Objectives
This unit covers the following ideas.
Explain the properties of the gradient, its relation to level curves and level surfaces, and how it can be used to find directional derivatives.
Find equations of tangent planes using the gradient and level surfaces. Use the derivative (tangent planes) to approximate functions, and use this in real world application problems.
Explain the second derivative test in terms of eigenvalues. Use the second derivative test to optimize functions of several variables.
Use Lagrange multipliers to optimize a function subject to constraints.