CHAPTER 6: LOGARITHMS AND
LOGARIMIC FUNCTIONS
Solving system of inequalities with one variable
13
Logarithms and Logarithmic functions
Equations and inequalities
What is a logarithm ?
Consider the expression 16 = 24 . Remember that 2 is the base, and 4 is the power. An alternative,
yet equivalent, way of writing this expression is log2 16 = 4. This is stated as ‘log to base 2 of 16
equals 4’. We see that the logarithm is the same as the power or index in the original expression.
It is the base in the original expression which becomes the base of the logarithm.
The two statements
16 = 24 log2 16 = 4
are equivalent statements. If we write either of them, we are automatically implying the other.
Example
If we write down that 64 = 82 then the equivalent statement using logarithms is log8 64 = 2.
Example
If we write down that log3 27 = 3 then the equivalent statement using powers is 33 = 27.
So the two sets of statements, one involving powers and one involving logarithms are equivalent.
In the general case we have:
Key Point
if x = an then equivalently loga x = n
Let us develop this a little more.
Because 10 = 101 we can write the equivalent logarithmic form log10 10 = 1.
Similarly, the logarithmic form of the statement 21 = 2 is log2 2 = 1.
In general, for any base a, a = a1 and so loga a = 1.
Key Point
loga a = 1
We can see from the Examples above that indices and logarithms are very closely related. In
the same way that we have rules or laws of indices, we have laws of logarithms. These are
developed in the following sections.
Examples
1. Write the following using logarithms instead of powers
c) 210 = 1024 d) 53 = 125
2
a) 8 = 64 b) 35 = 243
2. Determine the value of the following logarithms
a) log3 9 b) log2 32 c) log5 125 d) log10 10000
5. The first law of logarithms
Suppose
x = an and y = am
then the equivalent logarithmic forms are
loga x = n and loga y = m (1)
Using the first rule of indices
xy = an × am = an+m
Now the logarithmic form of the statement xy = an+m is loga xy = n + m. But n = loga x and
m = loga y from (1) and so putting these results together we have
loga xy = loga x + loga y
So, if we want to multiply two numbers together and find the logarithm of the result, we can do
this by adding together the logarithms of the two numbers. This is the first law.
Key Point
loga xy = loga x + loga y
6. The second law of logarithms
Suppose x = an , or equivalently loga x = n. Suppose we raise both sides of x = an to the power
m:
xm = (an )m
Using the rules of indices we can write this as
xm = anm
Thinking of the quantity xm as a single term, the logarithmic form is
loga xm = nm = m loga x
This is the second law. It states that when finding the logarithm of a power of a number, this
can be evaluated by multiplying the logarithm of the number by that power.
Key Point
loga xm = m loga x
7. The third law of logarithms
As before, suppose
x = an and y = am
with equivalent logarithmic forms
loga x = n and loga y = m
Consider x ÷ y.
x
= an ÷ am
y
= an−m
using the rules of indices.
In logarithmic form
x
loga =n−m
y
which from (2) can be written
x
loga = loga x − loga y
y
This is the third law.
Key Point
x
loga = loga x − loga y
y
8. The logarithm of 1
Recall that any number raised to the power zero is 1: a0 = 1. The logarithmic form of this is
loga 1 = 0
Key Point
loga 1 = 0
Example
Suppose we wish to find log2 512.
This is the same as being asked ‘what is 512 expressed as a power of 2 ?’
Now 512 is in fact 29 and so log2 512 = 9.
Example
1
Suppose we wish to find log8 .
64
1
This is the same as being asked ‘what is expressed as a power of 8 ?’
64
1
Now can be written 64−1 . Noting also that 82 = 64 it follows that
64
1
= 64−1 = (82 )−1 = 8−2
64
1
using the rules of indices. So log8 = −2.
64
Example
Suppose we wish to find log5 25.
This is the same as being asked ‘what is 25 expressed as a power of 5 ?’
Now 52 = 25 and so log5 25 = 2.
Example
Suppose we wish to find log25 5.
This is the same as being asked ‘what is 5 expressed as a power of 25 ?’
√ 1
We know that 5 is a square root of 25, that is 5 = 25. So 25 2 = 5 and so log25 5 = 12 .
Notice from the last two examples that by interchanging the base and the number
1
log25 5 =
log5 25
This is true more generally: Key Point
1
logb a =
loga b
To illustrate this again, consider the following example.
Example
Consider log2 8. We are asking ‘what is 8 expressed as a power of 2 ?’ We know that 8 = 23
and so log2 8 = 3.
What about log8 2 ? Now we are asking ‘what is 2 expressed as a power of 8 ?’ Now 23 = 8
√ 1
and so 2 = 3 8 or 81/3 . So log8 2 = .
3
We see again
1
log8 2 =
log2 8
