Derivative

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The derivative of a function is defined as the instantaneous rate of change of the function with respect to one of the variables. Note that not every function has a derivative.


How to Find the Derivative

For any constant, the derivative is 0.

For any monomial $nx$, the derivitave is n.

Note that when we take the derivative of any polynomial $a_nx^n+a_{n-1}x^{n-1}+...+a_1x+a_0$, we can take the derivative of each addend and then add these to find the derivative of the polynomial.

The chain rule states that the derivative of any $ax^n$ is $anx^{n-1}$

The following pages provide additional information on derivatives.

See also

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