One-sided limits are a really cool part of limits! They help us see how a function acts as it gets close to a certain point, but only from one side—either from the left or the right.

Why Are They Important?

1. Understanding Behavior: One-sided limits help us understand what happens to a function right before it hits a specific point. This is super important for figuring out when something goes wrong, called discontinuities.

2. Identifying Discontinuities: If the limit from the left side ($\lim_{x \to c^-} f(x)$) and the limit from the right side ($\lim_{x \to c^+} f(x)$) are not the same, it means there’s a jump or a problem, like an asymptote, at that point.

3. Real-Life Uses: In real life, like when looking at traffic speeds or how populations grow, one-sided limits help us understand situations that change quickly at certain points.

So, one-sided limits give us a better look at how functions behave right at particular points!