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Partial Derivatives
In mathematics, a partial derivative of a function of several variables is its derivative with respect to one of those variables, with the others held constant (as opposed to the total derivative, in which all variables are allowed to vary). Partial derivatives are used in vector calculus and differential geometry. The partial derivative of a function f(x, y, \dots) with respect to the variable x is variously denoted by It can be thought of as the rate of change of the function in the x-direction. Sometimes, for the partial derivative of z with respect to x is denoted as \tfrac. Since a partial derivative generally has the same arguments as the original function, its functional dependence is sometimes explicitly signified by the notation, such as in: f'_x(x, y, \ldots), \frac (x, y, \ldots). The symbol used to denote partial derivatives is ∂. One of the first known uses of this symbol in mathematics is by Marquis de Condorcet from 1770, who used it for partial difference ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gradient
In vector calculus, the gradient of a scalar-valued differentiable function f of several variables is the vector field (or vector-valued function) \nabla f whose value at a point p gives the direction and the rate of fastest increase. The gradient transforms like a vector under change of basis of the space of variables of f. If the gradient of a function is non-zero at a point p, the direction of the gradient is the direction in which the function increases most quickly from p, and the magnitude of the gradient is the rate of increase in that direction, the greatest absolute directional derivative. Further, a point where the gradient is the zero vector is known as a stationary point. The gradient thus plays a fundamental role in optimization theory, where it is used to minimize a function by gradient descent. In coordinate-free terms, the gradient of a function f(\mathbf) may be defined by: df=\nabla f \cdot d\mathbf where df is the total infinitesimal change in f for a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mathematics
Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many areas of mathematics, which include number theory (the study of numbers), algebra (the study of formulas and related structures), geometry (the study of shapes and spaces that contain them), Mathematical analysis, analysis (the study of continuous changes), and set theory (presently used as a foundation for all mathematics). Mathematics involves the description and manipulation of mathematical object, abstract objects that consist of either abstraction (mathematics), abstractions from nature orin modern mathematicspurely abstract entities that are stipulated to have certain properties, called axioms. Mathematics uses pure reason to proof (mathematics), prove properties of objects, a ''proof'' consisting of a succession of applications of in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Symmetry Of Second Derivatives
In mathematics, the symmetry of second derivatives (also called the equality of mixed partials) is the fact that exchanging the order of partial derivatives of a multivariate function :f\left(x_1,\, x_2,\, \ldots,\, x_n\right) does not change the result if some continuity conditions are satisfied (see below); that is, the second-order partial derivatives satisfy the identities :\frac \left( \frac \right) \ = \ \frac \left( \frac \right). In other words, the matrix of the second-order partial derivatives, known as the Hessian matrix, is a symmetric matrix. Sufficient conditions for the symmetry to hold are given by Schwarz's theorem, also called Clairaut's theorem or Young's theorem. In the context of partial differential equations, it is called the Schwarz integrability condition. Formal expressions of symmetry In symbols, the symmetry may be expressed as: :\frac \left( \frac \right) \ = \ \frac \left( \frac \right) \qquad\text\qquad \frac \ = ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Graph Of A Function
In mathematics, the graph of a function f is the set of ordered pairs (x, y), where f(x) = y. In the common case where x and f(x) are real numbers, these pairs are Cartesian coordinates of points in a plane (geometry), plane and often form a Plane curve, curve. The graphical representation of the graph of a Function (mathematics), function is also known as a ''Plot (graphics), plot''. In the case of Bivariate function, functions of two variables – that is, functions whose Domain of a function, domain consists of pairs (x, y) –, the graph usually refers to the set of ordered triples (x, y, z) where f(x,y) = z. This is a subset of three-dimensional space; for a continuous real-valued function of two real variables, its graph forms a Surface (mathematics), surface, which can be visualized as a ''surface plot (graphics), surface plot''. In science, engineering, technology, finance, and other areas, graphs are tools used for many purposes. In the simplest case one variable is p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tangent
In geometry, the tangent line (or simply tangent) to a plane curve at a given point is, intuitively, the straight line that "just touches" the curve at that point. Leibniz defined it as the line through a pair of infinitely close points on the curve. More precisely, a straight line is tangent to the curve at a point if the line passes through the point on the curve and has slope , where ''f'' is the derivative of ''f''. A similar definition applies to space curves and curves in ''n''-dimensional Euclidean space. The point where the tangent line and the curve meet or intersect is called the ''point of tangency''. The tangent line is said to be "going in the same direction" as the curve, and is thus the best straight-line approximation to the curve at that point. The tangent line to a point on a differentiable curve can also be thought of as a '' tangent line approximation'', the graph of the affine function that best approximates the original function at the given point ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Unit Vectors
In mathematics, a unit vector in a normed vector space is a vector (often a spatial vector) of length 1. A unit vector is often denoted by a lowercase letter with a circumflex, or "hat", as in \hat (pronounced "v-hat"). The term ''normalized vector'' is sometimes used as a synonym for ''unit vector''. The normalized vector û of a non-zero vector u is the unit vector in the direction of u, i.e., :\mathbf = \frac=(\frac, \frac, ... , \frac) where ‖u‖ is the norm (or length) of u and \, \mathbf\, = (u_1, u_2, ..., u_n). The proof is the following: \, \mathbf\, =\sqrt=\sqrt=\sqrt=1 A unit vector is often used to represent directions, such as normal directions. Unit vectors are often chosen to form the basis of a vector space, and every vector in the space may be written as a linear combination form of unit vectors. Orthogonal coordinates Cartesian coordinates Unit vectors may be used to represent the axes of a Cartesian coordinate system. For instance, the standard ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Euclidean Space
