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Derivative of \( \displaystyle - \frac{\sqrt{\left(5 x - 1\right)^{2} + 1}}{5} \)

Problem 2.999 · medium

Differentiate \( \displaystyle f(x) = - \frac{\sqrt{\left(5 x - 1\right)^{2} + 1}}{5} \).
  1. \[ \frac{d}{d x} \left(- \frac{\sqrt{\left(5 x - 1\right)^{2} + 1}}{5}\right) \]
    Start with the derivative of the function.✓ Proved
  2. \[ = - \frac{\frac{d}{d x} \sqrt{\left(5 x - 1\right)^{2} + 1}}{5} \]
    constant-multiple rewritePull out the constant factor. Rewrite the square root as a fractional exponent.✓ Proved
  3. \[ = - \frac{\frac{d}{d x} \left(\left(5 x - 1\right)^{2} + 1\right)}{10 \sqrt{\left(5 x - 1\right)^{2} + 1}} \]
    chainApply the chain rule.✓ Proved
  4. \[ = - \frac{\frac{d}{d x} \left(5 x - 1\right)^{2}}{10 \sqrt{\left(5 x - 1\right)^{2} + 1}} \]
    sumDifferentiate the sum inside the parenthesis.✓ Proved
  5. \[ = - \frac{\left(10 x - 2\right) \frac{d}{d x} \left(5 x - 1\right)}{10 \sqrt{\left(5 x - 1\right)^{2} + 1}} \]
    powerApply the power rule to the squared term.✓ Proved
  6. \[ = - \frac{50 x - 10}{10 \sqrt{\left(5 x - 1\right)^{2} + 1}} \]
    derivative constant-multipleDifferentiate the linear term. Multiply the constants.✓ Proved
  7. \[ = \frac{1 - 5 x}{\sqrt{\left(5 x - 1\right)^{2} + 1}} \]
    simplifySimplify the final expression.✓ Proved
Answer \( \frac{1 - 5 x}{\sqrt{\left(5 x - 1\right)^{2} + 1}} \)

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
3✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
4✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
undefined where (5*x - 1)**2 + 1 = 0
5✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
undefined where (5*x - 1)**2 + 1 = 0
6✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
undefined where (5*x - 1)**2 + 1 = 0
7✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
undefined where (5*x - 1)**2 + 1 = 0
8✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
undefined where (5*x - 1)**2 + 1 = 0
9✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
undefined where (5*x - 1)**2 + 1 = 0
answer✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0final line against the stated answer: simplify(a - b) reduced to 0
undefined where (5*x - 1)**2 + 1 = 0
answer, a second way✓ Provedsympy 1.14.0SymPy differentiated f directly and got the stated answer

Reviewers

  • gpt-oss:20b: fail (error) — Step 5 applies the sum rule but omits the derivative of the constant term 1, effectively differentiating only (5*x-1)**2. This is a missing application of the derivative rule and makes the step incorrect.
  • qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass
Every verdict on record (4)
  • qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass 2026-09-27
  • gpt-oss:20b: fail (error) 2026-09-27 — Step 5 applies the sum rule but omits the derivative of the constant term 1, effectively differentiating only (5*x-1)**2. This is a missing application of the derivative rule and makes the step incorrect.
  • qwen3.6:27b-mlx: pass 2026-09-27
  • gpt-oss:20b: fail (error) 2026-09-27 — Step 5 applies the sum rule but omits the derivative of the constant term 1, effectively applying two rules at once (differentiating the sum and ignoring the constant).

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 2026-09-27 with SymPy 1.14.0.