- A differential equation involves an independent variable, dependent variable, and derivatives of the dependent variable with respect to the independent variable.
- The order of a differential equation is the order of the highest derivative, and the degree is the exponent of the highest order derivative.
- Linear differential equations involve the dependent variable and its derivatives only to the first power. Non-linear equations do not meet this criterion.
- The general solution of a differential equation contains as many arbitrary constants as the order of the equation. A particular solution results from assigning values to the arbitrary constants.
- Differential equations can be solved through methods like variable separation, inspection of reducible forms, and finding homogeneous or linear representations.