Limit of \( \displaystyle \frac{x - 3}{\sqrt{x + 1} - 2} \) as \( x \to 3 \)
Problem 1.97 · medium
Evaluate \( \displaystyle \lim_{x \to 3} \frac{x - 3}{\sqrt{x + 1} - 2} \).
- \[ \lim_{x \to 3^+}\left(\frac{x - 3}{\sqrt{x + 1} - 2}\right) \]limit rationalizeStart with the limit of the given function. Multiply the numerator and denominator by the conjugate of the denominator.✓ Proved
- \[ = \lim_{x \to 3^+}\left(\sqrt{x + 1} + 2\right) \]algebra simplify simplify cancelExpand the denominator product. Simplify the expression in the denominator. Combine like terms in the denominator. Cancel the common factor (x - 3).✓ Proved
- \[ = 4 \]limit simplifyEvaluate the limit by substituting x = 3. Final calculation.✓ Proved
Answer \( 4 \)
✓ Nihil obstat Every line of this solution was proved by the computer algebra system SymPy. The answer was also checked a second way, without looking at the solution. Reviewers found nothing wrong with the explanation.
The full receipt
| Line | Status | Checked by | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | line 1 is the problem as stated |
| 2 | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | simplify(a - b) reduced to 0 undefined where sqrt(x + 1) - 2 = 0 |
| 3 | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | simplify(a - b) reduced to 0 undefined where sqrt(x + 1) - 2 = 0 |
| 4 | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | simplify(a - b) reduced to 0 |
| 5 | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | simplify(a - b) reduced to 0 |
| 6 | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | simplify(a - b) reduced to 0 |
| 7 | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | simplify(a - b) reduced to 0 |
| 8 | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | simplify(a - b) reduced to 0 |
| answer | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | final line against the stated answer: simplify(a - b) reduced to 0 |
| answer, a second way | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | SymPy took the limit from both sides and got the stated value |
Reviewers
gpt-oss:20b: passqwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass — The solution correctly applies the conjugate method to resolve the indeterminate form. Each step changes only one aspect of the expression and uses valid labels from the fixed vocabulary.
Every verdict on record (4)
qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass 2026-10-03 — The solution correctly applies the conjugate method to resolve the indeterminate form. Each step changes only one aspect of the expression and uses valid labels from the fixed vocabulary.gpt-oss:20b: pass 2026-10-03qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass 2026-10-03 — The solution correctly applies the conjugate method to resolve the indeterminate form. Each step changes only one aspect of the expression and uses appropriate labels from the fixed vocabulary.gpt-oss:20b: pass 2026-10-03
Proved: SymPy reduced the difference between the two sides to zero. Checked independently: a separate
method, named above, confirmed it. Checked numerically: the two sides agree at every sampled point, which is evidence,
not proof. Reviewed: a model or a person read it; that is all a sentence can have. Solution by
gemma4:26b, checked 2026-10-03 with SymPy 1.14.0.