How can two admissible sequences with different output limits disprove the existence of a function limit?
Conditions
- Both sequences must approach the same accumulation point .
- Neither sequence can contain the point itself.
- The limits of the output sequences must be distinct ().
Reasoning, step by step
- Identify two distinct sequences and in the domain approaching .
- Calculate the limit of as , denoted .
- Calculate the limit of as , denoted .
- Verify that .
- Conclude that the function limit does not exist because the sequential criterion requires all such sequences to yield the same limit.
Example
For at , choosing yields , while yields . Since , the limit does not exist.
Common misconceptions
- Assuming that checking only one sequence is sufficient to prove non-existence; you must find at least two conflicting sequences.
- Believing that the sequences must approach from opposite sides; they can approach from the same side as long as the outputs differ.
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