October 8, 2009
No CommentsHow to Use the First Derivative Test
Description
A detailed tutorial on how to use the first derivative test. Step by step tutorial including several examples of how to use the first derivative test for reference.
Overview
The first derivative test involves taking the derivative of a function that you would like to find the local maximum or minimum of. Once you have the derivative, you must determine if the function is increasing or decreasing. If the derivative is positive, the function is increasing, and when the derivative is negative, the function is decreasing. If the derivative cannot be determined as positive or negative, then the test fails.
