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Fundamental Theorems of Calculus


The fundamental theorem(s) of calculus relate derivatives and integrals with one another. These relationships are both important theoretical achievements and pactical tools for computation. While some authors regard these relationships as a single theorem consisting of two "parts" (e.g., Kaplan 1999, pp. 218-219), each part is more commonly referred to individually.

While terminology differs (and is sometimes even transposed, e.g., Anton 1984), the most common formulation (e.g., Apostol 1967, p. 202) considers the first fundamental theorem of calculus, also termed "the fundamental theorem, part I" (e.g., Sisson and Szarvas 2016, p. 452), to state that, for f a real-valued continuous function on an open interval I and a any number in I, if F is defined by

 F(x)=int_a^xf(t)dt,
(1)

then

 F^'(x)=f(x)
(2)

at each number in I.

Similarly, the most common formulation (e.g., Apostol 1967, p. 205) of the second fundamental theorem of calculus, also termed "the fundamental theorem, part II" (e.g., Sisson and Szarvas 2016, p. 456), states that if f is a real-valued continuous function on the closed interval [a,b] and F is the indefinite integral of f on [a,b], then

 int_a^bf(x)dx=F(b)-F(a).
(3)

This result, while taught early in elementary calculus courses, is actually a very deep result connecting the purely algebraic indefinite integral and the purely analytic (or geometric) definite integral.

A third fundamental theorem of calculus applies to integrals along curves (i.e., path integrals) and states that if f(z) has a continuous indefinite integral F(z) in a region R containing a parameterized curve gamma:z=z(t) for alpha<=t<=beta, then

 int_gammaf(z)dz=F(z(beta))-F(z(alpha)).
(4)

(Krantz 1999, p. 22).


See also

Calculus, Definite Integral, First Fundamental Theorem of Calculus, Indefinite Integral, Integral, Second Fundamental Theorem of Calculus Explore this topic in the MathWorld classroom

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References

Anton, H. Calculus with Analytic Geometry, 2nd ed. New York: Wiley, 1984.Apostol, T. M. 'The Derivative of an Indefinite Integral. The First Fundamental Theorem of Calculus" and "Primitive Functions and the Second Fundamental Theorem of Calculus." §5.1 and 5.3 in Calculus, 2nd ed., Vol. 1: One-Variable Calculus, with an Introduction to Linear Algebra. Waltham, MA: Blaisdell, 1967.Kaplan, W. Advanced Calculus, 3rd ed. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley, 1984.Krantz, S. G. "The Fundamental Theorem of Calculus along Curves." §2.1.5 in Handbook of Complex Variables. Boston, MA: Birkhäuser, 1999.Sisson, P. and Szarvas, T. Single Variable Calculus with Early Transcendentals. Mount Pleasant, SC: Hawkes Learning, 2016.

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Fundamental Theorems of Calculus

Cite this as:

Weisstein, Eric W. "Fundamental Theorems of Calculus." From MathWorld--A Wolfram Web Resource. https://mathworld.wolfram.com/FundamentalTheoremsofCalculus.html

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