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In mathematics, the derivative is a fundamental tool that quantifies the sensitivity to change of a function's output with respect to its input. The derivative of a function of a single variable at a chosen input value, when it exists, is the slope of the tangent line to the graph of the function at that point.
A number of properties of the differential follow in a straightforward manner from the corresponding properties of the derivative, partial derivative, and total derivative. These include: [ 11 ] Linearity : For constants a and b and differentiable functions f and g , d ( a f + b g ) = a d f + b d g . {\displaystyle d(af+bg)=a\,df+b\,dg.}
By finding the derivative of a function at every point in its domain, it is possible to produce a new function, called the derivative function or just the derivative of the original function. In formal terms, the derivative is a linear operator which takes a function as its input and produces a second function as its output. This is more ...
In mathematics, differential refers to several related notions [1] derived from the early days of calculus, put on a rigorous footing, such as infinitesimal differences and the derivatives of functions. [2] The term is used in various branches of mathematics such as calculus, differential geometry, algebraic geometry and algebraic topology.
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.
A similar formulation of the higher-dimensional derivative is provided by the fundamental increment lemma found in single-variable calculus. If all the partial derivatives of a function exist in a neighborhood of a point x 0 and are continuous at the point x 0, then the function is differentiable at that point x 0.
The mean value theorem gives a relationship between values of the derivative and values of the original function. If f ( x ) is a real-valued function and a and b are numbers with a < b , then the mean value theorem says that under mild hypotheses, the slope between the two points ( a , f ( a )) and ( b , f ( b )) is equal to the slope of the ...
In calculus, a branch of mathematics, the third derivative or third-order derivative is the rate at which the second derivative, or the rate of change of the rate of change, is changing. The third derivative of a function y = f ( x ) {\displaystyle y=f(x)} can be denoted by