to more than one independent variable. Linear differential equations are the differential equations that are linear in the unknown function and its derivatives. Their theory is well developed, and in many cases one may express their solutions in terms of integrals. Most ODEs that are encountered in physics are linear. Therefore, most special functions may be defined as solutions of linear differential equations (see Holonomic function). As, in general, the solutions of a differential equation cannot be expressed by a closed-form expression, numerical methods are commonly used for solving differential equations on a computer. Partial differential equations A partial differential equation (PDE) is a differential equation that contains unknown multivariable functions and their partial derivatives. (This is in contrast to ordinary differential equations, which deal with functions of a single variable and their derivatives.) PDEs are used to formulate problems involving functions of several variables, and are either solved in closed form, or used to create a relevant computer model. PDEs can be used to describe a wide variety of phenomena in nature such as sound, heat, electrostatics, electrodynamics, fluid flow, elasticity, or quantum mechanics. These seemingly distinct physical phenomena can be formalized similarly in terms of PDEs. Just as ordinary differential equations often model one-dimensional dynamical systems, partial differential equations often model multidimensional systems. Stochastic partial differential equations generalize partial differential equations for modeling randomness. Non-linear differential equations A non-linear differential equation is a differential equation that is not a linear equation in the unknown function and its derivatives (the linearity or non-linearity in the arguments of the function are not considered here). There are very few methods of solving nonlinear differential equations exactly; those that are known typically depend on the equation having particular symmetries. Nonlinear differential equations can exhibit very complicated behaviour over extended time intervals, characteristic of chaos. Even the fundamental questions of existence, uniqueness, and extendability of solutions for nonlinear differential equations, and well-posedness of initial and boundary value problems for nonlinear PDEs are hard problems and their resolution in special cases is considered to be a significant advance in the mathematical theory (cf. Navier–Stokes existence and smoothness). However, if the differential equation is a correctly formulated representation of a meaningful physical process, then one expects it to have a solution. Linear differential equations frequently appear as approximations to nonlinear equations. These approximations are only valid under restricted conditions. For example, the harmonic oscillator equation