With f(1) = 2, f(2) = 5, the first divided difference f[1, 2] is:
Divided Differences
Newton's divided differences, the divided-difference table, and Newton's forward- and backward-difference formulas.
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Divided Differences
Notes
f[xᵢ, xᵢ₊₁] = (f[xᵢ₊₁] − f[xᵢ])/(xᵢ₊₁ − xᵢ), and so on. Pₙ(x) = f[x₀] + f[x₀, x₁](x − x₀) + f[x₀, x₁, x₂](x − x₀)(x − x₁) + …
Memory trick Adding a new point only adds one new term: no need to start over (unlike Lagrange).
Exam angle
Newton’s Forward Differences
Notes
Equally spaced nodes: forward differences Δ and the binomial-coefficient form.