Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Asymptote. The graph of a function with a horizontal ( y = 0), vertical ( x = 0), and oblique asymptote (purple line, given by y = 2 x ). A curve intersecting an asymptote infinitely many times. In analytic geometry, an asymptote ( / ˈæsɪmptoʊt /) of a curve is a line such that the distance between the curve and the line approaches zero as ...
Glossary of mathematical symbols. A mathematical symbol is a figure or a combination of figures that is used to represent a mathematical object, an action on mathematical objects, a relation between mathematical objects, or for structuring the other symbols that occur in a formula. As formulas are entirely constituted with symbols of various ...
Slope. Slope: In mathematics, the slope or gradient of a line is a number that describes the direction and steepness of the line. [ 1] Often denoted by the letter m, slope is calculated as the ratio of the vertical change to the horizontal change ("rise over run") between two distinct points on the line, giving the same number for any choice of ...
In the three-dimensional case, the situation is more complicated as now one has horizontal and vertical planes in addition to horizontal and vertical lines. Consider a point P and designate a direction through P as vertical. A plane which contains P and is normal to the designated direction is the horizontal plane at P.
Duality (projective geometry) In projective geometry, duality or plane duality is a formalization of the striking symmetry of the roles played by points and lines in the definitions and theorems of projective planes. There are two approaches to the subject of duality, one through language ( § Principle of duality) and the other a more ...
A spacetime diagram is a graphical illustration of locations in space at various times, especially in the special theory of relativity. Spacetime diagrams can show the geometry underlying phenomena like time dilation and length contraction without mathematical equations. The history of an object's location through time traces out a line or ...
e. In geometry, a straight line, usually abbreviated line, is an infinitely long object with no width, depth, or curvature, an idealization of such physical objects as a straightedge, a taut string, or a ray of light. Lines are spaces of dimension one, which may be embedded in spaces of dimension two, three, or higher.
e. The world line (or worldline) of an object is the path that an object traces in 4- dimensional spacetime. It is an important concept of modern physics, and particularly theoretical physics . The concept of a "world line" is distinguished from concepts such as an "orbit" or a "trajectory" (e.g., a planet's orbit in space or the trajectory of ...