Mathematica Integration Lab

This is the Mathematica integration lab. You will be doing some elementary calculations and graphs. Follow the directions below.

1. Open Mathematica by choosing Mathematica from the programs menu. The notebook opens. This is your palette-you are the artist.

2. Let's start with a simple function like x^2. Graph this function by entering (note: Mathematica is case sensitive):

Plot[x^2,{x,-10,10}]

Now hit shift-enter and Mathematica should plot the graph of x^2 for you.

3. Now, let's calculate some antiderivatives/integrals. To find the antiderivative of x^2, enter:

Now hit shift-enter and Mathematica should find the antiderivative of x^2 for you.

To integrate from -10 to 10 enter:

Now hit shift-enter and Mathematica should calculate the area under the curve from -10 to 10 for you.

4. Let's move to a more interesting function like y=(1/2pi)e^(-x^2/2). Repeat steps 2 and 3 above with this function. The syntax is the same except you will enter:

as the function in place of x^2. When doing the integral use the symbol palette to integrate from minus infinity to infinity. I will be around to answer any question that you might have.