Integrating dx and dy: What Does It Mean?

[Blue and green]

Once you've integrated, dx and dy just indicate what variable you've integrated in terms of, correct?

 

[davidbenari]

Yeah. In response to the question in the title, dx does mean something.

One of the things that people associate with dx is an infinitesimal unit of length along the x axis.

 

[HallsofIvy]

"Once you've integrated"- that is after you have done the integration- there should no longer be a "dx" or "dy" in the expression!

 

[crador]

As mentioned above dx just means "a little piece of x". So A dx is just the A times a little piece dx. Integrating means you do this many times, and add up the results. You can even do dx dy to have little squares, and other such things if you get clever!