What is differentiation used for?

Differentiation is used to find the gradient of a line, or curve. It can also be used to find the co-ordinates of stationary points, whether these be minimum, maximum or points of inflection. The second derivitive can be used to identify if these points are minimum or maximum. 

JM

Related Further Mathematics GCSE answers

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Find the stationary point of 3x^2+7x


l1 and l2 are tangents of a circle. l1 intersects the circle at (3-√3,5) with a gradient of √3, and l2 intersects the circle at (3+√2,4+√2) with a gradient of -1. Find the centre of the circle, and hence find the radius of the circle.


Can you explain induction and go through an example?


Show that 2cos^2(x) = 2 - 2sin^2(x) and hence solve 2cos^2(x) + 3sin(x) = 3 for 0<x<180