Dr. Kevin G. TeBeest
On page 226, do:
* NOTES:
- Problem 1 *
Do this problem by hand, and then use Maple (or Matlab, etc.) to check your result.
- Problem 2 *
- What is a functional?
- How does a functional differ from a function?
- In Problem 1, you are simply asked to evaluate the given integral by plugging in y(t) = t.
Notice that this is opposite the way such a problem would normally be addressed. Normally we would not be given a function y.
Instead, we would be given the functional J and asked to determine what function y minimizes J.
- In Problem 2, you are to plug the given function y(x) into the integral and evaluate the integral. The result will be a function of c1 and c2.
Then use Calc-III to determine the values of c1 and c2 that minimize the result. You may use Maple (Matlab, etc.) as a tool to help you, but you might learn more if you do it by hand.