So do you need to know reciprocal functions?

[wildareal]

Our school gives us reciprocal functions questions on our assignments, but its not in the Essential book? Is it on the syllabus?

[stonecold]

yeah you need to know them.  a reciprocal function is y=1/x which is a rectangular hyperbola with vertical and horizontal asymptotes.

...and it is definitely in the essential textbook for all VCE units of methods.

here is the basic shape:
http://www.intmath.com/Plane-analytic-geometry/xyis1.gif

numbers added and subtracted to the denominator operate the same way as they would in the brackets of a quadratic, moving it left of right, and numbers added and subtracted on their own move it up or down.  numbers other than 1 in the numerator are dilations, and a negative reflects in the x or y axis, it doesn't matter which way, it will still look the same.

[wildareal]

I am aware of rectangular hyperbolas and trunci, however are graphs like 1/(log(x-1),e)) and 1/(x^2+5) there too? I haven't come across them.

[TrueTears]

nah i dont think they are explicitly in the methods course, but you can sketch them anyway with methods techniques.

[stonecold]

you wouldn't have to do them without a cas calculator.

just know the basic shapes and transformations.  

[Ilovemathsmeth]

You don't need to know 1/sin, 1/log etc. You could sketch them without calc by trying to find the intercepts etc, general graph sketching rules.

However you do need to know graphs of the family 1/x.

[kyzoo]

From my experience, you don't need to know reciprocal functions for Methods, but I learned them anyway.

[Martoman]

It is useful to know how to graph them as it helps you understand infinity and the reciprocal of fractions. This is required for specialist. In my methods career, you don't need to know this well. Just to graph the general 1/x^n graphs.

[the.watchman]

According to our MM teacher, you don't need to know them, but as the others have said, it's handy to learn them for spesh.
Also, it makes for good sketching practice!