2. Index
Calculus in Computer Science
Scientific Computing
Computer Graphics
Games and animations
Data Science
PAGE 2
Introduction
3. PAGE 3
Introduction
Calculus is a major part of modern mathematics education. A course in calculus is a gateway to other,
more advanced courses in mathematics devoted to the study of functions and limits, broadly called
mathematical analysis. Calculus has historically been called "the calculus of infinitesimals", or
"infinitesimal calculus".
calculus, branch of mathematics concerned with the calculation of instantaneous rates of change
(differential calculus) and the summation of infinitely many small factors to determine some whole
(integral calculus).
Calculus has numerous applications in computer science. It provides a powerful framework for modeling
and analyzing various phenomena in the field.
4. PAGE 4
Calculus in Computer Science
Computer Graphics/Image Processing, and here will also be needed Analytic Geometry and Linear
Algebra. In this sector students need to study some Differential Geometry (which has multivariate
Calculus as a minimum prerequisite). But he'll need Calculus here even for very basic things like "Fourier
Transform" or "Wavelets", for example --these are two very fundamental tools for people working with
images.
• Optimization, non-linear mostly, where multivariate Calculus is the fundamental language used to
develop everything. But even linear optimization benefits from Calculus (the derivative of the objective
function is absolutely important)
• Probability/Statistics. These cannot be seriously studied without multivariate Calculus.
• Machine Learning, which makes heavy use of Statistics (and consequently, multivariate Calculus)
5. PAGE 5
Scientific Computing
Scientific computing can also be called computational science or scientific computation. It is mainly the
idea of development of mathematical models, use of quantitative analysis techniques, and use of
computers for solving scientific problems.
Scientific computing requires knowledge of the subject of the underlying problem to be solved (generally,
it will be a problem from a science or engineering domain), a mathematical modeling capability with a
sound idea of various numerical analysis techniques, and finally its efficient and high-performance
implementation using computing techniques. It also requires application of computers; various
peripherals, including networking devices, storage units, processing units, and mathematical and
numerical analysis software; programming languages; and any database along with a good knowledge of
the problem domain. The use of computation and related technologies has enabled newer applications,
and scientists can infer new knowledge from existing data and processes.
7. PAGE 7
Computer Graphics
Calculus plays a crucial role in computer graphics, enabling the creation and rendering of realistic images.
Here are some specific applications of calculus in computer graphics:
• Curves and Surfaces: Calculus is used to define and manipulate curves and surfaces in computer
graphics. Bezier curves, B-splines, and NURBS (Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines) are commonly used
curve representations. Calculus helps in determining the control points, evaluating points on the
curve, and calculating tangent vectors.
• 3D Transformations: Calculus is utilized to perform 3D transformations, such as translation, rotation,
scaling, and shearing, on 3D objects. Matrices and vectors are employed to represent these
transformations, and calculus enables the calculation of these transformations efficiently.
8. PAGE 8
Computer Graphics
• Ray Tracing: Ray tracing is a technique used to generate realistic images by simulating the path of light
rays in a scene. Calculus is involved in determining the intersection points of rays with objects in the
scene, calculating the reflection and refraction angles, and evaluating the intensity of light at each
point.
• Implicit Surfaces: Calculus is involved in defining and rendering implicit surfaces, where the surface is
defined implicitly as the zero level set of a function. Techniques like Marching Cubes use calculus to
extract the surface geometry from the implicit representation.
These are just a few examples of how calculus is applied in computer graphics. The ability to analyze and
manipulate mathematical functions and equations is fundamental in creating visually appealing and
realistic computer-generated imagery.
9. PAGE 9
Games and animations
Vector calculus or Multivariable calculus is one of the most useful branches of mathematics for game
development and computer animation. Games and computer graphics are defined by the three-
dimensional world, where there is an x, y and z component for every vector defined by a vector space.
Without calculus, the whole process of game development would be impossible and modern video games
would not exist. A vector is a quantity that has both a magnitude and direction in n-dimensional space.
For example, the angry birds game application that is widely played uses vectors to describe the force and
direction applied to the bird.
Vectors are a necessary tool needed to determine the position of an object at a certain point on the
three-dimensional plane. Hence, vectors are used to represent a point in space. The addition and
subtraction of vectors can be used to determine the distance between two objects.
10. PAGE 10
Games and animations
The dot product is useful in finding the angle between two vectors and to determine whether vectors are
perpendicular to each other. The dot product in game development is used typically in calculating the
speed at which an object moves relative to the direction of its slope.
Multiple integrals have a correlation to game development. Multiple integrals are used to determine the
volume and surface area of three-dimensional objects. They are used in computer animated films to
stimulate the bouncing of light, subdivision and geometry to create smooth surfaces and harmonic
coordinates that make the characters move very realistically. Multiple integrals are most commonly used
in computer animation to render objects and powering physics engines.
When the characters are moving or in place, animators add shading with a mathematical model which
assesses how the movements would play with light. The equation that is used to render light in animation
is known as the Kajiya’s Rendering Equation. The rending equation contains many parameters: rendering
light at a point, absorption, reflection, refraction, addition light being emitted from a point by a power
source, or from light being scattered.
11. PAGE 11
Data Science
Calculus plays a significant role in various aspects of data science, enabling the analysis, modeling, and
optimization of complex data sets. Here are some key applications of calculus in data science:
• Optimization : Calculus techniques gradient descent are used to optimize machine learning models by
minimizing the error or cost functions, improving model performance.
• Differentiation: Calculus enables the calculation of derivatives, which provide insights into the rate of
change of variables in datasets, enabling trend analysis and identifying critical points.
• Integration: Integrals are used for tasks like calculating areas under curves, which are essential in
statistics for probability density functions and cumulative distribution functions.
• Regression Analysis: Calculus is employed in linear and nonlinear .
12. PAGE 12
Data Science
• Signal Processing: Calculus techniques are used for filtering, transforming, and analyzing signals in
time series and image data.
• Time Series Analysis: Differential equations and integrals are used to model and forecast time series
data, predicting future trends and patterns.
Overall, calculus provides the mathematical tools needed to analyze data, build predictive models, and
gain insights from complex datasets in data science.
13. In conclusion, calculus is an indispensable mathematical tool for computer
science. Its concepts, such as derivatives and integrals, find application in a
wide range of fields, from optimization algorithms to computer graphics and
machine learning. As computer scientists, understanding calculus allows us
to develop more efficient and innovative solutions to complex problems.
PAGE 13
Calculus
Conclusion
