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In mathematics, a limit is the value that a function (or sequence) approaches as the argument (or index) approaches some value. [1] Limits of functions are essential to calculus and mathematical analysis , and are used to define continuity , derivatives , and integrals .
In particular, one can no longer talk about the limit of a function at a point, but rather a limit or the set of limits at a point. A function is continuous at a limit point p of and in its domain if and only if f(p) is the (or, in the general case, a) limit of f(x) as x tends to p. There is another type of limit of a function, namely the ...
In mathematics, the limit inferior and limit superior of a sequence can be thought of as limiting (that is, eventual and extreme) bounds on the sequence. They can be thought of in a similar fashion for a function (see limit of a function). For a set, they are the infimum and supremum of the set's limit points, respectively. In general, when ...
In general, any infinite series is the limit of its partial sums. For example, an analytic function is the limit of its Taylor series, within its radius of convergence. = =. This is known as the harmonic series. [6]
A limit of a sequence of points () in a topological space is a special case of a limit of a function: the domain is in the space {+}, with the induced topology of the affinely extended real number system, the range is , and the function argument tends to +, which in this space is a limit point of .
Limit of a function (ε,_δ)-definition of limit, formal definition of the mathematical notion of limit; Limit of a sequence; One-sided limit, either of the two limits of a function as a specified point is approached from below or from above; Limit inferior and limit superior; Limit of a net; Limit point, in topological spaces; Limit (category ...
Walter Rudin called it "the most important function in mathematics". [1] It is therefore useful to have multiple ways to define (or characterize) it. Each of the characterizations below may be more or less useful depending on context. The "product limit" characterization of the exponential function was discovered by Leonhard Euler. [2]
A discontinuous function is a function that is not continuous. Until the 19th century, mathematicians largely relied on intuitive notions of continuity and considered only continuous functions. The epsilon–delta definition of a limit was introduced to formalize the definition of continuity.