VCAA Mathematical Methods Functions, relations and graphs
15 sample questions with marking guides and sample answers · Avg. score: 54.2%
The largest value of such that the function , where is one-to-one, is
Reveal Answer
This is the y-coordinate of the vertex (the minimum value of the function), not the x-coordinate required for the domain.
This is one of the roots of the quadratic equation (), not the x-coordinate of the vertex that determines where the function changes direction.
A quadratic function is one-to-one on an interval ending at its vertex. The x-coordinate of the vertex is found using .
The interval includes the vertex at , meaning the function decreases and then increases within this domain, so it is not one-to-one.
This is the other root of the quadratic equation (). The interval includes the vertex, so the function is not one-to-one.
The period of the function is
Reveal Answer
Incorrect. This is the standard period of . To find the period of this function, you must divide by the coefficient of , which is .
Correct. The period of a cosine function is . Here, , so the period is .
Incorrect. This incorrectly divides the standard period by the amplitude . The period depends on the coefficient of , not the amplitude.
Incorrect. This is the coefficient of (often denoted as ), which represents the angular frequency, not the period itself.
Incorrect. This is the amplitude of the function, which determines its maximum and minimum values, not its period.
Consider the function . The function is a vertical translation of by units.
Express the function in terms of a vertical translation of (i.e. in the form ), stating the number of units that is translated.
Reveal Answer
is translated vertically (upward) by units.
| Descriptor | Marks |
|---|---|
expresses as a sum of logs | 1 |
recognises a vertical translation by units | 1 |
The function is a vertical dilation of by a scale factor of .
Express the function in terms of a vertical dilation of , stating the scale factor.
Reveal Answer
is scaled vertically by a factor of 0.5.
| Descriptor | Marks |
|---|---|
expresses as a product involving | 1 |
recognises a vertical scaling by a scale factor of 0.5 | 1 |
The function is a horizontal dilation of by a scale factor of .
Express the function in terms of a horizontal dilation of , stating the scale factor.
Reveal Answer
is scaled horizontally by a scale factor of .
| Descriptor | Marks |
|---|---|
expresses 4 as | 1 |
expresses using a single logarithm | 1 |
states horizontal scale factor | 1 |
The graph of passes through the point .
The graph of must pass through the point
Reveal Answer
This incorrectly assumes the horizontal transformation is , which would give . However, the argument is .
Since we know , we set the argument to find . Substituting into the equation gives , resulting in the point .
This option uses an incorrect -value by solving and an incorrect -value calculation.
While this correctly identifies , it incorrectly calculates the -value as instead of .
Two functions, and , are continuous over their domains, which are and , respectively.
The domain of the sum function is
Reveal Answer
This represents the union of the two domains. However, the domain of a sum function is the intersection of the individual domains, not the union.
This represents the intervals where only one of the functions is defined. For the sum function to be defined, both functions must be defined simultaneously.
This represents the union of the domains excluding the points and . The domain of requires finding the overlapping region (intersection) of both domains.
This incorrectly includes the endpoints and . The value is not in the domain of , and is not in the domain of , so they cannot be in the domain of .
The domain of the sum function is the intersection of their individual domains. The intersection of and is exactly .
The number of koalas in a conservation park is modelled by , , where represents the time (years) since the park opened. There were 20 koalas in the park when it opened.
Determine the approximate rate of change in the number of koalas when .
46
26
25
5
Reveal Answer
46
This is the value of the function . This represents the number of koalas (or the population increase) at year 3, rather than the rate at which the population is changing.
26
This value appears to be the result of calculating . This subtracts the initial population from the model's value at , which does not represent the instantaneous rate of change.
25
This is an incorrect value. It does not correspond to the derivative at or the function value, likely resulting from a calculation error.
5
The rate of change is found by taking the derivative . Using the chain rule, . Evaluating at gives , which rounds to 5.
Let and .
The graphs of and have a common horizontal axis intercept at .
Find the coordinates of the other horizontal axis intercept of the graph of .
Reveal Answer
Therefore, the other -intercept is
| Descriptor | Marks |
|---|---|
Sets or demonstrates a valid method to find the horizontal axis intercept (e.g., using symmetry around the turning point). | 1 |
States the correct coordinates of the other horizontal axis intercept as . | 1 |
Let the graph of be a transformation of the graph of where the transformations have been applied in the following order:
- dilation by a factor of from the vertical axis (parallel to the horizontal axis)
- translation by two units to the right (in the direction of the positive horizontal axis)
State the rule of and the coordinates of the horizontal axis intercepts of the graph of .
Reveal Answer
or
intercepts at
| Descriptor | Marks |
|---|---|
States the correct rule for , e.g., or . | 1 |
States the correct coordinates of the horizontal axis intercepts as and . | 1 |
Which one of the following functions is not continuous over the interval ?
Reveal Answer
Incorrect. The function has a vertical asymptote at , which is outside the interval , meaning it is continuous on the given interval.
Incorrect. The square root function is continuous for all values where its argument is non-negative (), which fully includes the interval .
