In other words, f(x)=y where y=m2 for an integer m and |x−y|≤|x−n2| for all integers n. In case of a tie, i.e. x (resp. √x) is midway between two successive squares (resp. integers), we define f(x) (resp. g(x)) to be the smallest such square (resp. integer).
The question we like to ask is: is g(x)2=f(x) true? For arbitrary real numbers x, the answer is no.
The midpoint between two successive integers a and a+1 is a+12 whose square is a2+a+14. On the other hand, the midpoint between two successive squares a2 and (a+1)2 is a2+a+12. It is interesting to note that the difference between the 2 midpoints is always 14 regardless of what a is (this is true even if a is not an integer).
Graphically this is illustrated as:
This means that for a2+a+14<x<a2+a+12, g(x)=√f(x)+1. For instance 2.375 is closer to 1 than to 4, but √2.375=1.541... is closer to 2 than to 1.
On the other hand if
a2≤x<a2+a+14 or a2+a+12<x≤(a+1)2,
then g(x)2=f(x).
This analysis also shows the following facts:
- If x is an integer, then evaluating f(x) and g(x) do not result in a tie, as the 2 midpoints above are not integers.
- If x is an integer, then g(x)2=f(x) as the interval [a2+a+14,a2+a+12] does not contain any integers.
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