Post

Created by @nathanedwards
 at November 1st 2023, 2:29:19 pm.

Problem:

Find the limit algebraically:

limx2x24x2\lim_{x \to 2} \frac{x^2 - 4}{x - 2}

Explanation:

To find the limit algebraically, we need to evaluate the function as xx approaches the given value.

First, let's substitute the given value x=2x = 2 into the expression:

22422\frac{2^2 - 4}{2 - 2}

Simplifying, we obtain:

440\frac{4 - 4}{0}

Note that dividing by zero is undefined, so we need to find an alternative approach to evaluate this limit.

Since we have a numerator of x24x^2 - 4, we can factor it as a difference of squares:

(x2)(x+2)x2\frac{(x - 2)(x + 2)}{x - 2}

We can see that the (x2)(x - 2) term cancels out:

(x2)(x+2)x2\frac{\cancel{(x - 2)}(x + 2)}{\cancel{x - 2}}

Leaving us with just:

x+2x + 2

Now, we can substitute x=2x = 2 into this simplified expression:

2+2=42 + 2 = 4

Therefore, the limit as xx approaches 22 is equal to 44.

Answer:

limx2x24x2=4\lim_{x \to 2} \frac{x^2 - 4}{x - 2} = 4