12.1: Learning Objectives

Fundamentals of MATLAB Programming · LibreTexts

0%

Contents

    Text

    Size
    100%
    Theme
    Typeface
    Line length
    Spacing

    From LibreTexts, under CC BY-NC-SA, as the source states it; its equations are written in TeX, which the PDF shows typeset. This page at LibreTexts.

    In this chapter, you will use MATLAB as a practical tool for applied mathematics. The goal is not only to learn new commands, but also to understand when each command is useful in engineering and science problems. We will work with polynomials, estimate values between data points, fit curves to experimental data, approximate integrals and derivatives, and find roots of equations.

    By the end of this chapter you should be able to:

    Learning Objectives
    • Represent polynomials in MATLAB using vectors of coefficients.
    • Evaluate and manipulate polynomial models using MATLAB functions.
    • Use interpolation to estimate values between known data points.
    • Explain the difference between interpolation and curve fitting.
    • Fit linear, quadratic, and higher-order polynomial models to data using polyfit.
    • Evaluate fitted models using polyval.
    • Create and use anonymous functions.
    • Approximate definite integrals using trapz and integral.
    • Approximate derivatives of polynomial functions using polyder.
    • Find roots of polynomial and nonlinear functions using roots and fzero.
    • Apply these methods to practical engineering-style data sets.

    This page titled 12.1: Learning Objectives was last modified on Tue, 30 Jun 2026 02:11:51 GMT and is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Zara Noroozi.