What we're building to

• If you have some multivariable function, f(x, y), left parenthesis, x,

comma, y, right parenthesis and some vector in the function's input
space, \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector,
on top, the directional derivative of fff along \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart
bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top tells you the rate at
which fff will change while the input moves with velocity
vector \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector,
on top.

Change input in the direction of \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end

bold text, with, vector, on top

• The notation here is \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f∇vfdel, start subscript,

start bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top, end subscript, f, and
it is computed by taking the dot product between the gradient of fff and
 the vector \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector,
on top, that is, \nabla f \cdot \vec{\textbf{v}}∇f⋅vdel, f, dot, start bold
text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top

• When the directional derivative is used to compute slope, be sure to

normalize the vector \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text,
with, vector, on top first.

Generalizing partial derivatives

Consider some multivariable function:

f(x, y) = x^2 - xyf(x,y)=x2−xyf, left parenthesis, x, comma, y, right

parenthesis, equals, x, squared, minus, x, y

We know that the partial derivatives with respect to xxx and yyy tell us
the rate of change of fff as we nudge the input either in
the xxx or yyy direction.
[Show me an example of this.]

The question now is what happens when we nudge the input of fff in a
direction which is not parallel to the xxx or yyy axes.

For example, the image below shows the graph of fff along with a small
step along a vector \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text,
with, vector, on top in the input space, meaning the xyxyx, y-plane in this
case. Is there an operation which tells us how the height of the graph
above the tip of \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with,
vector, on top compares to the height of the graph above its tail?
 Change input in the direction of \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end
bold text, with, vector, on top

As you have probably guessed, there is a new type of derivative, called

the directional derivative, which answers this question.

Just as the partial derivative is taken with respect to some input

variable—e.g., xxx or yyy—the directional derivative is taken along some
vector \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on
top in the input space.

One very helpful way to think about this is to picture a point in the input
space moving with velocity \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold
text, with, vector, on top. The directional derivative
of fff along \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector,
on top is the resulting rate of change in the output of the function. So, for
example, multiplying the vector \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end
 bold text, with, vector, on top by two would double the value of the
directional derivative since all changes would be happening twice as fast.

Notation
There are quite a few different notations for this one concept:

• \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f∇vfdel, start subscript, start bold text, v,

end bold text, with, vector, on top, end subscript, f
• \dfrac{\partial f}{\partial{\vec{\textbf{v}}}}∂v∂fstart fraction,
\partial, f, divided by, \partial, start bold text, v, end bold text, with,
vector, on top, end fraction
• f'_{\vec{\textbf{v}}}fv′f, start subscript, start bold text, v, end bold
text, with, vector, on top, end subscript, prime
• D_{\vec{\textbf{v}}f}DvfD, start subscript, start bold text, v, end bold
text, with, vector, on top, f, end subscript
• \partial_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f∂vf\partial, start subscript, start bold
text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top, end subscript, f
All of these represent the same thing: the rate of change of fff as you
nudge the input along the direction of \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v,
end bold text, with, vector, on top. We'll use
the \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f∇vfdel, start subscript, start bold text, v,
end bold text, with, vector, on top, end subscript, f notation, just because
it subtly hints at how you compute the directional derivative using the
gradient, which you'll see in a moment.

Example 1: \vec{\textbf{v}} =
\hat{\textbf{j}}v=j^start bold text, v, end
bold text, with, vector, on top, equals, start
bold text, j, end bold text, with, hat, on top
Before jumping into the general rule for
computing \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f∇vfdel, start subscript, start bold
text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top, end subscript, f, let's look at
how we can rewrite the more familiar notion of a partial derivative as a
directional derivative.

\small{1}1\small{2}2\small{\llap{-}1}-1\small{\llap{-}2}-2\small{1}1\small{2}2\small{\llap{-}1}-
1\small{\llap{-}2}-2yyxx\hat{\textbf{j}}j^

For example, the partial derivative \dfrac{\partial f}{\partial y}∂y∂fstart

fraction, \partial, f, divided by, \partial, y, end fraction tells us the rate at
which fff changes as we nudge the input in the yyy direction. In other
words, as we nudge it along the vector \hat{\textbf{j}}j^start bold text, j,
end bold text, with, hat, on top. Therefore, we could equivalently write
the partial derivative with respect to yyy as \dfrac{\partial f}{\partial y}
= \nabla_{\hat{\textbf{j}}} f∂y∂f=∇j^fstart fraction, \partial, f, divided by,
\partial, y, end fraction, equals, del, start subscript, start bold text, j, end
bold text, with, hat, on top, end subscript, f.

