766 ■ CHAPTER 11 PARTIAL DERIVATIVES

where b is a constant that is independent of both L and K. Assumption (i) shows that
a . 0 and b . 0.
Notice from Equation 8 that if labor and capital are both increased by a factor m,
then

PsmL, mK d ­ bsmLdasmK db ­ ma1bbLaK b ­ ma1bPsL, Kd

If a 1 b ­ 1, then PsmL, mK d ­ mPsL, K d, which means that production is also

increased by a factor of m. That is why Cobb and Douglas assumed that a 1 b ­ 1
and therefore

PsL, Kd ­ bLaK 12a

This is the Cobb-Douglas production function that we discussed in Section 11.1.

11.3 Exercises
1. The temperature T at a location in the Northern Hemisphere (b) In general, what can you say about the signs of ­Wy­T
depends on the longitude x, latitude y, and time t, so we can and ­Wy­v ?
write T ­ f sx, y, td. Let’s measure time in hours from the (c) What appears to be the value of the following limit?
beginning of January.
(a) What are the meanings of the partial derivatives ­Ty­x, ­W
lim
­Ty­y, and ­Ty­t ? vl` ­v
(b) Honolulu has longitude 1588 W and latitude 218 N . Sup-
pose that at 9:00 A.M. on January 1 the wind is blowing 4. The wave heights h in the open sea depend on the speed v
hot air to the northeast, so the air to the west and south of the wind and the length of time t that the wind has been
is warm and the air to the north and east is cooler. blowing at that speed. Values of the function h ­ f sv, td are
Would you expect fx s158, 21, 9d, fy s158, 21, 9d, and recorded in feet in the following table.
ft s158, 21, 9d to be positive or negative? Explain.
Duration (hours)
2. At the beginning of this section we discussed the function
I ­ f sT, H d, where I is the heat index, T is the temperature, t 5 10 15 20 30 40 50
v
and H is the relative humidity. Use Table 1 to estimate
10 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
fT s92, 60d and fH s92, 60d. What are the practical interpreta-
tions of these values?
Wind speed (knots)

15 4 4 5 5 5 5 5
3. The wind-chill index W is the perceived temperature when
20 5 7 8 8 9 9 9
the actual temperature is T and the wind speed is v, so we
can write W ­ f sT, vd. The following table of values is an 30 9 13 16 17 18 19 19
excerpt from Table 1 in Section 11.1.
40 14 21 25 28 31 33 33

Wind speed (km/h) 50 19 29 36 40 45 48 50

Actual temperature (°C)

v 20 30 40 50 60 70 60 24 37 47 54 62 67 69
T
210 218 220 221 222 223 223

215 224 226 227 229 230 230

(a) What are the meanings of the partial derivatives ­hy­v
and ­hy­t ?
220 230 233 234 235 236 237 (b) Estimate the values of fv s40, 15d and ft s40, 15d. What
are the practical interpretations of these values?
225 237 239 241 242 243 244 (c) What appears to be the value of the following limit?

(a) Estimate the values of fT s215, 30d and fv s215, 30d. ­h

lim
What are the practical interpretations of these values? tl` ­t
 SECTION 11.3 PARTIAL DERIVATIVES ■ 767

5–6 Determine the signs of the partial derivatives for the 8. A contour map is given for a function f . Use it to estimate
function f whose graph is shown. fx s2, 1d and fy s2, 1d.
y
z

