What is the domain of the function f(x)=(3x^2)/(x^2-49)?

1 Answer
Jan 23, 2015

The domain of a function is the set of the values in which you can calculate the function itself.

The problem of finding the domain of a functions is due to the fact that not every function "accepts" every real number as an input.

If you have a rational function, you must exclude from the domain the values for which the denominator is zero, since you cannot divide by zero. So, for example, if you consider the function f(x)=\frac{1}{x-2}, you see that you can evaluate it for every real value x, as long as it is not 2: in that case, you would have f(2)=\frac{1}{2-2}, an obviously invald operation. So, we say that the domain of f is the whole real number set, deprived of the element "2".

In your case, the denominator is the function x^2-49. Let's see for which values it is zero:
x^2-49=0 \iff x^2=49 \iff x=\pm\sqrt{49} \iff x=\pm 7.

These are the only two values you have to consider, since for any other x\ne \pm 7, the denominator isn't zero, and you have no problem calculating f(x).

With a proper notation, your domain is the set {x \in \mathbb{R} | x\ne\pm7}