Precalculus: Functions & Graphs

The past several decades have seen a growing awareness of the need for comprehension of advanced mathematical concepts as background to many disciplines. As a result, many colleges are requiring an increasing percentage of students to study calculus. The goal of this book is to provided a complete and self-contained presentation of the basic mathematical techniques and ideas required for the successful completion of a calculus course. The most important group of skills that students must master include the concept of a function, using function notation, and being able to sketch graphs of functions with ease. These form the cornerstones of this volume, along with abundant exercises providing practice in the mechanical and conceptual aspects of algebra and trigonometry.