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v. t. e. In mathematics, the derivative is a fundamental tool that quantifies the sensitivity of 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 finite difference is a mathematical expression of the form f (x + b) − f (x + a).If a finite difference is divided by b − a, one gets a difference quotient.The approximation of derivatives by finite differences plays a central role in finite difference methods for the numerical solution of differential equations, especially boundary value problems.
An ordinary differential equation (ODE) is an equation containing an unknown function of one real or complex variable x, its derivatives, and some given functions of x. The unknown function is generally represented by a variable (often denoted y), which, therefore, depends on x. Thus x is often called the independent variable of the equation.
Introduction. The term differential is used nonrigorously in calculus to refer to an infinitesimal ("infinitely small") change in some varying quantity. For example, if x is a variable, then a change in the value of x is often denoted Δ x (pronounced delta x). The differential dx represents an infinitely small change in the variable x.
f ′ (x) A function f of x, differentiated once in Lagrange's notation. One of the most common modern notations for differentiation is named after Joseph Louis Lagrange, even though it was actually invented by Euler and just popularized by the former. In Lagrange's notation, a prime mark denotes a derivative.
In mathematics, the characteristic equation (or auxiliary equation[1]) is an algebraic equation of degree n upon which depends the solution of a given nth- order differential equation [2] or difference equation. [3][4] The characteristic equation can only be formed when the differential or difference equation is linear and homogeneous, and has ...
e. In calculus, the differential represents the principal part of the change in a function with respect to changes in the independent variable. The differential is defined by where is the derivative of f with respect to , and is an additional real variable (so that is a function of and ). The notation is such that the equation.
Numerical differentiation. Use of numerical analysis to estimate derivatives of functions. Finite difference estimation of derivative. In numerical analysis, numerical differentiation algorithms estimate the derivative of a mathematical function or function subroutine using values of the function and perhaps other knowledge about the function.