digital

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(1) See digital format.

(2) For centuries, digital meant the use of numbers, the term coming from digit, or finger. Today, digital is synonymous with computer. See also Digital Equipment.

Digital Means Perfect Copies

The 0s and 1s of digital data mean more than just on and off. They mean perfect copying. When information, music, voice and video are turned into binary digital form, they can be electronically manipulated, preserved and regenerated perfectly at high speed. The millionth copy of a computer file is identical to the original. While this has driven software and content publishers to distraction protecting their copyrights, it is nevertheless a major advantage of digital processing. See binary.

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Using a limited, predetermined numbering system to measure or represent the flow of data. Digital computers use the binary digits 1 (on) and 0 (off) to represent all data.

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In anatomy, pertaining to the toes or fingers.

From the Latin for 'finger' — hence 'digital' counting (on the fingers). 'Digital' essentially means representing states or carrying out mathematical or logical procedures in steps corresponding to the symbolic operations of a calculus.

A digital computer works in steps representing steps of logic or computing by means of a formal code. A continuously changing function or signal may be represented digitally, as in CDs. Because the symbols of logic or arithmetical calculation are discretely different from each other, digital computers require circuits having discrete states, which can be selected at great speed. Analogue computers, on the other hand, manipulate continuous physical variables, following a change or representing a function by an equivalent change or function but of a different physical form (such as a voltage or the line of a graph).

Digital computers are far more versatile than analogue ones as, in principle, they can be programmed to perform any operation that can be stated. The same mechanism can readily be reprogrammed to perform very different operations, whereas, typically, analogue computers must be virtually rebuilt for different uses. Early analogue computers were relatively fast, because they did not go through many stepped operations, but modern digital computers can carry out up to 10⁹ operations per second. A great advantage of digital communication systems is that information is not lost over great distances, or with added noise, especially when 'repeater stations' restore the signals, as for underwater cables.

It is an open question whether the brain is essentially analogue or digital. It is interesting that we are extremely weak at digital operations, such as complicated arithmetical problems, although these are easy to carry out mechanically, or electronically in pocket calculators, which far surpass human accuracy and speed. This may well suggest that the brain works analogically rather than digitally.

(Published 1987)

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Emanating from or pertaining to the digit.

• d. cushion — a wedge-shaped mass of white and elastic fibers mixed with some fat and islands of cartilage overlying the frog of the horse's hoof and acting as a shock absorbing mechanism.
• d. dermatitis — a major cause of herd lameness that has spread to occur in most countries.
— Characterized by round, proliferative, painful, raised lesion on the back of the lower pastern just above the digital cleft, most commonly on hindlimb of cattle, especially heifers. Invasive spirochete (Treponema phagedenis-like spirochetes) in lesion. Responds well to antibiotic treatment but in dairy cattle, milk withholding requirements make this uneconomic and treatment and control is usually with antibacterials in footbaths. Called also Mortellaro's disease.

Under-run sole in digital dermatitis in a cow. Bypermission from Blowey RW, Weaver AD, Diseases andDisorders of Cattle, Mosby, 1997

• d. nerve block — local anesthesia of a digit, effected by a ring block in which a transverse plane is infiltrated, a local intravenous injection, or by a local block of individual nerves. The latter is more prone to failure if the anatomy of the part is not well established.
• d. pad — see footpad.
• regional intravenous d. nerve block — local anesthesia procured by ligaturing the digit and injecting the local anesthetic. The anesthetic is left confined to the digit for the duration of the ligaturing. A preferred technique for cattle digital surgery.
• d. sheath — a common synovial sheath shared, in ruminants and horses, by the superficial and deep digital flexor tendons.

adj

1. involving the use of the fingers. adj 2. a means of data storage in which information is converted to numeric strings. adj 3. using alphanumeric characters to display data, as opposed to analog, which uses the relative position of needles or “hands” (as with a clock) against a background scale.

