Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-year-1-of-the-natural-sciences-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2014/paper-2/15/a/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the year 1 of the natural sciences course of the University of Cambridge 2014 Paper 2 15 a Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-18
With sufficiently many derivatives, Taylor's theorem gives a finite approximation and a controlled remainder. For example, if is times continuously differentiable between and , thenThus derivatives at the nearby base point determine the polynomial approximation; a bound on the next derivative bounds its error. The smallness of makes this useful, provided the derivatives remain controlled.
The statement's bare assumption of differentiability alone guarantees only . Higher-order formulas need higher regularity. Even smoothness does not by itself guarantee equality with an infinite Taylor series; that stronger conclusion requires the remainder to tend to zero.
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