Rethinking Rigor in Calculus: The Role of the Mean Value Theorem
The author argues that the mean value theorem (MVT) is a technical existence theorem introduced in most traditional calculus texts without rigorous proof and then used to prove intuitively obvious statements such as ``if your speedometer reads zero, you are not going anywhere. This practice of ``assuming the nonobvious to prove the obvious is said to give mathematics a bad name. Although the author expresses serious reservations about the need for formal theorems and proofs in a standard calculus course, for those who do feel that need he suggests replacing the MVT with the increasing function theorem (IFT) as the theoretical cornerstone: If \(f'\geq 0\) on an interval then \(f\) is (weakly) increasing on that interval. The article goes on to offer a suitable proof of the IFT without assuming the MVT, and to illustrate consequences, one of which is: If \(m\leq f'(x)\leq M\) on the interval \([a,b]\) then \(m(x-a) \leq f(x)- f(a)\leq M(x-a)\) for all \(x\) in \([a,b]\). Another is a nice derivation of the Taylor polynomial with Lagrange's form of the error bound. (It is Lagrange's original proof, in fact.) Connections to error behavior for various common numerical integration rules and to the fundamental theorem of calculus are discussed. (See the following review for an opposing view.).
- The mean value theorem in second order arithmetic
- Sub-additive recursive ``matching noise and biases in risk-weighted index calculation methods in incomplete markets with partially observable multi-attribute preferences
- MVT: a most valuable theorem
- Commentary on Rethinking Rigor in Calculus: The Role of the Mean Value Theorem
- The geometric mean value theorem
- Perturbing the mean value theorem: implicit functions, the Morse lemma, and beyond
- Visual thinking and simplicity of proof
- Deus ex machina and the aesthetics of proof
- A note on the fundamental theorem of calculus
- Further critique of GARCH/ARMA/VAR/EVT Stochastic-Volatility models and related approaches
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