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Derivative of \( \displaystyle - x \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)} + x + \frac{3 \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)}}{4} \)

Problem 2.134 · hard

Differentiate \( \displaystyle f(x) = - x \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)} + x + \frac{3 \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)}}{4} \).
  1. \[ \frac{d}{d x} \left(- x \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)} + x + \frac{3 \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)}}{4}\right) \]
    derivativeStart with the derivative of the function.✓ Proved
  2. \[ = \frac{d}{d x} x + \frac{d}{d x} \left(- x \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)}\right) + \frac{d}{d x} \frac{3 \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)}}{4} \]
    sumApply the sum rule.✓ Proved
  3. \[ = \frac{d}{d x} \left(- x \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)}\right) + \frac{d}{d x} \frac{3 \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)}}{4} + 1 \]
    derivativeDifferentiate the second term.✓ Proved
  4. \[ = \frac{d}{d x} \left(- x \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)}\right) + \frac{3 \frac{d}{d x} \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)}}{4} + 1 \]
    constant-multiplePull out the constant factor.✓ Proved
  5. \[ = \frac{d}{d x} \left(- x \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)}\right) + 1 + \frac{3 \frac{d}{d x} \left(4 x - 3\right)}{4 \left(4 x - 3\right)} \]
    chainApply the chain rule to the logarithm.✓ Proved
  6. \[ = \frac{d}{d x} \left(- x \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)}\right) + 1 + \frac{3}{4 x - 3} \]
    derivative algebraDifferentiate the inner function 4*x - 3. Simplify the fraction.✓ Proved
  7. \[ = - x \frac{d}{d x} \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)} - \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)} + 1 + \frac{3}{4 x - 3} \]
    productApply the product rule to the first term.✓ Proved
  8. \[ = - \frac{4 x}{4 x - 3} - \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)} + 1 + \frac{3}{4 x - 3} \]
    chain algebraSubstitute the derivative of the log term. Simplify the product term.✓ Proved
  9. \[ = \frac{3 - 4 x}{4 x - 3} - \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)} + 1 \]
    algebraCombine the fractions with the same denominator.✓ Proved
  10. \[ = - \ln{\left(4 x - 3 \right)} \]
    algebra algebra algebra simplifyRewrite the constant 1 with a common denominator. Expand the numerator. Simplify the numerator. Final simplification.✓ Proved
Answer \( - \log{\left(4 x - 3 \right)} \)

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. The reviewers disagree about how one step is explained; every verdict is in the receipt.

The full receipt
LineStatusChecked byDetail
1✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0line 1 is the problem as stated
2✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
3✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
4✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
5✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
undefined where 4*x - 3 = 0
6✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
undefined where 4*x - 3 = 0
7✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
undefined where 4*x - 3 = 0
8✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
undefined where 4*x - 3 = 0
9✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
undefined where 4*x - 3 = 0
10✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
undefined where 4*x - 3 = 0
11✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
undefined where 4*x - 3 = 0
12✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
undefined where 4*x - 3 = 0
13✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
14✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
15✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
answer✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0final line against the stated answer: simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
log is undefined for non-positive arguments
answer, a second way✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0SymPy differentiated f directly and got the stated answer

Reviewers

  • gpt-oss:20b: pass
  • deepseek-r1:70b: pass
  • qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass — The solution correctly applies differentiation rules step-by-step, adhering to the one-change-per-step constraint. The algebraic simplification in the final steps is sound, leading to the correct result.
Every verdict on record (15)
  • qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass 2026-09-20 — The solution correctly applies differentiation rules step-by-step, adhering to the one-change-per-step constraint. The algebraic simplification in the final steps is sound, leading to the correct result.
  • gpt-oss:20b: pass 2026-09-20
  • qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass 2026-09-20 — The solution correctly applies differentiation rules one at a time and uses valid labels from the fixed vocabulary. The algebraic simplification steps are sound and lead to the correct result.
  • gpt-oss:20b: fail (error) 2026-09-20 — Step 11 incorrectly combines the terms 1 and 3/(4*x-3). The correct combination is 1 + 3/(4*x-3) = 4*x/(4*x-3), which would cancel the -4*x/(4*x-3) term and lead directly to -log(4*x-3). The subsequent steps are based on this incorrect algebra, making the solution mathematically invalid.
  • qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass 2026-09-19 — The solution correctly applies differentiation rules one at a time and uses valid labels from the fixed vocabulary. The algebraic simplifications are sound and lead to the correct result.
  • deepseek-r1:70b: pass 2026-09-19
  • gpt-oss:20b: pass 2026-09-19
  • qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass 2026-09-19 — The solution correctly applies differentiation rules step-by-step, adhering to the one-change-per-step constraint. The algebraic simplification is sound and leads to the correct result.
  • deepseek-r1:70b: pass 2026-09-19
  • gpt-oss:20b: pass 2026-09-19
  • qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass 2026-09-18 — The solution correctly applies differentiation rules step-by-step, adhering to the one-change-per-step constraint. The algebraic simplification in the final steps is valid and leads to the correct result.
  • deepseek-r1:70b: pass 2026-09-18
  • gpt-oss:20b: pass 2026-09-18
  • gpt-oss:20b: pass 2026-09-17
  • deepseek-r1:70b: pass 2026-09-17

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 2026-09-26 with SymPy 1.14.0.