Euclidean space is the fundamental space of geometry, intended to represent physical space. Originally, in Euclid's ''Elements'', it was the three-dimensional space of Euclidean geometry, but in modern mathematics there are ''Euclidean spaces'' of any positive integer dimension ''n'', which are called Euclidean ''n''-spaces when one wants to specify their dimension. For ''n'' equal to one or two, they are commonly called respectively Euclidean lines and Euclidean planes. The qualifier "Euclidean" is used to distinguish Euclidean spaces from other spaces that were later considered in physics and modern mathematics. Ancient Greek geometers introduced Euclidean space for modeling the physical space. Their work was collected by the ancient Greek mathematician Euclid in his ''Elements'', with the great innovation of '' proving'' all properties of the space as theorems, by starting from a few fundamental properties, called '' postulates'', which either were considered as evid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Del Operator
Del, or nabla, is an operator used in mathematics (particularly in vector calculus) as a vector differential operator, usually represented by the nabla symbol ∇. When applied to a function defined on a one-dimensional domain, it denotes the standard derivative of the function as defined in calculus. When applied to a ''field'' (a function defined on a multi-dimensional domain), it may denote any one of three operations depending on the way it is applied: the gradient or (locally) steepest slope of a scalar field (or sometimes of a vector field, as in the Navier–Stokes equations); the divergence of a vector field; or the curl (rotation) of a vector field. Del is a very convenient mathematical notation for those three operations (gradient, divergence, and curl) that makes many equations easier to write and remember. The del symbol (or nabla) can be formally defined as a vector operator whose components are the corresponding partial derivative operators. As a vector operat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Abuse Of Notation
In mathematics, abuse of notation occurs when an author uses a mathematical notation in a way that is not entirely formally correct, but which might help simplify the exposition or suggest the correct intuition (while possibly minimizing errors and confusion at the same time). However, since the concept of formal/syntactical correctness depends on both time and context, certain notations in mathematics that are flagged as abuse in one context could be formally correct in one or more other contexts. Time-dependent abuses of notation may occur when novel notations are introduced to a theory some time before the theory is first formalized; these may be formally corrected by solidifying and/or otherwise improving the theory. ''Abuse of notation'' should be contrasted with ''misuse'' of notation, which does not have the presentational benefits of the former and should be avoided (such as the misuse of constants of integration). A related concept is abuse of language or abuse of termin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vector Field
In vector calculus and physics, a vector field is an assignment of a vector to each point in a space, most commonly Euclidean space \mathbb^n. A vector field on a plane can be visualized as a collection of arrows with given magnitudes and directions, each attached to a point on the plane. Vector fields are often used to model, for example, the speed and direction of a moving fluid throughout three dimensional space, such as the wind, or the strength and direction of some force, such as the magnetic or gravitational force, as it changes from one point to another point. The elements of differential and integral calculus extend naturally to vector fields. When a vector field represents force, the line integral of a vector field represents the work done by a force moving along a path, and under this interpretation conservation of energy is exhibited as a special case of the fundamental theorem of calculus. Vector fields can usefully be thought of as representing the velocit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scalar-valued Function
In mathematics and physics, a scalar field is a function associating a single number to each point in a region of space – possibly physical space. The scalar may either be a pure mathematical number (dimensionless) or a scalar physical quantity (with units). In a physical context, scalar fields are required to be independent of the choice of reference frame. That is, any two observers using the same units will agree on the value of the scalar field at the same absolute point in space (or spacetime) regardless of their respective points of origin. Examples used in physics include the temperature distribution throughout space, the pressure distribution in a fluid, and spin-zero quantum fields, such as the Higgs field. These fields are the subject of scalar field theory. Definition Mathematically, a scalar field on a region ''U'' is a real or complex-valued function or distribution on ''U''. The region ''U'' may be a set in some Euclidean space, Minkowski space, o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clairaut's Theorem On Equality Of Mixed Partials
In mathematics, the symmetry of second derivatives (also called the equality of mixed partials) is the fact that exchanging the order of partial derivatives of a multivariate function :f\left(x_1,\, x_2,\, \ldots,\, x_n\right) does not change the result if some continuity conditions are satisfied (see below); that is, the second-order partial derivatives satisfy the identities :\frac \left( \frac \right) \ = \ \frac \left( \frac \right). In other words, the matrix of the second-order partial derivatives, known as the Hessian matrix, is a symmetric matrix. Sufficient conditions for the symmetry to hold are given by Schwarz's theorem, also called Clairaut's theorem or Young's theorem. In the context of partial differential equations, it is called the Schwarz integrability condition. Formal expressions of symmetry In symbols, the symmetry may be expressed as: :\frac \left( \frac \right) \ = \ \frac \left( \frac \right) \qquad\text\qquad \frac \ =\ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