This is all just fiddling with different notation. What's more important is
to have a clear mental image of what all this notation represents.

Reflection Question: Suppose \vec{\textbf{v}} = \hat{\textbf{i}} +

\hat{\textbf{j}}v=i^+j^start bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on
top, equals, start bold text, i, end bold text, with, hat, on top, plus, start
bold text, j, end bold text, with, hat, on top, what is your best guess
for \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f\,∇vfdel, start subscript, start bold text, v,
end bold text, with, vector, on top, end subscript, f?
[Show answer.]

How to compute the directional derivative

Let's say you have a multivariable f(x, y, z)f(x,y,z)f, left parenthesis, x,
comma, y, comma, z, right parenthesis which takes in three variables—
xxx, yyy and zzz—and you want to compute its directional derivative
along the following vector:

\vec{\textbf{v}} = \left[ \begin{array}{c} \blueE{2} \\

\redE{3} \\ \greenE{-1} \end{array} \right]v=⎣⎢⎡23−1⎦⎥⎤
The answer, as it turns out, is

\nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f = \blueE{2} \dfrac{\partial

f}{\partial x} + \redE{3} \dfrac{\partial f}{\partial y} +
\greenE{(-1)} \dfrac{\partial f}{\partial z}∇vf=2∂x∂f+3∂y∂f
+(−1)∂z∂fdel, start subscript, start bold text, v, end bold text, with,
vector, on top, end subscript, f, equals, start color #0c7f99, 2, end color
#0c7f99, start fraction, \partial, f, divided by, \partial, x, end fraction,
plus, start color #bc2612, 3, end color #bc2612, start fraction, \partial, f,
divided by, \partial, y, end fraction, plus, start color #0d923f, left
parenthesis, minus, 1, right parenthesis, end color #0d923f, start
fraction, \partial, f, divided by, \partial, z, end fraction

This should make sense because a tiny nudge

along \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on
top can be broken down into \blueE{two}twostart color #0c7f99, t, w, o,
end color #0c7f99 tiny nudges in the xxx-
direction, \redE{three}threestart color #bc2612, t, h, r, e, e, end color
#bc2612 tiny nudges in the yyy-direction, and a tiny nudge backwards,
by \greenE{-1}−1start color #0d923f, minus, 1, end color #0d923f, in
the zzz-direction. We'll go through the rigorous reasoning behind this
much more thoroughly in the next article.

More generally, we can write the vector \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text,

v, end bold text, with, vector, on top abstractly as follows:

\vec{\textbf{v}} = \left[ \begin{array}{c} \blueE{v_1} \\

\redE{v_2} \\ \greenE{v_3} \end{array} \right]v=⎣⎢⎡v1v2v3
⎦⎥⎤
The directional derivative looks like this:

\nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f = \blueE{v_1} \dfrac{\partial

f}{\partial x} + \redE{v_2} \dfrac{\partial f}{\partial y} +
\greenE{v_3} \dfrac{\partial f}{\partial z}∇vf=v1∂x∂f+v2∂y∂f
+v3∂z∂fdel, start subscript, start bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector,
on top, end subscript, f, equals, start color #0c7f99, v, start subscript, 1,
end subscript, end color #0c7f99, start fraction, \partial, f, divided by,
\partial, x, end fraction, plus, start color #bc2612, v, start subscript, 2,
end subscript, end color #bc2612, start fraction, \partial, f, divided by,
\partial, y, end fraction, plus, start color #0d923f, v, start subscript, 3,
end subscript, end color #0d923f, start fraction, \partial, f, divided by,
\partial, z, end fraction

That is, a tiny nudge in the \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold
text, with, vector, on top direction consists of \blueE{v_1}v1start color
#0c7f99, v, start subscript, 1, end subscript, end color #0c7f99 times a
tiny nudge in the xxx-direction, \redE{v_2}v2start color #bc2612, v, start
subscript, 2, end subscript, end color #bc2612 times a tiny nudge in
the yyy-direction, and \greenE{v_3}v3start color #0d923f, v, start
subscript, 3, end subscript, end color #0d923f times a tiny nudge in
the zzz-direction.

