Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
For a real-valued function of a single real variable, the derivative of a function at a point generally determines the best linear approximation to the function at that point. Differential calculus and integral calculus are connected by the fundamental theorem of calculus. This states that differentiation is the reverse process to integration.
The application of hyperreal numbers to the foundations of calculus is called nonstandard analysis. This provides a way to define the basic concepts of calculus such as the derivative and integral in terms of infinitesimals, thereby giving a precise meaning to the d {\displaystyle d} in the Leibniz notation.
Differentiation with respect to time or one of the other variables requires application of the chain rule, [1] since most problems involve several variables. Fundamentally, if a function F {\displaystyle F} is defined such that F = f ( x ) {\displaystyle F=f(x)} , then the derivative of the function F {\displaystyle F} can be taken with respect ...
In applications, the functions generally represent physical quantities, the derivatives represent their rates of change, and the differential equation defines a relationship between the two. Such relations are common in mathematical models and scientific laws ; therefore, differential equations play a prominent role in many disciplines ...
Differential calculus is the study of the definition, properties, and applications of the derivative of a function. The process of finding the derivative is called differentiation. Given a function and a point in the domain, the derivative at that point is a way of encoding the small-scale behavior of the function near that point.
Multivariable calculus (also known as multivariate calculus) is the extension of calculus in one variable to calculus with functions of several variables: the differentiation and integration of functions involving multiple variables (multivariate), rather than just one.
In physics, particularly kinematics, jerk is defined as the third derivative of the position function of an object. It is, essentially, the rate at which acceleration changes.
The exterior derivative is a notion of differentiation of differential forms which generalizes the differential of a function (which is a differential 1-form). Pullback is, in particular, a geometric name for the chain rule for composing a map between manifolds with a differential form on the target manifold.