_4 3
0
6 8
_2
10
12
x 1 14
2 4
2 16
y
1 3 18 x

5. (a) fx s1, 2d (b) fy s1, 2d

9. If f sx, yd ­ 16 2 4x 2 2 y 2, find fx s1, 2d and fy s1, 2d and
6. (a) fx s21, 2d (b) fy s21, 2d interpret these numbers as slopes. Illustrate with either
(c) fxx s21, 2d (d) fyy s21, 2d hand-drawn sketches or computer plots.
10. If f sx, yd ­ s4 2 x 2 2 4y 2 , find fx s1, 0d and fy s1, 0d and
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

interpret these numbers as slopes. Illustrate with either

7. The following surfaces, labeled a, b, and c, are graphs of a
hand-drawn sketches or computer plots.
function f and its partial derivatives fx and fy . Identify each
surface and give reasons for your choices.
; 11–12 Find fx and fy and graph f , fx , and fy with domains and
viewpoints that enable you to see the relationships between
them.
8 2
2y 2
11. f sx, yd ­ x 2 1 y 2 1 x 2 y 12. f sx, yd ­ xe2x
4 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

z 0
13–34 Find the first partial derivatives of the function.
_4
a
_8 _2
13. f sx, yd ­ 3x 2 2y 4
_3 _2 _1 0
0 1 2 x 14. f sx, yd ­ x 5 1 3x 3y 2 1 3xy 4
2 3
y
15. z ­ xe 3y 16. z ­ y ln x
x2y
17. f sx, yd ­ 18. f sx, yd ­ x y
x1y
19. w ­ sin a cos b 20. f ss, td ­ st 2yss 2 1 t 2 d
4
21. f sr, sd ­ r lnsr 2 1 s 2 d 22. f sx, td ­ arctan ( xst )

y
z 0 x
23. u ­ te wyt 24. f sx, yd ­ cosst 2 d dt
y
_4 b
_2 25. f sx, y, zd ­ xy 2z 3 1 3yz 26. f sx, y, zd ­ x 2e yz
_3 _2 _1 0
2 x
0 1 2 3 27. w ­ lnsx 1 2y 1 3zd 28. w ­ sr 2 1 s 2 1 t 2
y
29. u ­ xe2t sin u 30. u ­ x yyz
xy2
31. f sx, y, z, td ­ x yz 2 tans ytd 32. f sx, y, z, td ­
t 1 2z
8 33. u ­ sx 12 1 x 22 1 ? ? ? 1 x n2
4 34. u ­ sinsx 1 1 2x 2 1 ? ? ? 1 nx n d
z 0 ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

_4 35–38 Find the indicated partial derivatives.

_8 c
_2
_3 _2 _1 0 35. f sx, yd ­ sx 2 1 y 2 ; fx s3, 4d
0 1 2 x
2 3
y 36. f sx, yd ­ sins2x 1 3yd; fy s26, 4d
768 ■ CHAPTER 11 PARTIAL DERIVATIVES

37. f sx, y, zd ­ xys y 1 zd; fz s3, 2, 1d 62. Level curves are shown for a function f . Determine whether
the following partial derivatives are positive or negative at
38. f su, v, wd ­ w tansu vd; fv s2, 0, 3d
the point P.
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

(a) fx (b) fy (c) fxx

39–40 Use the definition of partial derivatives as limits (4) to (d) fxy (e) fyy
find fx sx, yd and fy sx, yd. y
x
39. f sx, yd ­ xy 2 2 x 3y 40. f sx, yd ­ 10 8 6
x 1 y2 4 2
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

P
41–44 Use implicit differentiation to find ­zy­x and ­zy­y.
(You can see what these surfaces look like in TEC Visual 11.3.)
41. x 2 1 y 2 1 z 2 ­ 3x yz 42. yz ­ lnsx 1 zd x

43. x 2 z ­ arctans yzd 44. sinsx yzd ­ x 1 2y 1 3z 2 2

■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
63. Verify that the function u ­ e2a k t
sin kx is a solution of the
heat conduction equation u t ­ a 2u xx .
45–46 Find ­zy­x and ­zy­y.
64. Determine whether each of the following functions is a
45. (a) z ­ f sxd 1 ts yd (b) z ­ f sx 1 yd solution of Laplace’s equation u xx 1 u yy ­ 0 .
46. (a) z ­ f sxdts yd (b) z ­ f sx yd (a) u ­ x 2 1 y 2
(b) u ­ x 2 2 y 2
(c) z ­ f sxyyd
(c) u ­ x 3 1 3xy 2
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

