# Math Help - Continuous Functions

1. ## Continuous Functions

Let $f:\mathbb{R} \rightarrow \mathbb{R}$ be continuous at $c$ and let $f(c)>0$. How would you show that there is a neighborhood $V_{\delta}(c)$ of $c$ such that if $x \in V_{\delta}(c)$, then $f(x) > 0$

2. Forgive my lack of syntax here

if f is continuous at c, then for e> 0 there exists a d>0 st

0< l x - c l < d --> l f(x) - f(c) l < e

but l f(x) - f(c) l < e is the same thing as:

f(c) - e < f(x) < f(c) + e

so as long as 0 < e < f(c) we have f(x) > 0 for all 0 < l x - c l < d

and the conclusion follows

3. Originally Posted by CrazyCat87
Let $f:\mathbb{R} \rightarrow \mathbb{R}$ be continuous at $c$ and let $f(c)>0$. How would you show that there is a neighborhood $V_{\delta}(c)$ of $c$ such that if $x \in V_{\delta}(c)$, then $f(x) > 0$
The exact same concept as southprkfan1 but using open ball notation. Since $\{x_:x>0\}=(0,\infty)$ is an open set we know there exists some $B_{\varepsilon}(f(x))\susbseteq(0,\infty)$ but by continuity there exists some $B_{\delta}(x)$ such that $f\left(B_{\delta}(x)\right)\subseteq B_{\varepsilon}(x)\subseteq(0,\infty)$. The conclusion follows.