partial derivatives calculus made easy ti89

Partial derivatives calculus made easy ti89 how to#
Partial derivatives calculus made easy ti89 series#

It’s not easy, but at least the challenge is now well-defined. Every one of those concepts described in lecture has to be translated from symbols on a blackboard to a shiver-inducing deep comprehension. The implication: you have to invest a lot of effort during the semester - not just right before the exam - to keep up with a technical course. (Though it gets easier with practice.) Especially when you’re given a dozen new concepts per lecture. They proclaim that they are “not math people.” They switch to a philosophy major.ĭeveloping insight can be hard. Then, when they sit down for the exam and are faced with problems that apply the ideas in novel ways, they have no idea what to do. They capture concepts in their notes and they study by reproducing their notes. Here’s what I commonly observe: the students who struggle in technical courses are those who skip the insight-developing phase. That’s how every high-scoring technical student does it. I am now ready to reveal the big dark secret about technical class studying: If you want to do well in a technical class all you have to do is develop insight for every single concept covered in lecture. If all you know is the equation from above, then you’re screwed. If you understand this graph - really understand it - you understand the insight behind derivatives. The complicated equation from above is just a way to calculate a specific number that describes this steepness. Even more intuitively: it can be though of as the “steepness” of the graph at that point. Forget the equations you copied from the blackboard, I’m talking about developing an understanding deep down in your bones.įor our example of the derivative, this might mean having a solid mental grasp of this image:Ī derivative at a given point is just the slope of the tangent line that kisses that point. What do I mean by insight? That click in your brain - the moment when the tumblers of your mental locks align, the door swings opens, and an intuitive sense of what and why come flooding out. In addition to capture, you need to develop insight. For example, if it’s the first week of calculus, you might record the standard derivative equation I reproduced above. What do you do with the concepts being spewed by the professor? Most students dutifully copy them down along with their accompanying examples. It will make it easier for us to develop a strategy to conquer the material… For each concept, the professor will derive the result from concepts you already know and/or provide an example of the concept in practice. Depending on the difficulty of the material, she may cover anywhere from one to more than a dozen.

Partial derivatives calculus made easy ti89 series#

In each lecture, the professor presents a series of concepts. Technical classes have a simple structure.

Below I’ll explain exactly what I mean and reveal how top technical students use this realization to consistently ace their classes. Here’s an example: when you’re first taught derivatives in calculus class, do you remember it like this…Īs I will argue in this post, for any technical course - be it calculus, physics, or microeconomics - the key between an ‘A’ and a struggle comes down to this distinction.

Partial derivatives calculus made easy ti89 how to#

Study Hacks Blog How to Ace Calculus: The Art of Doing Well in Technical Courses November 14th, 2008 Ĭalculus is easy.