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singularity

Did you mean: singularity, singularity, Technological singularity (technology), Singularity (operating system), Singularity (climate), Singularity (Doctor Who audio), Singularity (album) More...

 
Dictionary: sin·gu·lar·i·ty   (sĭng'gyə-lăr'ĭ-tē) pronunciation
n., pl., -ties.
  1. The quality or condition of being singular.
  2. A trait marking one as distinct from others; a peculiarity.
  3. Something uncommon or unusual.
  4. Astrophysics. A point in space-time at which gravitational forces cause matter to have infinite density and infinitesimal volume, and space and time to become infinitely distorted.
  5. Mathematics. A point at which the derivative does not exist for a given function but every neighborhood of which contains points for which the derivative exists. Also called singular point.

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Wordsmith Words: singularity
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(sing-gyuh-LAR-i-tee)

noun
1. Something that is distinctive, unusual, or remarkable.
2. A unique quality.
3. Mathematics: A point at which a complex function is undefined, one where no derivative exists but the neighborhood of which contains point where the derivative exists. Also known as a singular point.
4. Astrophysics: A point or region where gravitation forces cause space and time to be infinitely distorted and matter to be infinitely compressed -- the state of matter falling into a black hole.

Etymology
From Late Latin singularitas.

Usage
"His earliest biographers presented him as the isolated genius and a singularity has clung to his status ever since." — Frances Spalding, Book Review / A Grey Dandy: Whistler While He Worked, Independent (London), Nov 8, 1994.

"Before we conclude this section, we still have to address the question of singularities, which are critical for every marching algorithm. In our context, we have to deal with two types of singularities: those of the surfaces to be marched and those of their intersection." — Stefan Freitag & Karsten Opitz, Enhancements in Blending Algorithms, Hewlett-Packard Journal, Oct 1, 1995.


Thesaurus: singularity
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noun

  1. The condition of being one: oneness, singleness, unity. See part/whole.
  2. The quality of being individual: discreteness, distinctiveness, individuality, particularity, separateness. See include/exclude.
  3. The quality or condition of being unique: oneness, singleness, uniqueness. See same/different/compare.
  4. Peculiar behavior: eccentricity, idiosyncrasy, peculiarity, quirk, quirkiness. See usual/unusual.

Philosophy Dictionary: singularity
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In cosmology, a point at which ordinary calculations break down because certain physical quantities become infinite: for example, the ‘event’ at the beginning of the big bang, at which in some theories the density of matter and the curvature of space-time is infinite.

Word Tutor: singularity
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pronunciation

IN BRIEF: A trait marking one as special or unique.

pronunciation Poetry should please by a fine excess and not by singularity. — John Keats (1795-1821), English poet.

Wikipedia: Singularity
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Singularity may refer to any of a variety of concepts.

Mathematics:

In complex analysis:

In algebraic geometry:

Science:

Television:

Other fields:


Best of the Web: singularity
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Math
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Did you mean: singularity, singularity, Technological singularity (technology), Singularity (operating system), Singularity (climate), Singularity (Doctor Who audio), Singularity (album) More...


 

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Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
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Thesaurus. Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary Copyright © 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Philosophy Dictionary. The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy. Copyright © 1994, 1996, 2005 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.  Read more
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