This can be written in a super-pleasing compact way using the dot

product and the gradient:

\begin{aligned} &\phantom{=}\nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f(x,

y, z) \\\\ &= \blueE{v_1} \dfrac{\partial f}{\partial x}(x, y,
z) + \redE{v_2} \dfrac{\partial f}{\partial y}(x, y, z) +
\greenE{v_3} \dfrac{\partial f}{\partial z}(x, y, z) \\\\ &=
\left[ \begin{array}{c} \dfrac{\partial f}{\partial x}(x, y, z)
\\\\ \dfrac{\partial f}{\partial y}(x, y, z) \\\\
\dfrac{\partial f}{\partial z}(x, y, z) \end{array} \right]
\cdot \left[ \begin{array}{c} \blueE{v_1} \\\\ \redE{v_2}
\\\\ \greenE{v_3} \end{array} \right] \\\\ &= \nabla f(x, y,
z) \cdot \vec{\textbf{v}} \end{aligned}=∇vf(x,y,z)=v1∂x∂f
(x,y,z)+v2∂y∂f(x,y,z)+v3∂z∂f(x,y,z)=⎣⎢⎢⎢⎢⎢⎢⎢⎢⎢⎡∂x∂f(x,y,z)∂y∂f
(x,y,z)∂z∂f(x,y,z)⎦⎥⎥⎥⎥⎥⎥⎥⎥⎥⎤⋅⎣⎢⎢⎢⎢⎢⎡v1v2v3⎦⎥⎥⎥⎥⎥⎤=∇f(x,y,z)⋅v
This is why the notation \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}}∇vdel, start subscript,
start bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top, end subscript is so
suggestive of the way we compute the directional derivative:

\begin{aligned} \nabla_{\maroonD{\vec{\textbf{v}}}} f =
\nabla f \cdot \maroonD{\vec{\textbf{v}}} \end{aligned}∇v
f=∇f⋅v
Take a moment to delight in the fact that one single operation, the
gradient, packs enough information to compute the rate of change of a
function in every possible direction! That's so many directions! Left, right,
up, down, north-north-east, 34.8^\circ∘degrees clockwise from the xxx-
axis... Madness!

Example 2:
Problem: Take a look at the following function.

f(x, y) = x^2 - xyf(x,y)=x2−xyf, left parenthesis, x, comma, y, right

parenthesis, equals, x, squared, minus, x, y,

What is the directional derivative of fff at the point (2, -3)(2,−3)left

parenthesis, 2, comma, minus, 3, right parenthesis along the
vector \begin{aligned} \vec{\textbf{v}} = \blueE{0.6} \hat{\textbf{i}} +
\redE{0.8} \hat{\textbf{j}} \end{aligned}v=0.6i^+0.8j^?

Solution: You can think of the direction derivative either as a weighted

sum of partial derivatives, as below:

\begin{aligned} \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}}f = \blueE{0.6}

\dfrac{\partial f}{\partial x} + \redE{0.8} \dfrac{\partial
f}{\partial y} \end{aligned}∇vf=0.6∂x∂f+0.8∂y∂f
Or, you can think of it as a dot product with the gradient, as you see here:

\begin{aligned} \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}}f = \nabla f \cdot

\vec{\textbf{v}} \end{aligned}∇vf=∇f⋅v
The first is faster, but just for practice, let's see how the gradient
interpretation unfolds. We start by computing the gradient itself:

\nabla f = \left[ \begin{array}{c} \dfrac{\partial

f}{\blueE{\partial x}} \\ \\ \dfrac{\partial f}{\redE{\partial
y}} \\ \end{array} \right] = \left[ \begin{array}{c}
\dfrac{\partial }{\blueE{\partial x}} (\blueE{x}^2 -
\blueE{x}y) \\ \\ \dfrac{\partial}{\redE{\partial y}} (x^2 -
x\redE{y}) \\ \end{array} \right] = \left[ \begin{array}{c}
2\blueE{x} - y \\ -x \end{array} \right]∇f=⎣⎢⎢⎢⎢⎡∂x∂f∂y∂f
⎦⎥⎥⎥⎥⎤=⎣⎢⎢⎢⎢⎡∂x∂(x2−xy)∂y∂(x2−xy)⎦⎥⎥⎥⎥⎤=[2x−y−x]
Next, plug in the point (x, y) = (2, -3)(x,y)=(2,−3)left parenthesis, x,
comma, y, right parenthesis, equals, left parenthesis, 2, comma, minus, 3,
right parenthesis since this is the point the question asks us about.

\begin{aligned} \nabla f(2, -3) = \left[\begin{array}{c} 2(2)