For a list of words related to digital, see:

• Electricity and Electronics - digital: (adj) designating an electronic process that defines frequencies and other data as discrete, binary bits of information
• General Technology - digital: signal with two discrete values, zero and one, represented by presence or absence of electric pulse

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See words rhyming with "digital."

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - digital, vedr. fingre/tæer
n. - finger, tangent

idioms:

• digital audio tape    DAT-bånd
• digital computer    digital computer
• digital display    digitalt display, ciffervisning, digitalindikator
• digital recording    digital indspilning
• digital to analog converter    digital-til-analog konverter

Nederlands (Dutch)
digitaal (in cijfers)

Français (French)
adj. - digital, numérique, à affichage numérique, audionumérique
n. - (Mus) touche

idioms:

• digital audio tape    cassette audionumérique
• digital computer    calculateur numérique
• digital display    écran à affichage numérique
• digital recording    enregistrement numérique
• digital to analog converter    convertisseur numérique-analogue

Deutsch (German)
adj. - digital
n. - Taste

idioms:

• digital audio tape    digitales Tonband
• digital computer    Digitalrechner
• digital display    digitaler Bildschirm
• digital recording    Digitalaufnahme
• digital to analog converter    Digital-Analog-Umsetzer

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - ψηφιακός
n. - δάκτυλο(ς), (μουσ.) πλήκτρο

idioms:

• digital audio tape    (τεχνολ.) ψηφιακή μαγνητοταινία
• digital computer    (τεχνολ.) ψηφιακός ηλεκτρονικός υπολογιστής
• digital display    ψηφιακή ένδειξη
• digital recording    ψηφιακή ηχογράφηση
• digital to analog converter    μετατροπέας ψηφιακού συστήματος σε αναλογικό

Italiano (Italian)
digitale

idioms:

• digital audio tape    audiocassetta digitale
• digital computer    elaboratore digitale
• digital recording    registrazione digitale
• digital to analog converter    trasformatore da digitale ad analogico

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - digital
n. - tecla (f) (de instrumento)

idioms:

• digital audio tape    fita (f) de áudio digital
• digital computer    computador (m) digital
• digital recording    gravação (f) digital
• digital to analog converter    conversor (m) digital/analógico

Русский (Russian)
цифровой

idioms:

• digital audio tape    аудиопленка для цифровой записи
• digital computer    цифровой компьютер
• digital recording    цифровая запись
• digital to analog converter    цифрово-аналоговый преобразователь

Español (Spanish)
adj. - digital, que usa dígitos
n. - dígito, formato digital

idioms:

• digital audio tape    cinta de audio digital
• digital computer    computadora digital, ordenador digital
• digital display    despliegue digital
• digital recording    grabación digital
• digital to analog converter    convertidor digital/analógico

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - digital
n. - digital-

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
数字的, 数字, 数字式

idioms:

• digital audio tape    数字录音带
• digital computer    数字计算机
• digital display    数字显示器
• digital recording    数字录音
• digital to analog converter    数字-仿真转换器

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 數位的
n. - 數位, 數位式

idioms:

• digital audio tape    數位錄音帶
• digital computer    數位電腦
• digital display    數位顯示器
• digital recording    數位錄音
• digital to analog converter    數位-模擬轉換器

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 디지털 방식의, 손가락의
n. - 디지털 시계, 손가락

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 指, 鍵, デジタル
adj. - 指の, 指のある, 数字で表示する, 数字で計算する

idioms:

• digital audio tape    デジタルオーディオテープ
• digital computer    ディジタル計算機
• digital recording    ディジタル録音
• digital to analog converter    デジタルアナログ変換器
• integrated services digital network    統合サービスデジタルネットワーク, ISDN

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) رقمي, إصبعي ( ذو علاقه بأصابع اليد أو القدم) (الاسم) إصبع أو مفتاح في الأرغن ( يضغط عليه بإصبع اليد لإصدار نغم)‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮ספרתי, דיגיטלי, של אצבע‬
n. - ‮מקש, קליד‬

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