Calculus For Dummies, 2nd Edition

Part II

Warming Up with Calculus Prerequisites

Find out about determining volume using a calculus technique that works like those nested Russian dolls at www.dummies.com/extras/calculus.

In this part …

• Algebra review: Richard Feynman, the great 20th century physicist, said (tongue-in-cheek) that calculus was the language that God spoke. Well, I don’t know about that, but I do know that algebra is the language of calculus. If you want to learn calculus, you’ve got to know your algebra.
• Logarithm review: What’s log 10? And ln 1? Hint for the first one: It’s the loneliest number. Hint for the second: There’s nothing to it.
• Function review: Even and odd functions, exponential functions, inverse functions, function transformations, and so on.
• Some trig: The all-important unit circle. And the related geometry of the 30˚-60˚-90˚ and 45˚-45˚-90˚ triangles.
• More trig: SohCahToa and the graphs of sine, cosine, and tangent.