- (-3) \\\\ -(2) \end{array} \right] = \left[\begin{array}{c} 7
\\\\ -2 \end{array} \right] \end{aligned}∇f(2,−3)=⎣⎢⎡
2(2)−(−3)−(2)⎦⎥⎤=⎣⎢⎡7−2⎦⎥⎤
To get the desired directional derivative, we take the dot product
between this gradient and \textbf{v}vstart bold text, v, end bold text:

\begin{aligned} \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f(2, -3) &= \nabla

f(2, -3) \cdot \left( \blueE{0.6} \hat{\textbf{i}} + \redE{0.8}
\hat{\textbf{j}} \right) \\\\ &= \left[ \begin{array}{c} 7
\\\\ -2 \end{array} \right] \cdot \left[ \begin{array}{c}
\blueE{0.6} \\\\ \redE{0.8} \end{array} \right] \\\\ &=
7(\blueE{0.6}) + (-2)(\redE{0.8}) \\\\ &= 2.6
\end{aligned}∇vf(2,−3)=∇f(2,−3)⋅(0.6i^+0.8j^)=⎣⎢⎡7−2⎦⎥⎤⋅⎣⎢⎡
0.60.8⎦⎥⎤=7(0.6)+(−2)(0.8)=2.6

Finding slope
How do you find the slope of a graph intersected with a plane that is not
parallel to the xxx or yyy axes?
 Slice graph in a direction not parallel to x or y directions

You can use the directional derivative, but there is one important thing
to remember:

If the directional derivative is used to compute slope,

either \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on
top must be a unit vector or you must remember to divide
by ||\vec{\textbf{v}}||∣ ∣ v∣ ∣ vertical bar, vertical bar, start bold text, v,
end bold text, with, vector, on top, vertical bar, vertical bar at the end.

In the definition and computation above, doubling the length

of \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on
top would double the value of the directional derivative. In terms of the
computation, this is because \nabla f \cdot (2\vec{\textbf{v}}) =
2(\nabla f \cdot v)∇f⋅(2v)=2(∇f⋅v)del, f, dot, left parenthesis, 2, start bold
text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top, right parenthesis, equals, 2, left
parenthesis, del, f, dot, v, right parenthesis.

However, this might not always be what you want. The slope of a graph
in the direction of \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with,
vector, on top, for example, depends only on the direction
of \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top,
not the magnitude ||\vec{\textbf{v}}||∣∣v∣∣vertical bar, vertical bar, start
bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top, vertical bar, vertical bar.
Let's see why.

How can we imagine this slope? Slice the graph of fff with a vertical plane
that cuts the xyxyx, y-plane in the direction of \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold
text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top. The slope in question is that of
a line tangent to the resulting curve. As with any slope, we look for the
rise over run.

Computing slope using the directional derivative

In this case, the run will be the distance of a small nudge in the direction
of \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top.
We can express such a nudge as an addition of h\vec{\textbf{v}}hvh,
start bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top to an input
point \textbf{x}_0x0start bold text, x, end bold text, start subscript, 0, end
subscript, where hhh is thought of as some small number. The magnitude
of this nudge is h ||\vec{\textbf{v}}||h∣∣v∣∣h, vertical bar, vertical bar,
start bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top, vertical bar, vertical
bar.
The resulting change in the output of fff can be approximated by
multiplying this little value hhh by the directional derivative:

h \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f(x_0, y_0)h∇vf(x0,y0)h, del, start

subscript, start bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top, end
subscript, f, left parenthesis, x, start subscript, 0, end subscript, comma,
y, start subscript, 0, end subscript, right parenthesis

In fact, the rise of the tangent line—as opposed to the graph of the
function— is precisely h \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f(x_0, y_0)h∇vf(x0,y0)h,
del, start subscript, start bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top,
end subscript, f, left parenthesis, x, start subscript, 0, end subscript,
comma, y, start subscript, 0, end subscript, right parenthesis due to this
run of size h ||\vec{\textbf{v}}||h∣∣v∣∣h, vertical bar, vertical bar, start
bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top, vertical bar, vertical bar.
For full details on why this is true, see the formal definition of the
directional derivative in the next article.

Therefore, the rise-over-run slope of our graph is

\begin{aligned} \dfrac{h\nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}}f(x_0,
y_0)}{h||v||} =
\boxed{\dfrac{\nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}}f(x_0, y_0)}{||v||}}
\end{aligned}h∣∣v∣∣h∇vf(x0,y0)=∣∣v∣∣∇vf(x0,y0)
Notice, if \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector,
on top is a unit vector, meaning ||\vec{\textbf{v}}|| = 1∣∣v∣∣=1vertical
bar, vertical bar, start bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top,
vertical bar, vertical bar, equals, 1, then the directional
derivative does give the slope of a graph along that direction. Otherwise,
it is important to remember to divide out by the magnitude
of \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top.

