MathGroup Archive 2010

[Date Index] [Thread Index] [Author Index]

Search the Archive

Re: Question about the derivative of Abs

  • To: mathgroup at smc.vnet.net
  • Subject: [mg106140] Re: [mg106097] Question about the derivative of Abs
  • From: Bob Hanlon <hanlonr at cox.net>
  • Date: Sat, 2 Jan 2010 05:07:54 -0500 (EST)
  • Reply-to: hanlonr at cox.net

sub = {
   Abs'[x_?NumericQ /; x != 0] -> Sign[x],
   Abs''[x_?NumericQ /; x != 0] -> 0};

Abs'[2.0] + Abs''[2.0] /. sub

1


Bob Hanlon

---- Sam Takoy <samtakoy at yahoo.com> wrote: 

=============
Hi,

I kind of asked this question before, but in a more confusing context, 
so now I would like to ask it by itself.

In the course of my computations, I get Abs' and Abs''. It is applied to 
a positive number, so I think those values should be 1 and 0. However, 
Mathematica fails to simplify it.

For example

In[34]:= Abs'[2.0]

Out[34]=
\!\(\*SuperscriptBox["Abs", "\[Prime]",
MultilineFunction->None]\)[2.]


These expressions really mess up my answers. How do I get Mathematica to 
do these simplifications?

Thanks

Sam



  • Prev by Date: Re: Re: More /.{I->-1} craziness
  • Next by Date: Re: Question about the derivative of Abs
  • Previous by thread: Re: Question about the derivative of Abs
  • Next by thread: Re: Question about the derivative of Abs