Incorrect. The cube root function is defined and continuous for all real numbers, so it is continuous on the interval .
Correct. The tangent function has a vertical asymptote when its argument is . Setting gives , which falls within the interval and creates a discontinuity.
Incorrect. The sine function is continuous for all real numbers, so its square is also continuous everywhere, including the interval .
The transformation that maps the graph of onto the graph of is
Reveal Answer
To map to , we need and . Solving for gives , which corresponds to a horizontal shift of followed by a horizontal compression by , exactly as this transformation matrix and vector addition describe.
This transformation results in . Substituting into would map the graph to , not .
This transformation results in . This would map the original graph to , which is incorrect.
This transformation results in . This represents a horizontal stretch rather than a compression, mapping the graph to .
This transformation results in . This applies a horizontal stretch instead of a compression, mapping the graph to .
Let , and consider the functions and defined below.
Which one of the following sequences of transformations, when applied to , does not produce ?
dilation by a factor of from the -axis, then translation by unit in the negative direction of the -axis
dilation by a factor of from the -axis, then dilation by a factor of from the -axis
dilation by a factor of from the -axis, then dilation by a factor of from the -axis, then translation by unit in the positive direction of the -axis
dilation by a factor of from the -axis, then translation by unit in the positive direction of the -axis, then dilation by a factor of from the -axis
Reveal Answer
dilation by a factor of from the -axis, then translation by unit in the negative direction of the -axis
Dilation by from the -axis gives , and translating left by unit gives . This produces , so it is not the correct answer.
dilation by a factor of from the -axis, then dilation by a factor of from the -axis
Dilation by from the -axis gives , and dilating by from the -axis gives . This produces , so it is not the correct answer.
dilation by a factor of from the -axis, then dilation by a factor of from the -axis, then translation by unit in the positive direction of the -axis
Dilating by from the -axis gives , dilating by from the -axis gives , and translating right by unit gives . This does not equal , making it the correct choice.
dilation by a factor of from the -axis, then translation by unit in the positive direction of the -axis, then dilation by a factor of from the -axis
Dilating by from the -axis gives , translating right by unit gives , and dilating by from the -axis gives . This produces , so it is not the correct answer.
Identify the correct features of the function
Reveal Answer
This option is incorrect because while , the second derivative is positive, not negative.
This is correct. Using the product rule, and . Evaluating at gives and .
This option is incorrect because the first derivative evaluates to zero at , not a negative value, and the second derivative is positive.
This option is incorrect because the first derivative equals , not a value less than .
At a certain location, the temperature (°C) can be modelled by the function , where is the number of hours after sunrise.
Determine the rate of change of temperature (°C/hour) when
Reveal Answer
This incorrect value is half of the correct answer, which may result from a calculation error during the multiplication of fractions or evaluating the trigonometric ratio.
The rate of change is the derivative . Evaluating at gives .
This answer results from evaluating instead of in the derivative, or incorrectly assuming the derivative of sine is sine.
This option is incorrect and likely results from misapplying the chain rule or arithmetic errors when combining the constants.
A polynomial has the equation .
The number of tangents to this curve that pass through the positive -intercept is
Reveal Answer
The tangent at the positive -intercept itself is one such tangent, so there is at least one valid tangent line.
While the tangent at the -intercept is one solution, there are other points on the curve whose tangent lines also pass through this intercept.
Solving for the -coordinates of the points of tangency results in an equation with three distinct real roots, not two.
The positive -intercept is . Equating the derivative to the slope between the tangency point and yields , which has exactly 3 distinct real roots.
Although the original polynomial is of degree 4, the condition for the tangent passing through simplifies to a cubic equation, yielding a maximum of 3 tangents.
Which statement best describes a feature of the graph of the exponential function , ?
When ,
The graph has an asymptote with the equation
The gradient of the graph has the same value as the function at all points on the graph.
Reveal Answer
Incorrect. As approaches infinity, the value of grows without bound, meaning the limit is infinity, not .
When ,
Incorrect. Any non-zero base raised to the power of 0 equals 1, so when , , rather than .
The graph has an asymptote with the equation
Incorrect. The function has a horizontal asymptote at as approaches negative infinity, not a vertical asymptote at .
The gradient of the graph has the same value as the function at all points on the graph.
Correct. A unique property of the natural exponential function is that its derivative is also , meaning the gradient at any point equals the function's value.
The function is mapped to the function with the following sequence of transformations:
- dilation by a factor of 3 from the -axis
- translation by 1 unit in the negative direction of the -axis.
The function has a local minimum at the point with the coordinates
Reveal Answer
The transformed function is . Setting the derivative to zero gives , and evaluating yields a minimum value of .
This is the local minimum if the function was incorrectly dilated by a factor of from the -axis, which would use instead of .
This is the local minimum if the function was dilated by a factor of 3 from the -axis (evaluating ) rather than from the -axis.
This is the local minimum if the function was dilated by a factor of from the -axis (evaluating ) rather than from the -axis.