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As c12 Calculus

Chapter 12 discusses the concept of the gradient of a curve, defined as the gradient of the tangent at a point, and introduces the derivative function. It outlines rules for finding derivatives of polynomial functions and provides equations for tangents and normals to curves. Additionally, it explains stationary points and their classifications based on the first and second derivatives.

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Pranav Patel
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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
34 views1 page

As c12 Calculus

Chapter 12 discusses the concept of the gradient of a curve, defined as the gradient of the tangent at a point, and introduces the derivative function. It outlines rules for finding derivatives of polynomial functions and provides equations for tangents and normals to curves. Additionally, it explains stationary points and their classifications based on the first and second derivatives.

Uploaded by

Pranav Patel
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Chapter 12

Summary of key points


1 The gradient of a curve at a given point is defined as the gradient of the tangent to the
curve at that point.
dy
2 The gradient function, or derivative, of the curve y = f(x) is written as f9(x) or ​___​
dx
f​(x + h)​− f(x)
____________
​f9​(x) = ​lim​​​   ​
h →0 h
The gradient function can be used to find the gradient of the curve for any value of x.
3 For all real values of n, and for a constant a:
● If ​f(x) = ​x​n​then ​f9​(x) = n​x​n − 1​ ● If f(x) = ax  n then ​f9​(x)​= anx  n − 1
dy dy
● If y = x  n then ___ ​ ​= nx  n − 1 ● If y = ax  n then   ​___​= anx  n − 1
dx dx
4 For the quadratic curve with equation y = ax + bx + c, the derivative is given by
2

dy
​___​= 2ax + b
dx
dy
5 If y = f(x) ± g(x), then ___ ​ ​= f9(x) ± g9(x).
dx
6 The tangent to the curve y = f(x) at the point with coordinates (a, f(a)) has equation
y − f(a) = f9(a)(x − a)
7 The normal to the curve y = f(x) at the point with coordinates (a, f(a)) has equation
1
​y − f(a ) = − ​____​(x − a )​
​f9​(a )
8 ● The function f(x) is increasing on the interval [a, b] if f9(x) > 0 for all values of x such that
a , x , b.
● The function f(x) is decreasing on the interval [a, b] if f9(x) < 0 for all values of x such that
a , x , b.
​d​2​y
9 Differentiating a function y = f(x) twice gives you the second order derivative, f  0(x) or ​____2 ​
d​x​ ​
10 Any point on the curve y = f(x) where f9(x) = 0 is called a stationary point. For a small positive
value h:
Type of stationary point f9(x − h) f9(x) f9(x + h)
Local maximum Positive 0 Negative
Local minimum Negative 0 Positive
Negative 0 Negative
Point of inflection
Positive 0 Positive

11 If a function f(x) has a stationary point when x = a, then:


● if f  0(a) . 0, the point is a local minimum
● if f  0(a) , 0, the point is a local maximum.
If f  0(a) = 0, the point could be a local minimum, a local maximum or a point of inflection.
You will need to look at points on either side to determine its nature.

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