Some authors even go so far as to include normalization in the definition

of \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}}f∇vfdel, start subscript, start bold text, v, end
bold text, with, vector, on top, end subscript, f.

Alternate definition of directional derivative:

\begin{aligned} \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f(\textbf{x}) =

\lim_{h \to 0}\dfrac{f(\textbf{x} + h\vec{\textbf{v}}) -
f(\textbf{x})}{h\blueE{||\vec{\textbf{v}}||}}
\end{aligned}∇vf(x)=h→0limh∣∣v∣∣f(x+hv)−f(x)
Personally, I think this definition puts too much emphasis on the
particular use case of finding slope, so I prefer to use the original
definition and normalize \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold
text, with, vector, on top when necessary.

Example 3: Slope
Problem: On the stage for this problem we have three players.

Player 1, the function:

f(x, y) = \sin(xy)f(x,y)=sin(xy)f, left parenthesis, x, comma, y, right

parenthesis, equals, sine, left parenthesis, x, y, right parenthesis

Player 2, the point:

(x_0, y_0) = \left(\dfrac{\pi}{3}, \dfrac{1}{2}\right)(x0,y0

)=(3π,21)left parenthesis, x, start subscript, 0, end subscript, comma, y,
start subscript, 0, end subscript, right parenthesis, equals, left
parenthesis, start fraction, pi, divided by, 3, end fraction, comma, start
fraction, 1, divided by, 2, end fraction, right parenthesis

Player 3, the vector:

\vec{\textbf{v}} = 2 \hat{\textbf{i}} + 3
\hat{\textbf{j}}v=2i^+3j^start bold text, v, end bold text, with,
vector, on top, equals, 2, start bold text, i, end bold text, with, hat, on top,
plus, 3, start bold text, j, end bold text, with, hat, on top

What is the slope of the graph of fff at the point (x_0, y_0)(x0,y0)left
parenthesis, x, start subscript, 0, end subscript, comma, y, start subscript,
0, end subscript, right parenthesis along the
vector \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on
top?

Answer: Since we are finding slope, we must first normalize the vector
in question. The magnitude ||\vec\textbf{v}||∣∣v∣∣vertical bar, vertical
bar, start bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top, vertical bar,
vertical bar is \sqrt{2^2 + 3^2} = \sqrt{13}22+32=13square root of, 2,
squared, plus, 3, squared, end square root, equals, square root of, 13, end
square root, so we divide each term by \sqrt{13}13square root of, 13,
end square root to get the resulting unit vector \hat{\textbf{u}}u^start
bold text, u, end bold text, with, hat, on top in the direction
of \vec\textbf{v}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top:
[Show answer.]

Next, find the gradient of fff:

[Show answer.]
 Plug in the point (x_0, y_0) = \left(\dfrac{\pi}{3}, \dfrac{1}{2}\right)(x0
,y0)=(3π,21)left parenthesis, x, start subscript, 0, end subscript, comma,
y, start subscript, 0, end subscript, right parenthesis, equals, left
parenthesis, start fraction, pi, divided by, 3, end fraction, comma, start
fraction, 1, divided by, 2, end fraction, right parenthesis to this gradient.
[Show answer.]

Finally, take the dot product between \hat{\textbf{u}}u^start bold text,

u, end bold text, with, hat, on top and \nabla f(\pi/3, 1/2)∇f(π/3,1/2)del,
f, left parenthesis, pi, slash, 3, comma, 1, slash, 2, right parenthesis:
[Show answer.]

Summary
• If you have some multivariable function, f(x, y)f(x,y)f, left parenthesis, x,
comma, y, right parenthesis and some vector in the function's input
space, \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on
top, the directional derivative of fff along \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold
text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top tells you the rate at
which fff will change while the input moves with velocity
vector \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on
top.

• The notation here is \nabla_{\vec{\textbf{v}}} f∇vfdel, start subscript,

start bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top, end subscript, f, and
it is computed by taking the dot product between the gradient of fff and
the vector \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text, with, vector,
on top, that is, \nabla f \cdot \vec{\textbf{v}}∇f⋅vdel, f, dot, start bold
text, v, end bold text, with, vector, on top.
• When the directional derivative is used to compute slope, be sure to
normalize the vector \vec{\textbf{v}}vstart bold text, v, end bold text,
with, vector, on top first.
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