slope

(noun)

also called gradient; slope or gradient of a line describes its steepness

Related Terms

  • differential geometry
  • differentiable
  • vector

Examples of slope in the following topics:

  • The Derivative and Tangent Line Problem

    • The use of differentiation makes it possible to solve the tangent line problem by finding the slope $f'(a)$.
    • The slope of the secant line passing through $p$ and $q$ is equal to the difference quotient
    • If $k$ is known, the equation of the tangent line can be found in the point-slope form:
    • It barely touches the curve and shows the rate of change slope at the point.
    • Define a derivative as the slope of the tangent line to a point on a curve
  • Derivatives and Rates of Change

    • Thus, to solve the tangent line problem, we need to find the slope of a line that is "touching" a given curve at a given point, or, in modern language, that has the same slope.
    • But what exactly do we mean by "slope" for a curve?
    • In this case, $y = f(x) = m x + b$, for real numbers m and b, and the slope m is given by:
    • This gives an exact value for the slope of a straight line.
    • If $x$ and $y$ are real numbers, and if the graph of $y$ is plotted against $x$, the derivative measures the slope of this graph at each point.
  • Direction Fields and Euler's Method

    • Direction fields, also known as slope fields, are graphical representations of the solution to a first order differential equation.
    • The slope field is traditionally defined for differential equations of the following form:
    • An isocline (a series of lines with the same slope) is often used to supplement the slope field.
    • Then, from the differential equation, the slope to the curve at $A_0$ can be computed, and thus, the tangent line.
    • Along this small step, the slope does not change too much $A_1$ will be close to the curve.
  • Derivatives and the Shape of the Graph

    • The shape of a graph may be found by taking derivatives to tell you the slope and concavity.
    • This gives an exact value for the slope of a straight line.
    • At each point, the derivative of is the slope of a line that is tangent to the curve.
    • The line is always tangent to the blue curve; its slope is the derivative.
    • Sketch the shape of a graph by using differentiation to find the slope and concavity
  • Tangent and Velocity Problems

    • Slope of tangent of position or displacement time graph is instantaneous velocity and its slope of chord is average velocity.
    • Its slope is the velocity at that point.
    • Recognize that the slope of a tangent line to a curve gives the instantaneous velocity at that point in time
  • Partial Derivatives

    • Partial differentiation is the act of choosing one of these lines and finding its slope.
    • To find the slope of the line tangent to the function at $P(1, 1, 3)$ that is parallel to the $xz$-plane, the $y$ variable is treated as constant.
    • By finding the derivative of the equation while assuming that $y$ is a constant, the slope of $f$ at the point $(x, y, z)$ is found to be:
    • So at $(1, 1, 3)$, by substitution, the slope is $3$.
  • Implicit Differentiation

    • You can use implicit differentiation to find the slope of a line tangent to the circle at a point $(x,y)$.
    • Since the slope of a tangent is the derivative at that point, we find the derivative implicitly:
    • and you can now find the slope at any point $(x,y)$.
  • The Derivative as a Function

    • Visually, derivative of a function $f$ at $x=a$ represents the slope of the curve at the point $x=a$.
    • The slope of tangent line shown represents the value of the derivative of the curved function at the point $x$.
  • Higher Derivatives

    • This is read as "$f$ double prime of $x$," or "the second derivative of $f(x)$. " Because the derivative of a function is defined as a function representing the slope of function, the double derivative is the function representing the slope of the first derivative function.
  • Derivatives of Exponential Functions

    • The slope of the graph at any point is the height of the function at that point.
    • Since the slope of the red tangent line (the derivative) at $P$ is equal to the ratio of the triangle's height to the triangle's base (rise over run), and the derivative is equal to the value of the function, $h$ must be equal to the ratio of $h$ to $b$.
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