The Power and Importance of Differentiation

Differentiation is a crucial method that helps us determine rates of change and find the gradients of functions. It gives us the derivative of a function, which is a valuable tool in mathematical analysis.

The Process of Differentiation Explained

The process of differentiation is represented by the fraction Δy/Δx, also referred to as "change in y divided by change in x". The letters x and y can be replaced with any other variable. Another notation for derivatives is using an apostrophe after the function, where y' represents the derivative of y with respect to x and f'(x) represents the derivative of f(x).

For example, let's review how to find the gradient of a straight line graph:

<