MATH 1550 Chapter : Math Implicit Differentiation
Document Summary
Sometimes functions are given not in the form y = f (x) but in a more complicated form in which it is di cult or impossible to express y explicitly in terms of x. In this unit we explain how these can be di erentiated using implicit di erentiation. In order to master the techniques explained here it is vital that you undertake plenty of practice exercises so that they become second nature. After reading this text, and/or viewing the video tutorial on this topic, you should be able to: di erentiate functions de ned implicitly. In this unit we look at how we might di erentiate functions of y with respect to x. Consider an expression such as x2 + y2. 4x + 5y 8 = 0. It would be quite di cult to re-arrange this so y was given explicitly as a function of x.
