gradient (redirected from Gradient (calculus))

gradient

In mathematics, a differential operator applied to a three-dimensional vector-valued function to yield a vector whose three components are the partial derivatives of the function with respect to its three variables. The symbol for gradient is ∇. Thus, the gradient of a function f, written grad f, or ∇f, is ∇f = if_x + jf_y + kf_z where f_x, f_y, and f_z are the first partial derivatives of f and the vectors i, j, and k are the unit vectors of the vector space. If in physics, for example, f is a temperature field (giving the temperature at every point in a space), ∇f is the direction of the heat-flow vector in the field.

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A smooth blending of shades from light to dark or from one color to another. In 2D drawing programs and paint programs, gradients are used to create colorful backgrounds and special effects as well as to simulate lights and shadows. In 3D graphics programs, lighting can be rendered automatically by the software. See 3D graphics.

A Gradient

The software generates the gradient automatically as in this example created in Photoshop.