Math for Engineers 2 min
The Derivative: How Fast Is It Changing Right Now?
The derivative is a rate: how fast something changes right now. Speed is the derivative of position; acceleration is the derivative of speed. This video shows it on a moving cart, as the slope of a curve, and as the limit of a shrinking interval.
You'll see why the slope of a tangent line is the whole idea, and how engineers use derivatives in control and motion.
In this video
- Rate of change as a slope
- Position, velocity, acceleration
- The limit that defines the derivative
- Derivatives in motion control