| Freshman calculus classes would have us believe that integration is mostly algebraic manipulation if the integrand (the function we want to integrate) fits a certain pattern, perform a prescribed set of transformations and then plug in the values to get the answer. For example, if the integrand is f ( x ) = x n and n -1, then, we were taught, Unfortunately, in the real world, these patterns aren't always apparent, and so we use the computer to do numerical integration. |