(d) u ­ ln sx 2 1 y 2
47–52 Find all the second partial derivatives. (e) u ­ e2x cos y 2 e2y cos x
47. f sx, yd ­ x 4 2 3x 2 y 3 48. f sx, yd ­ lns3x 1 5yd 65. Verify that the function u ­ 1ysx 2 1 y 2 1 z 2 is a
49. z ­ xysx 1 yd 50. z ­ y tan 2x solution of the three-dimensional Laplace equation
u xx 1 u yy 1 u zz ­ 0 .
51. u ­ e2s sin t 52. v ­ sx 1 y 2
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
66. Show that each of the following functions is a solution of
the wave equation u t t ­ a 2u xx .
53–54 Verify that the conclusion of Clairaut’s Theorem (a) u ­ sinsk xd sinsak td
holds, that is, u x y ­ u yx . (b) u ­ tysa 2t 2 2 x 2 d
(c) u ­ sx 2 atd6 1 sx 1 atd6
53. u ­ x sinsx 1 2yd 54. u ­ x 4 y 2 2 2xy 5
(d) u ­ sinsx 2 atd 1 lnsx 1 atd
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

67. If f and t are twice differentiable functions of a single vari-

55–60 Find the indicated partial derivative. able, show that the function
55. f sx, yd ­ 3x y 4 1 x 3 y 2; fxxy , fyyy
usx, td ­ f sx 1 atd 1 tsx 2 atd
56. f sx, td ­ x 2e2ct; fttt , ftxx
is a solution of the wave equation given in Exercise 66.
57. f sx, y, zd ­ coss4x 1 3y 1 2zd; fxy z , fyzz
68. Show that the Cobb-Douglas production function
58. f sr, s, td ­ r lnsrs 2 t 3 d; frss , frst P ­ bLaK b satisfies the equation
3 6
­ u ­u
59. u ­ e r u sin u ; 60. u ­ x a y bz c; ­P ­P
­r 2 ­u ­x ­y 2 ­z 3 L 1K ­ sa 1 bdP
■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
­L ­K

61. Use the table of values of f sx, yd to estimate the values of 69. Show that the Cobb-Douglas production function satisfies
fx s3, 2d, fx s3, 2.2d, and fx y s3, 2d. PsL, K0 d ­ C1sK0 dLa by solving the differential equation

y dP P
x 1.8 2.0 2.2 ­a
dL L
2.5 12. 5 10. 2 9.3 (See Equation 5.)
3.0 18. 1 17. 5 15. 9 70. The temperature at a point sx, yd on a flat metal plate is
given by Tsx, yd ­ 60ys1 1 x 2 1 y 2 d, where T is measured
3.5 20. 0 22. 4 26. 1
in 8 C and x, y in meters. Find the rate of change of tem-
 SECTION 11.4 TANGENT PLANES AND LINEAR APPROXIMATIONS ■ 769

perature with respect to distance at the point ͑2, 1͒ in ; 78. The paraboloid z ෇ 6 Ϫ x Ϫ x Ϫ 2y intersects the plane
2 2

