Exercise 2083Calculus › Single-variable calculus › Differentiation › Taylor expansionsM1Added 3 Nov 2026
A smooth function that is not its Taylor series
#flat function#smooth#analytic#counterexample
Statement
Let for and .
- Show that for and , for a polynomial .
- Show that is infinitely differentiable at with for all .
- Conclude that is not equal to its Taylor series on any neighbourhood of .
Hint
Use the fact that for every .
Show solutionHide solution
Solution
1. By induction: with . If , then
Writing this is , so is a polynomial.
2. For every polynomial , as (put ). Suppose . Then
so . Induction on .
3. The Taylor series of at is identically , while for every . So is not equal to its Taylor series on any interval around .
Remark. Smooth () does not imply analytic. This function is the standard building block for bump functions and partitions of unity in analysis.