Re: Integral of 1/(sqrt(2)+sin(x))



Felix E. Klee wrote:
> On Friday 25 April 2003 23:28, Raymond Toy wrote:
> 
>>    Felix> 2. Maxima returns a non continuous indefinite integral:
>>    Felix>        (C214) ratsimp(integrate(integrand,x));
>>    Felix>        (D214) 2*ATAN((SQRT(2)*SIN(x)+COS(x)+1)/(COS(x)+1))
>>
>>In these kinds of integrals, don't you always have to be careful about
>>what branch of atan should be used?
>>
>>This is probably why ldefint returns 0 since d214 is %pi/2 for both x
>>= 0 and x = 2*%pi.
> 
> 
> As far as I can see the result d214 is mathematically incorrect because: 
> d214 is non contiguos at (2*n-1)*%pi.
> => d214 is underivable at (2*n-1)*%pi 
> => d214 is not the antiderivative of integrand (or only the antiderivative
>    on a limited range for x).
> 
> A correct result would be something like
>     (if (remainder(u-%pi,2*%pi) = 0) then 0 else d214)
>     + 2*%pi*entier((u-%pi) / (2*%pi))
> 

Perhaps so, but that goes against decades (centuries?) of mathematical 
literature where such things are assumed away.  :-) I don't think you'll 
find any table of integrals that goes to this extreme.  You're just 
supposed to know. :-)

Should we also add that unknown constant of integration?

Ray