(a) the x-direction and (b) the y-direction. x ෇ 1 in a parabola. Find parametric equations for the tan-
gent line to this parabola at the point ͑1, 2, Ϫ4͒. Use a com-
71. The total resistance R produced by three conductors with
puter to graph the paraboloid, the parabola, and the tangent
resistances R1 , R2 , R3 connected in a parallel electrical cir-
line on the same screen.
cuit is given by the formula
79. The ellipsoid 4x 2 ϩ 2y 2 ϩ z 2 ෇ 16 intersects the plane
1 1 1 1
෇ ϩ ϩ y ෇ 2 in an ellipse. Find parametric equations for the
R R1 R2 R3
tangent line to this ellipse at the point ͑1, 2, 2͒.
Find ѨR͞ѨR1.
80. In a study of frost penetration it was found that the tempera-
72. The gas law for a fixed mass m of an ideal gas at absolute ture T at time t (measured in days) at a depth x (measured
temperature T, pressure P, and volume V is PV ෇ mRT, in feet) can be modeled by the function
where R is the gas constant. Show that
T͑x, t͒ ෇ T0 ϩ T1 eϪ␭ x sin͑␻ t Ϫ ␭ x͒
ѨP ѨV ѨT
෇ Ϫ1 where ␻ ෇ 2␲͞365 and ␭ is a positive constant.
ѨV ѨT ѨP
(a) Find ѨT͞Ѩx. What is its physical significance?
73. For the ideal gas of Exercise 72, show that (b) Find ѨT͞Ѩt. What is its physical significance?
(c) Show that T satisfies the heat equation Tt ෇ kTxx for a
ѨP ѨV certain constant k.
T ෇ mR
ѨT ѨT ; (d) If ␭ ෇ 0.2, T0 ෇ 0, and T1 ෇ 10, use a computer to
graph T͑x, t͒.
74. The wind-chill index is modeled by the function (e) What is the physical significance of the term Ϫ␭ x in the
expression sin͑␻ t Ϫ ␭ x͒?
W ෇ 13.12 ϩ 0.6215T Ϫ 11.37v 0.16 ϩ 0.3965T v 0.16 2
81. If f ͑x, y͒ ෇ x͑x 2 ϩ y 2 ͒Ϫ3͞2e sin͑x y͒, find fx ͑1, 0͒.
where T is the temperature ͑ЊC͒ and v is the wind speed [Hint: Instead of finding fx ͑x, y͒ first, note that it’s easier to
͑km͞h͒. When T ෇ Ϫ15ЊC and v ෇ 30 km͞h, by how use Equation 1 or Equation 2.]
much would you expect the apparent temperature to drop if
the actual temperature decreases by 1ЊC ? What if the wind 82. If f ͑x, y͒ ෇ s
3
x 3 ϩ y 3 , find fx ͑0, 0͒.
speed increases by 1 km͞h ?

ͭ
83. Let
75. The kinetic energy of a body with mass m and velocity v is x 3y Ϫ xy 3
K ෇ 12 mv 2. Show that if ͑x, y͒ ͑0, 0͒
f ͑x, y͒ ෇ x2 ϩ y2
ѨK Ѩ2K 0 if ͑x, y͒ ෇ ͑0, 0͒
෇K
Ѩm Ѩv 2
; (a) Use a computer to graph f .
76. If a, b, c are the sides of a triangle and A, B, C are the (b) Find fx ͑x, y͒ and fy ͑x, y͒ when ͑x, y͒ ͑0, 0͒.
opposite angles, find ѨA͞Ѩa, ѨA͞Ѩb, ѨA͞Ѩc by implicit (c) Find fx ͑0, 0͒ and fy ͑0, 0͒ using Equations 2 and 3.
differentiation of the Law of Cosines. (d) Show that fxy ͑0, 0͒ ෇ Ϫ1 and fyx ͑0, 0͒ ෇ 1.
77. You are told that there is a function f whose partial deriva- CAS (e) Does the result of part (d) contradict Clairaut’s
tives are fx ͑x, y͒ ෇ x ϩ 4y and fy ͑x, y͒ ෇ 3x Ϫ y. Should Theorem? Use graphs of fxy and fyx to illustrate your
you believe it? answer.

11.4 Tangent Planes and Linear Approximations

One of the most important ideas in single-variable calculus is that as we zoom in

toward a point on the graph of a differentiable function, the graph becomes indistin-
guishable from its tangent line and we can approximate the function by a linear func-
tion. (See Section 3.8.) Here we develop similar ideas in three dimensions. As we
zoom in toward a point on a surface that is the graph of a differentiable function of
two variables, the surface looks more and more like a plane (its tangent plane) and we
can approximate the function by a linear function of two variables. We also extend the
idea of a differential to functions of two or more variables.