Why does the constant disappear when differentiating a function?

We can think of the constant term in a function in terms of x, for example in x^2 + 3x + 2 as 2 being multiplied by x^0. Anything to the power of 0 is equal to one, so in our example we would have 2 * x^ 0 which is the same as 2 * 1 which is 2, but this trick allows every term to have x of a certain power. Differentiating first multiplies the power of the x term with the coefficient, then takes one away from the power- with the constant term, multiplying the coefficient, the 2, by 0, will cause the whole term to disappear before we get to the second step.

Answered by Abdullah P. Maths tutor

8729 Views

See similar Maths A Level tutors

Related Maths A Level answers

All answers ▸

integrate [xe^(-x)] with respect to x.


Solve the equation x=4-|2x+1|


Find the gradient of the tangent and the normal to the curve f(x)= 4x^3 - 7x - 10 at the point (2, 8)


Find the turning point of the function y=f(x)=x^2+4x+4 and state wether it is a minimum or maximum value.


We're here to help

contact us iconContact usWhatsapp logoMessage us on Whatsapptelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo
Cookie Preferences