Average value of a function
Problem 4.755 · medium
Find the average value of \( \displaystyle f(x) = 2 x^{2} \) on \( \displaystyle [0, 2] \), and every \( \displaystyle c \) in the interval with \( \displaystyle f(c) = f_{\text{ave}} \).
- \[ \int\limits_{0}^{2} 2 x^{2}\, dx = \frac{16}{3} \]The integral over the interval.✓ Proved
- \[ \frac{8}{3} \]Divide by the length of the interval.✓ Proved
- \[ \frac{8}{3} \]c = 2*sqrt(3)/3 lies in [0, 2].✓ Proved
Answer \( f_{\text{ave}} = \frac{8}{3},\ c = \frac{2 \sqrt{3}}{3} \)
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
| Line | Status | Checked by | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | simplify(lhs - rhs) reduced to 0 |
| 2 | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | simplify(lhs - rhs) reduced to 0 |
| 3 | ✓ Proved | sympy 1.14.0 | simplify(lhs - rhs) reduced to 0 |
| answer, a second way | ✓ Checked independently | sympy 1.14.0 + mpmath 1.3.0 | numerical quadrature for the average, and f evaluated at each c |
Reviewers
gpt-oss:20b: passqwen3.6:27b-mlx: fail (error) — The solution fails to explicitly state the formula for the average value or the Mean Value Theorem for Integrals, making the logical connection between the integral and the final answer opaque. Furthermore, line 3 is a tautology that does not demonstrate that c is in the interval or that f(c) equals the average value.
Every verdict on record (4)
gpt-oss:20b: pass 2026-10-09qwen3.6:27b-mlx: fail (error) 2026-10-09 — The solution fails to explicitly state the formula for the average value or the Mean Value Theorem for Integrals, making the logical connection between the integral and the final answer opaque. Furthermore, line 3 is a tautology that does not demonstrate that c is in the interval or that f(c) equals the average value.gpt-oss:20b: pass 2026-10-09qwen3.6:27b-mlx: fail (error) 2026-10-09 — The solution fails to explicitly state the definition of average value or the equation f(c) = f_ave used to find c. Line 3 asserts the result without showing the necessary algebraic step of solving 2c^2 = 8/3.
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
generator:structured/average_value, checked 2026-10-09 with SymPy 1.14.0.