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The second derivative of a function f can be used to determine the concavity of the graph of f. [2] A function whose second derivative is positive is said to be concave up (also referred to as convex), meaning that the tangent line near the point where it touches the function will lie below the graph of the function.
The higher order derivatives can be applied in physics; for example, while the first derivative of the position of a moving object with respect to time is the object's velocity, how the position changes as time advances, the second derivative is the object's acceleration, how the velocity changes as time advances.
for the first derivative, for the second derivative, for the third derivative, and for the nth derivative. When f is a function of several variables, it is common to use "∂", a stylized cursive lower-case d, rather than "D". As above, the subscripts denote the derivatives that are being taken.
The higher-order derivative test or general derivative test is able to determine whether a function's critical points are maxima, minima, or points of inflection for a wider variety of functions than the second-order derivative test. As shown below, the second-derivative test is mathematically identical to the special case of n = 1 in the ...
This is called the second derivative test. An alternative approach, called the first derivative test, involves considering the sign of the f' on each side of the critical point. Taking derivatives and solving for critical points is therefore often a simple way to find local minima or maxima, which can be useful in optimization.
Given below is the five-point method for the first derivative (five-point stencil in one dimension): [10] ′ = (+) + (+) + + (), where [, +]. For other stencil configurations and derivative orders, the Finite Difference Coefficients Calculator is a tool that can be used to generate derivative approximation methods for any stencil with any ...
The derivatives in the table above are for when the range of the inverse secant is [,] and when the range of the inverse cosecant is [,]. It is common to additionally define an inverse tangent function with two arguments , arctan ( y , x ) . {\displaystyle \arctan(y,x).}
That is, the derivative of the area function A(x) exists and is equal to the original function f(x), so the area function is an antiderivative of the original function. Thus, the derivative of the integral of a function (the area) is the original function, so that derivative and integral are inverse operations which reverse each other. This is ...