Find Directional Derivative at Given Point in Direction of Given Vector

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To find the directional derivative of the function g(s,t) = s√t at the point (2,4) in the direction of the vector v = 2i - j, the gradient is calculated as ∇g(s,t) = <√t, s/(2√t)>, resulting in ∇g(2,4) = <2, 1/2>. The unit vector in the direction of v is determined to be <2/√5, -1/√5>. A dot product calculation yields 5/2√5, but the expected result is 7/2√5, indicating a possible error in the calculation. The discussion emphasizes the importance of correctly applying the dot product and understanding the notation used in vector operations.
betamu
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Homework Statement


[/B]
Find the directional derivative of the function at the given point in the direction of the vector v.

$$g(s,t)=s\sqrt t, (2,4), \vec{v}=2\hat{i} - \hat{j}$$

Homework Equations



$$\nabla g(s,t) = <g_s(s,t), g_t(s,t)>\\
\vec{u} = \vec{v}/|\vec{v}|\\
D_u g(s,t) = \nabla g(s, t) \cdot \vec{u}$$

The Attempt at a Solution


I found $$\nabla g(s, t) =<\sqrt{t}, s/(2\sqrt{t})>$$ which gives $$\nabla g(2,4) = <2, 1/2>$$ and the directional vector to be $$<2/\sqrt{5}, -1/\sqrt{5}>$$ Which gives a dot product of $$5/2\sqrt{5}$$ but my book says that it should be $$7/2\sqrt{5}$$.
 
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betamu said:

Homework Statement


[/B]
Find the directional derivative of the function at the given point in the direction of the vector v.

$$g(s,t)=s\sqrt t, (2,4), \vec{v}=2\hat{i} - \hat{j}$$

Homework Equations



$$\nabla g(s,t) = <g_s(s,t), g_t(s,t)>\\
\vec{u} = \vec{v}/|\vec{v}|\\
D_u g(s,t) = \nabla g(s, t) \cdot \vec{u}$$

The Attempt at a Solution


I found $$\nabla g(s, t) =<\sqrt{t}, s/(2\sqrt{t})>$$ which gives $$\nabla g(2,4) = <2, 1/2>$$ and the directional vector to be $$<2/\sqrt{5}, -1/\sqrt{5}>$$ Which gives a dot product of $$5/2\sqrt{5}$$ but my book says that it should be $$7/2\sqrt{5}$$.
What is ##\langle (2,1/2)\,,\,(2,-1)\rangle \,?##
 
betamu said:

Homework Statement


[/B]
Find the directional derivative of the function at the given point in the direction of the vector v.

$$g(s,t)=s\sqrt t, (2,4), \vec{v}=2\hat{i} - \hat{j}$$

Homework Equations



$$\nabla g(s,t) = <g_s(s,t), g_t(s,t)>\\
\vec{u} = \vec{v}/|\vec{v}|\\
D_u g(s,t) = \nabla g(s, t) \cdot \vec{u}$$

The Attempt at a Solution


I found $$\nabla g(s, t) =<\sqrt{t}, s/(2\sqrt{t})>$$ which gives $$\nabla g(2,4) = <2, 1/2>$$ and the directional vector to be $$<2/\sqrt{5}, -1/\sqrt{5}>$$ Which gives a dot product of $$5/2\sqrt{5}$$
Check your work on the dot product. I think you missed that the second fraction has a 2 in the denominator.
betamu said:
but my book says that it should be $$7/2\sqrt{5}$$.
I get this, as well, but it should be written as ##.7/(2\sqrt{5})## or better, as $$\frac 7 {2\sqrt 5}$$
 
fresh_42 said:
What is ##\langle (2,1/2)\,,\,(2,-1)\rangle \,?##
I'm unsure what you mean. You're putting the gradient vector and v into one vector together?
 
Mark44 said:
Check your work on the dot product. I think you missed that the second fraction has a 2 in the denominator. I get this, as well, but it should be written as ##.7/(2\sqrt{5})## or better, as $$\frac 7 {2\sqrt 5}$$
Haha wow. Yeah you're right. Well at least I gained some experience in writing out latex code in posting this. Thanks!
 
betamu said:
I'm unsure what you mean. You're putting the gradient vector and v into one vector together?
Yes, it is ##\nabla f \cdot \vec{v}##, I simply left out the norm ##\sqrt{5}## since your mistake was the dot product, not the factor.
 
betamu said:
I'm unsure what you mean. You're putting the gradient vector and v into one vector together?
That should be the dot product of two vectors. fresh_42's notation might be for the inner product, a generalization of the dot product.
 
Oh alright, I'd never seen that notation before. Thank you both!
 

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