What is the period and amplitude for y=3 cos x?

1 Answer
Sep 21, 2015

The period is 1 and the amplitude is 3.

Explanation:

For a general cosine function of the form Y = Acos(Bx), A is the amplitude (The maximum absolute value of the oscillation) and B is the period (meaning that the function completes one cycle every (2pi)/B interval).

This function has the amplitude 3, giving an oscillation between -3 and 3, and the period 1, giving the interval length of 2pi.

Graphed, it looks like this:

graph{y = 3cosx [-10, 10, -5, 5]}