Name______________________________________________ Pre-AP Pre-Calculus

2.2 WS—Power Functions

For each of the following, state whether or not the function is a power function. If it is, state the power and the
variation constant (k).

s2 3
1. f  x    2. f  x   5  3 x 3. As  
3 9
x
5 4

Write the following statements as a power function equation. If no variation constant is given, use k.

________________4. The surface area S of a cube varies directly as the square of its side length, s.
(If you remember what the actual variation constant is, kudos!)

________________5. The intensity of a light I varies inversely as the square of the distance, d, from the light source.

________________6. The speed p of a free-falling object varies directly as the square root of the distance traveled, d.
The variation constant is 2 g .

For each of the following, sketch the graph and write the end behavior using limit notation.
 A note about #9: Much like x 2 , x 4 , x 6 ,... had the same general shape and end behavior, the same is true for
even roots of x  x, 4
x, 6

x . If you know what x looks like, then you know what the shape of the graph
in #9 is.

7. f  x    2 x 3 8. f  x   9. f  x   4 4 x
1 4
x
2

 You should not have been able to find the limit as x   for #9. What happens with this graph to make this
occur?