Derivatives

THE CONCEPT AND DEFINITION OF A DERIVATIVE

Concepts that shape the course of mathematics are few and far between. The derivative, the fundamental element of the differential calculus, is such a concept. That branch of mathematics called analysis, of which advanced calculus is a part, is the end result. There were two problems that led to the discovery of the derivative. The older one of defining and representing the tangent line to a curve at one of its points had concerned early Greek philosophers. The other problem of representing the instantaneous velocity of an object whose motion was not constant was much more a problem of the seventeenth century. At the end of that century, these problems and their relationship were resolved. As is usually the case, many mathematicians contributed, but it was Isaac Newton and Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz who independently put together organized bodies of thought upon which others could build.
The tangent problem provides a visual interpretation of the derivative and can be brought to mind no matter what the complexity of a particular application. It leads to the definition of the derivative as the limit of a difference quotient in the following way: