Quiz 17: Natural Splines (due 11/14)

Suppose you're given the data points

(t1,f1) = (0.0, 0.1)

(t2,f2) = (0.4, 0.6)

(t3,f3) = (1.0, 0.2)

Compute the eight coefficients of the natural cubic spline f(t) that interpolates this data. You should assume that f(t) is made up of two cubic pieces

f1(t) = a1 t^3 + b1 t^2 + c1 t + d1, 0 <= t < 0.4,

and

f2(t) = a2 t^3 + b2 t^2 + c2 t + d2, 0.4 <= t <= 1.

You do not have to do all the work by hand, but you must explain how you obtained the solution (and provide any code you used to obtain it, if applicable).