The derivative of a function at a point tells us the "steepness" or instantaneous rate of change of the function at that point. We start by considering a secant line connecting two points on the curve: (x, f(x))
and (x+h, f(x+h))
. The slope of this secant line is (f(x+h) - f(x)) / h
.
As we make h
(the horizontal distance between the points) smaller and smaller, the secant line approaches the tangent line to the curve at x
. The slope of this tangent line is the derivative, f'(x)
.
Secant Slope: N/A | Approx. Tangent Slope (f'(x)): N/A
y = f(x)
is plotted.P1 = (x_val, f(x_val))
and P2 = (x_val + h_val, f(x_val + h_val))
.m_secant = (f(x_val + h_val) - f(x_val)) / h_val
.h_val
approaches 0, the secant line becomes the tangent line. Its slope is the derivative. We approximate this with a very small h
for visualization.The definite integral of a function f(x)
from a
to b
represents the accumulated area between the curve and the x-axis over that interval. We can approximate this area using Riemann Sums. This involves dividing the interval [a, b]
into N
smaller subintervals (rectangles).
The width of each rectangle is dx = (b-a)/N
. The height can be determined by the function's value at the left endpoint, right endpoint, or midpoint of each subinterval. As N
(the number of rectangles) increases, the sum of the areas of these rectangles gets closer to the true area under the curve.
Approx. Area (Riemann Sum): N/A
y = f(x)
is plotted.[a, b]
is divided into N
subintervals, each of width dx = (b-a)/N
.x_i = a + i * dx
f(x_i)
f(x_i) * dx
Sum(Area_i)
for i
from 0 to N-1
.N -> infinity
.A vector field assigns a vector (an arrow with direction and magnitude) to every point in a 2D plane or 3D space. It's defined by component functions, e.g., F(x,y) =
. P(x,y)
gives the x-component of the vector at point (x,y)
, and Q(x,y)
gives the y-component.
Vector fields can represent physical phenomena like wind patterns, fluid flow, or force fields (like gravity or electromagnetism). We visualize them by drawing arrows at various grid points.
(x,y)
on a grid, we calculate vx = P(x,y)
and vy = Q(x,y)
.(x,y)
and ending near (x + scale*vx, y + scale*vy)
. The 'scale' factor is for visual clarity.P(x,y) = -y
, Q(x,y) = x
(creates circular flow).P(x,y) = x
, Q(x,y) = y
(vectors point away from origin).P(x,y) = 1
, Q(x,y) = 0
(all vectors point right).