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    Upper and Lower Bounds

    Uploaded by

    Uswa Ch

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Upper and Lower Bounds

    Uploaded by

    Uswa Ch
    37 views7 pages

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    © © All Rights Reserved

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    37 views7 pages

    Upper and Lower Bounds

    Uploaded by

    Uswa Ch

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 7

    Upper and Lower Bounds

    Upper and lower bounds are the upper and lower values that a number
    can have as a result of rounding or approximating that number. There
    are 3 key skills that you need for upper and lower bound questions.

    Make sure you are happy with the following topics before continuing.

     Rounding numbers revision

    Skill 1: Error Interval


    Upper and lower bounds can also be represented as an error
    interval which is often given as an inequality.

    Example: 57.7 has been rounded to 1 decimal place. Work out


    the upper and lower bounds (or error interval) of this value.

    To calculate the upper and lower bound we need to use the size of the
    interval which is 1 decimal place (0.1).

    Next we need to divide the size of the interval by 2 to get half the interval:

    0.1/ 2= 0.05
    Step 1: Calculate the lower bound.

    For the lower bound, we subtract half the interval.

    Lower bound =57.7−0.05=57.65

    Step 2: Calculate the upper bound.

    For the upper bound, we add half the interval.

    Upper bound =57.7+0.05=57.75

    So, we express our error interval for x like


    57.65≤ <57.75
    Note: Whilst 57.65 is included in the interval because it rounds up
    to 57.7, 57.75 is not included because it does not round down to 57.7.
    This will always be the case in an error interval.

    Skill 2: Maximum and Minimum Values of a


    Calculation
    When we do a calculation using rounded numbers, there will be a
    difference between the calculated value and the actual value. We use the
    upper and lower bounds to find the maximum and minimum values the
    calculation can be.

    Example: A field is measured to be 34m long and 28m wide, to the


    nearest meter. Calculate the minimum and maximum values for the area
    of the field.

    Step 1: Find the upper and lower bounds (error interval) for the length
    and width:

    33.5≤length<34.5
    27.5≤width<28.5
    Step 2: Find the minimum area, by multiplying the lower bounds for length
    and width:

    Minimum Area=33.5×27.5=921.25
    Find the maximum area, by multiplying the upper bounds for length and
    width:

    Minimum Area=34.5×28.5=983.25
    So, our error interval for the area of the field is

    921.25 ≤Area <983.25


    Skill 3: Truncation
    When you truncate a number it is effectively always rounded down, so if a
    number is truncated to a certain unit, the actual value of the number can be
    up to a whole unit bigger than the truncated number, but no smaller.
    Truncating is just chopping part of the number off.

    Example: What is 9.876 truncated to 1 decimal place?

    Step 1: We determine our cut-off point, which is


    after the 1st decimal place, between the 8 and
    the 7.

    Step 2: Any numbers after the cut-off point we ignore (chop off), and
    what‘s left is our final answer. So,

    9.876 truncated to 1 decimal place is 9.8.

    Example 1: Maximum and Minimum


    A motorbike travels a distance of 110m to the nearest 10 metres, in a time
    of 5 seconds to the nearest second. Calculate
    the maximum and minimum values for the speed, s, in metres per second
    (m/s), using the formula

    = /

    where is the distance and t is the time.

    [4 marks]

    The error intervals for the distance and time are:

    105≤distance<115
    4.5≤time<5.5
    The minimum speed is found by dividing the lower bound for the distance
    by the upper bound for the time. So

    Minimum Speed=105/5.5=19.0909... m/s


    The maximum speed is found by dividing the upper bound for the distance
    by the lower bound for time. So

    Maximum Speed=115/4.5=25.555... m/s


    So the error interval for the speed of the motorbike is

    19.0909... m/s ≤Speed<25.555… m/s

    Example 2: Truncation
    The weight of a dog has been truncated to 402.3 ounces to 1dp. Work out
    the interval within which w, the weight of the dog, lies.

    [1 mark]

    In order for some number to be truncated to 402.3, it must have


    began 402.3 followed by some other digits. Maybe 402.31, 402.395,
    402.35467, and so on. As long as the number begins “402.3” then we’re
    fine.

    In other words, anything that is greater than or equal to 402.3 but less
    than 402.4. We express this error interval like

    402.3≤ <402.4

    First, consider the lower bound.


    In order for the capacity of the jug to be measured as 5.43 litres
    to 2 decimal places, the lower bound must be greater than or equal
    to 5.425 litres. Any lower and it would’ve rounded down to 5.42 litres.

    Next, the upper bound.

    In order to round down to 5.43, the capacity of the jug must have been
    strictly less than 5.435. Any value which was equal to 5.435 or higher and
    it would’ve rounded up to 5.44.

    Our lower bound is 5.425 and our upper bound is 5.435, so we express
    our answer as,

    5.425≤ <5.435

    The interval is determined by the bounds ±0.5 cm of her measured height.

    We use −0.5 cm for the lower bound and +0.5 cm for the upper bound.

    175−0.5=174.5
    175+0.5=175.5
    We can now create our interval, remembering that the lower bound has a
    non-strict inequality and the upper bound has a strict inequality,

    174.5≤ℎ<175.5
    Home Work Questions:

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