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In mathematics, a function is a rule for taking an input (in the simplest case, a number or set of numbers) [5] and providing an output (which may also be a number). [5] A symbol that stands for an arbitrary input is called an independent variable, while a symbol that stands for an arbitrary output is called a dependent variable. [6]
The distinction between intensive and extensive properties has some theoretical uses. For example, in thermodynamics, the state of a simple compressible system is completely specified by two independent, intensive properties, along with one extensive property, such as mass. Other intensive properties are derived from those two intensive variables.
The same is true for intervening variables (a variable in between the supposed cause (X) and the effect (Y)), and anteceding variables (a variable prior to the supposed cause (X) that is the true cause). When a third variable is involved and has not been controlled for, the relation is said to be a zero order relationship. In most practical ...
The independent variable (X-axis) is time and the dependent variable (Y-axis) is temperature. [1] Below is an example of a cooling curve used in castings . The initial point of the graph is the starting temperature of the matter, here noted as the "pouring temperature".
Applications in science and engineering [ edit ] In materials science , an intrinsic property is independent of how much of a material is present and is independent of the form of the material, e.g., one large piece or a collection of small particles.
In control engineering and other areas of science and engineering, state variables are used to represent the states of a general system. The set of possible combinations of state variable values is called the state space of the system. The equations relating the current state of a system to its most recent input and past states are called the ...
A variable in an experiment which is held constant in order to assess the relationship between multiple variables [a], is a control variable. [2] [3] A control variable is an element that is not changed throughout an experiment because its unchanging state allows better understanding of the relationship between the other variables being tested.
In thermodynamics, a component is one of a collection of chemically independent constituents [a] [1] of a system.The number of components represents the minimum number of independent chemical species necessary to define the composition of all phases of the system.