In our investigation of heat and work we have come across various infinitesimal objects such as $d ar{E}$ and $,{mathchar'26mskip-12mud}W$. It is instructive to examine these infinitesimals more closely.
Consider the purely mathematical problem where $F(x, y)$ is some general function of two independent variables $x$ and $y$. Consider the change in $F$ in going from the point $(x$, $y)$ in the $x$-$y$ plane to the neighbouring point ($x+dx$, $y+dy$). This is given by