The concept of a function is perhaps the most basic one in mathematical analysis. The objects of interest in our subject can often be represented as functions, and the “ unknowns” in our equations are frequently functions. Therefore, we will spend some time developing and understanding various kinds of functions, including functions defined by polynomials, by power series, and as limits of other functions. In particular, we introduce in this chapter the elementary transcendental functions. We begin with the familiar set theoretical notion of a function, and then move quickly to their analytical properties, specifically that of continuity.
The main theorems of this chapter include:
The Intermediate Value Theorem (Theorem 3.6.),
the theorem that asserts that a continuous real-valued function on a compact set attains a maximum and minimum value (Theorem 3.8.),
A continuous function on a compact set is uniformly continuous (m36131),
The Identity Theorem for Power Series Functions (Theorem 3.14.),
The definition of the real number π,
The theorem that asserts that the uniform limit of a sequence of continuous functions is continuous (Theorem 3.18.), and
the Weierstrass M-Test (Theorem 3.19.).
Let S and T be sets. A function from S into T (notation f:S→T) is a rule that assigns to each element x in S a unique element denoted by f(x) in T.
It is useful to think of a function as a mechanism or black box. We use the elements of S as inputs to the function, and the outputs are elements of the set T.
If f:S→T is a function, then S is called the domain of f, and the set T is called the codomain of f. The range or image of f is the set of all elements y in the codomain T for which there exists an x in the domain S such that y=f(x). We denote the range by f(S). The codomain is the set of all potential outputs, while the range is the set of actual outputs.
Suppose f is a function from a set S into a set T. If A⊆S, we write f(A) for the subset of T containing all the elements t∈T for which there exists an s∈A such that t=f(s). We call f(A) the image of A under f. Similarly, if B⊆T, we write f–1(B) for the subset of S containing all the elements s∈S such that f(s)∈B, and we call the set f–1(B) the inverse image or preimage of B. The symbol f–1(B) is a little confusing, since it could be misinterpreted as the image of the set B under a function called f–1. We will discuss inverse functions later on, but this notation is not meant to imply that the function f has an inverse.
If f:S→T, then the graph of f is the subset G of the Cartesian product S×T consisting of all the pairs of the form (x,f(x)).
If f:S→R is a function, then we call f a real-valued function, and if f:S→C, then we call f a complex-valued function. If f:S→C is a complex-valued function, then for each x∈S the complex number f(x) can be written as u(x)+iv(x), where u(x) and v(x) are the real and imaginary parts of the complex number f(x). The two real-valued functions u:S→R and v:S→R are called respectively the real and imaginary parts of the complex-valued function f.
If f:S→T and S⊆R, then f is called a function of a real variable, and if S⊆C, then f is called a function of a complex variable.
If the range of f equals the codomain, then f is called onto.
The function f:S→T is called one-to-one
if 
implies that x1=x2.
The domain of f is the set of x's for which f(x) is defined. If we are given a function f:S→T, we are free to regard f as having a smaller domain, i.e., a subset S' of S. Although this restricted function is in reality a different function, we usually continue to call it by the same name f. Enlarging the domain of a function, in some consistent manner, is often impossible, but is nevertheless frequently of great importance. The codomain of f is distinguished from the range of f, which is frequently a proper subset of the codomain. For example, since every real number is a complex number, any real-valued function f:S→R is also a (special kind of) complex-valued function.
We consider in this book functions either of a real variable or of complex variable. that is, the domains of functions here will be subsets either of R or of C. Frequently, we will indicate what kind of variable we are thinking of by denoting real variables with the letter x and complex variables with the letter z. Be careful about this, for this distinction is not always made.
Many functions, though not all by any means, are defined by a single equation:
(How does this last equation define a function?)
(How does this equation determine a function?)
There are various types of functions, and they can be combined in a variety of ways to produce other functions. It is necessary therefore to spend a fair amount of time at the beginning of this chapter to present these definitions.
If f and g are two complex-valued functions with the same domain S, i.e., f:S→C and g:S→C, and
if c is a complex number, we define 
(if g(x) is never 0), and cf by the familiar formulas:
and
If f and g are real-valued functions, we define functions max(f,g) and min(f,g) by
(the maximum of the numbers f(x) and g(x)), and
(the minimum of the two numbers f(x) and g(x)).
If f is either a real-valued or a complex-valued function on a domain S, then we say that f is bounded if there exists a positive number M such that |f(x)|≤M for all x∈S.
There are two special types of functions of a real or complex variable, the even functions and the odd functions. In fact, every function that is defined on all of R or C (or, more generally, any function whose domain S equals –S) can be written uniquely as a sum of an even part and an odd part. This decomposition of a general function into simpler parts is frequently helpful.
A function f whose domain S equals –S, is called an even function if f(–z)=f(z) for all z in its domain. It is called an odd function if f(–z)=–f(z) for all z in its domain.
We next give the definition for perhaps the most familiar kinds of functions.
A nonzero polynomial or polynomial function is a complex-valued function of a complex variable, p:C→C, that is defined by a formula of the form
where the ak's are complex numbers and an≠0. The integer n is called the degree of the polynomial p and is denoted by deg(p). The numbers a0,a1,...,an are called the coefficients of the polynomial. The domain of a polynomial function is all of C; i.e., p(z) is defined for every complex number z.
For technical reasons of consistency, the identically 0 function is called the zero polynomial. All of its coefficients are 0 and its degree is defined to be –∞.
A rational function is a function r that is given by an equation of the form r(z)=p(z)/q(z), where q is a nonzero polynomial and p