How do you compute the limit of the expression \( \frac{f(5 + h) – f(5)}{h} \) as \( h \) approaches 0 if \( f(x) = 12x \)?

To compute the limit \( \lim_{h \to 0} \frac{f(5 + h) – f(5)}{h} \), given the function \( f(x) = 12x \), we first need to substitute the values into the limit expression.

1. **Evaluate \( f(5) \):**

Let’s calculate \( f(5) \):

  • \( f(5) = 12 \times 5 = 60 \)

2. **Evaluate \( f(5 + h) \):**

Next, we need to find \( f(5 + h) \):

  • \( f(5 + h) = 12 \times (5 + h) \)
  • \( = 60 + 12h \)

3. **Set up the limit:**

Now, we can substitute these values into our limit expression:

  • \( \frac{f(5 + h) – f(5)}{h} = \frac{(60 + 12h) – 60}{h} \)
  • \( = \frac{12h}{h} \)
  • \( = 12 \) (for \( h \neq 0 \) )

4. **Finding the limit:**

As we take the limit of the expression as \( h \) approaches 0, the result remains constant:

  • \( \lim_{h \to 0} 12 = 12 \)

Therefore, the limit is:

\( 12 \)

In conclusion, we’ve calculated that:

\( \lim_{h \to 0} \frac{f(5 + h) – f(5)}{h} = 12 \)

Leave a Comment