u/Cyclondo48

Combining transformations

Hello everyone.

My question is that if we have a graph:

f(x) = √(x + 4) - 1

And then we make a new graph that we

- First stretch horizontally about the y - axis by a factor of 1/2
- Then apply a horizontal translation 4 units right

Why is the equation of the graph

g(x) = f(2(x - 4))?

Why is the part of the equation that causes a translation nested inside of the stretch?

Shouldn't the stretch be the thing that applies to x first?

Maybe something like:

g(x) = f(2x - 4) (order of operations means that x is multiplied by 2 first, then subtracted by 4)

But I know I am missing something, because this second form also doesn't make too much sense either. The x - 4 doesn't mean x is being subtracted by four, but rather that x is increasing by four to compensate.

And now I am thoroughly confused. Please help me out.

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u/Cyclondo48 — 15 days ago