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Questions tagged [terminology]

Questions on the usage and meaning of words in mathematics, the names for mathematical entities, and other such questions.

Terminology is a discipline that studies, among other things, the development of terms and their interrelationships. This tag is intended to be used for questions on the usage and meaning of words in mathematics, the names for mathematical entities, and other such questions.

8534 questions
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What does it mean to "concentrate" a function with respect to a quantity?

I was reading a text about linear models and regression and came across the statement: "To find the maximum likelihood estimates for $\theta$ and $\sigma^2$ the log-likelihood must be concentrated with respect to $\sigma^2$." [1] How does one…
Matt
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Question on terminology

If a map $M$ has the feature $$ M(x+y)=M(y)M(x) $$ is there a term to describe this kind of map? It's not a linear map, at least. The order matters here - $M(y)M(x) \neq M(x)M(y)$.
Matti P.
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Why was the term "integral" used to represent the area under a curve?

I have a colleague in the English dept. who is wondering the reason why the word "integral" came to be used to represent the process by which the area under a curve can be found.
Jose
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If $X$ is a subspace of $Y$ then $Y$ is a ... of $X$?

This is more of a linguistic question than a mathematical one, but let me try anyway: What is the antonym of subspace? Is it a superspace? What else? Suppose $X$ is a subspace of $Y$, say, a topological space, a vector space or whatever other…
Hyperspace
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Terminology for a reversed graph (y, x)

In general if some terminology exists for an object, the complementary object is called the co-object (assuming it exists). For the purpose of my research it is very useful to define graphs in reversed order, that is, {(y, x) such that y = f(x)}. I…
Harambe
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What does it mean even? And odd?

I'm actually an international student and I'm not very confident with specific mathematical terms. I was doing some exercises when I came up to the words even and odd. What do they mean exactly? Here's the context: Which of the following relations…
Kevin
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What is a "Bourbaki Talk"?

I've seen lately many people using this concept. I have searched the web, but there's no answer. Anyone knows what does a "Bourbaki Talk" mean? Note: I am knowledgeable about the Bourbaki group. Nevertheless, I have never heard of the concept…
Jack
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Terminology: What to call a set where equivalence is defined over all members?

Math amateur here, and new to the site. I have to write a technical specification, and am rather unsure about how to express things mathematically properly. So I have a set of “entities” of some sort. Let's call it A. It shouldn't matter what the…
cygri
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Why are "irrational numbers" not named "nonrational numbers"?

Possible that I'm misunderstanding the concept of irrational numbers, but seems like the term nonrational would be much more clear. Why is "irrational" more clear than "nonrational"? UPDATE: Just to be clear, it would be true to say the terms…
blunders
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A question about the term "depressed cubic"

The depressed cubic equation is a cubic equation of the form $x^3+px+q=0$. This expression sounds strange especially for someone that English is not his mother tongue. Why this equation is called "depressed"? What is so depressing in it? Thanks!
boaz
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Are there more proper terms for "between, inclusive" and "between, exclusive"?

I searched for this, but all I found was an English usage result. However, I am strictly asking about ranges of numbers, not "normal" English. So, are there a terse terms for: inclusive between, as in 1 is between 1 and 5 exclusive between, as in…
JamesFaix
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What is $x \mapsto f(x)$ called?

A function is defined by either A function $f: A\to B$ is defined by $\color{green}{x\mapsto f(x)}$ or $ \begin{align}f:\quad&A\to B\\&\color{green}{x\mapsto f(x)}\end{align}$ Is there a name for the green part? It (or even just $f(x)$) is…
Frank Vel
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What is the name of the following bad "average"?

Is there a standard name for the "average" of the fractions $a/b$ and $c/d$ as $$ \frac{a+c}{b+d} \, \large ? $$ I understand that such an average is not unique in the sense that although $(2a)/(2b) = a/b$, this type of "average" of $2a/(2b)$ and…
D Poole
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What is the additive analogue of the word "factor"?

When we have a bunch of numbers multiplied together like $$b=a_1\,a_2\,a_3\,a_4,$$ we say that each $a_i$ is a factor of $b$. What is the additive analogue of this terminology? That is, if $$b=a_1+a_2+a_3+a_4,$$ how is $a_i$ called?
user318019
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What is the branch of mathematics called that deals with proofs?

What is the branch of mathematics which deals with how mathematical proofs are constructed? I am looking to learn more about cryptography and category theory, but I am missing some of the mental tools which I need. In particular, authors often just…
fadedbee
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