We use the derivative to determine the maximum and minimum values of particular functions (e.g. cost, strength, amount of material used in a building, profit, loss, etc.).
Differentiation is also used in analysis of finance and economics.
One important application of differentiation is in the area of optimisation, which means finding the condition for a maximum (or minimum) to occur. This is important in business (cost reduction, profit increase) and engineering (maximum strength, minimum cost.)
