
x 52 dx
x̄ = = = 1 m.
mass 5

b) We expect the centre of mass to be near the right end of the rod where the density is greatest. The
density is a function of x: δ(x) = 3x2 kg/m. Then, the total mass equals
Z 2  2
2 3 3
3x dx = x = 8 kg
0 3 0

and R2
moment 0
x · 3x2 dx 3 · 24
x̄ = = = = 1.5 m.
mass 8 4·8

Question 8. Bismuth-210 has a half-life of 5.0 days.

a) Find a formula for the mass remaining after t days under the assumption that the sample originally had
a mass of 800 mg.
b) Find the mass that remains after 30 days.

5
 c) When is the mass reduced to 1 mg?

d) Sketch a graph of the mass function.

Solution

a) Given an original sample of size of m0 = 800 mg, we want to find a formula for the mass after t days.
As discussed in the textbook, radioactive decay is described by the formula

m(t) = m0 ek t .

Since we are told that Bismuth-210 has a half-life of 5.0 days, we have m(5) = m20 , from which we can
deduce
m0 1 1 ln 2
m0 ek 5 = or ek 5 = or k 5 = ln or k = − .
2 2 2 5
ln 2
Hence in our case, we have that m(t) = 800 e− 5 t gives the radioactive mass (in mg) after t days.

b) To find the mass remaining after 30 days, we can evaluate m(30), or we can simply observe that in 30
days, the mass halves 6 times. Both approaches show
1
m(30) = 800 mg = 12.5 mg.
26

c) To determine when m(t) = 1 mg, we have to set m(t) = 1 and solve for t. Hence,

ln 2 ln 2 1 ln 2 1
800e− 5 t = 1 or e− 5 t = or − t = ln or
800 5 800
−5 ln 800
t= ≈ 48.21 days.
− ln 2

d) A sketch of the mass function m(t) is given below.

Question 9. A patient having major surgery is given the antibiotic vancomycin intravenously at a rate of 85
mg per hour. The rate at which the drug is excreted from the body is proportional to the quantity present,
with proportionality constant 0.1 if time is measured in hours. Write a differential equation for the quantity
Q(t), in mg, of vancomycin in the body after t hours. Solve that equation, verify your solution, and determine
the limit of Q(t) as t → ∞.

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Solution
The quantity of vancomycin, Q(t), is increasing at a constant rate of 85 mg/hour and is decreasing at a rate
of 0.1 times Q(t). The administration of 85 mg/hour makes a positive contribution to the rate of change dQ
dt ,
while excretion at a rate of 0.1Q gives a negative contribution. In summary, we have
dQ
= 85 − 0.1Q.
dt
dQ
To solve that equation, we write R(t) = 850 − Q(t); then, dRdt = − dt = −0.1(850 − Q) = −0.1R, which
−0.1t −0.1t
has the general solution R(t) = Ce . Rewriting that solution in Q, we have Q(t) = 850 −
Ce .
dQ −0.1t −0.1t
To verify, we note that dt = 0.1Ce , which equals 85 − 0.1Q = 85 − 0.1 850 − Ce . Finally,
limt→∞ Q(t) = 850, as e−0.1t → 0 in that limit.

“Challenge” problems (Only attempt these after you are finished with the “core” problems.)

The question below derives the method of cylindrical shells, which can equally be used to find volumes of
solids. As the method is not examinable, it will not be required; however, as it is in the textbook, you may
use it if you wish.
Question 10. a) Consider a cylindrical shell of inner radius r1 , outer radius r2 > r1 , and height h. Using
geometrical reasoning, show that the volume of the shell is given by

2πrh∆r,

where
1
r= (r1 + r2 ) and ∆r = r2 − r1 .
2
b) The result of item a) gives rise to the following formula for calculating the volume V of the solid obtained
by rotating about the y-axis the region under the curve y = f (x) from a to b:
Z b
V = 2π xf (x) dx for 0 ≤ a < b.
a

Convince yourself that the formula is correct.

c) Use the formula in item b) to find the volume of the solid which is generated by rotating about the
y-axis the region bounded by y = 2x2 − x3 and y = 0.
Solution

a) The required volume, say Vh , is obtained as the difference between the volumes of the outer cylinder
and the inner cylinder:

Vh = πr22 h − πr12 h = π(r2 + r1 )(r2 − r1 )h

r1 + r2
= 2π (r2 − r1 )h,
2
as required.
b) Divide the interval [a, b] into subintervals [xi−1 , xi ] of equal width ∆x and let x̄i be the midpoint of the
ith subinterval. Then, consider the given solid as an assembly of thin cylindrical shells of average radius
r = x̄i , height h = f (x̄i ), and thickness ∆r = ∆x. Adding up the volumes Vh of these shells in the
limit as h becomes vanishingly small yields the formula.

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 c) Using the formula, we find
Z b h1 1 i2
V = 2π x(2x2 − x3 ) dx = 2π x4 − x5
a 2 5 0

32

16
= 2π 8 − 5 = π.
5

Question 11. Find the volume of a torus with inner radius R − r and outer radius R + r by using the method
of cylindrical shells.
Solution
We use the method of finding volumes by cylindrical shells and rotating around the p y-axis, taking a thin
vertical slice between x and x + ∆x. The top half of the slice has height y = f (x) = r2 − (x − R)2 and
area 2πx∆x. We find the required volume by doubling, which gives
Z R+r p
V =2 2πx r2 − (x − R)2 dx.
R−r

The substitution u = x − R produces

Z r p
V = 4π (u + R) r2 − u2 du
−r
Z r p Z r p
= 4π u r2 − u2 du + 4πR r2 − u2 du
−r −r
3 r
h 1 i π
= 4π − (r2 − u2 ) 2 + 4πR r2
3 −r 2
= 2π 2 r2 R;
π 2
here, the substitution u = r sin θ in the second integral gives the area 2r of a semicircle of radius r.