A type of
calculus problem which is an application of the
derivative. The problems themselves are not hard, but the setup of the problem can often cause many a
college student (or high school student) to
rip their textbook in half in a rage of frustration.
The idea of a related rates problem is to compute the change in one quantity in terms of the rate of change in another quantity. The procedure is as follows:
1) Find an equation that relates the two quantities in question to each other
2) Use the Chain Rule to differentiate both sides of the equation with respect to time (time just gets thrown in the equation, as everything happens in our stream of time).
Problems are usually along the lines of a balloon filling up, a shadow and a man running from a light post, or a rope pulling in a boat from a harbor. The problems apply simple concepts, and can add up to a challenging time, but if done diligently, can really add to one's understanding of calculus.