<p>What exactly should i know (mathematically)?</p>
<p>for example: trig, derivatives, stats, limits....?</p>
<p>umm...everything...no joke =)
anything can show up.
limits are fairly easy.
obviosuly know derivative...DUH! and integral DUH!
umm...stats...i dont believe so. cant remeber...</p>
<p>-know your trig identities (for example.. (cosx)^2 + (sinx)^2 = 1 )
-what limits are
-graphs of basic functions (like x^2, 1/x, etc)
-how to simplify algebraic expressions
-formulas such as slope and point-slope
(should have learned these by the end of precalc)</p>
<p>:)</p>
<p>Limits.. they sound so familiar.. is that end behavior?</p>
<p>Limits are what f(x) or y approaches for a value of x.</p>
<p>Ex. lim x^2 = 1
x->1</p>
<p>I see. My teacher called it end behaviors. Tyvm.</p>
<p>Algebra I
Algebra I
Algebra I
Algebra I</p>
<p>You think I'm kidding.....</p>
<p>The following is from College Board's AP Calculus Page.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Prerequisites:</p>
<p>Before studying calculus, all students should complete four years of secondary mathematics designed for college-bound students: courses in which they study algebra, geometry, trigonometry, analytic geometry, and elementary functions. These functions include those that are linear, polynomial, rational, exponential, logarithmic, trigonometric, inverse trigonometric, and piecewise defined. In particular, before studying calculus, students must be familiar with the properties of functions, the algebra of functions, and the graphs of functions. Students must also understand the language of functions (domain and range, odd and even, periodic, symmetry, zeros, intercepts, and so on) and know the values of the trigonometric functions of the numbers 0, pi/6, pi/4, pi/3, pi/2, and their multiples.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Trig is most important.
basic math skills (alg I,II) are a given.
You don't really have to go to CALC AB knowing deriv or limits, as you learn that in the class. You don't have to know stats at ALL.</p>
<p>@ travard:</p>
<p>Limits and end behavior aren't the same thing. Limits basically you just plug in the number of the limit into x and that is your answer. End behavior is where the graph goes when x goes to positive infinity and negative infinity.</p>
<p>Oh I see. Thank you for clarifying!</p>
<p>As you'll learn in most AP Calc AB courses, end behavior is equivalent to lim x->(+/- infinity) f(x). :)</p>
<p>Plugging in the number for the limit works when the function behaves "as expected" at the particular point in question. Not all functions do this. For instance, lim x->0 (sin x)/x exists, but you obviously can't simply plug in 0, because the function is undefined there.</p>
<p>How much you need to know about limits going into AP Calc AB varies from school to school, as some schools very thoroughly cover it in their precalculus course, while others more or less start the AP Calc AB year with it.</p>
<p>I would say that your algebraic computation skills are going to be huge in calculus. Not so much on the exam itself (although somewhat), but along the way...</p>
<p>Limits.
Rule of Continuity. I'd suggest L'Hopitals rule too.
Derivatives
Integrals
Volume
Make sure you understand CONCEPTS!!
AB exam hard questions test these explicitly AND implicitly.</p>
<p>Um, I think the OP was talking about what you need to know before taking Calculus. If you needed to know integrals before taking Calculus AB, I'm not really sure what you would actually learn in that class.</p>
<p>I too have a similar problem. </p>
<p>I'm from Australia and am pretty good at maths. But in Australia all the maths is integrated so we don't specifically do geometry and then algebra and then trigonometry. We do a mixture of everything every term. But that means I've done some of calculus so I can do most of BC Calc reasonably. But my foundations are flawed particularly in trig etc. So I was wondering if anyone knew a textbook that I could use to fix my foundations as I'm already registered to take a BC Calc class at Andover (moving this fall)? Thanks. </p>
<p>I know I could just take a class before Calculus at Andover but I can already score pretty well in it and I'd just rather do a little bit more work patching up the foundations seeing as its summer and I have the time.</p>
<p>Know Trig and Algebra then before calc.</p>