An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics
English-French-Persian

In → graph theory, an → ordered tree with all → nodes having at most two → children.

→ binary; → tree.

To tie, to fasten, to cause ti stick together.

O.E. bindan "to tie up with bonds," PIE base *bhendh- "to bind;" cf. Av./O.Pers. band- "to bind, fetter," banda- "band, tie," Skt. bandh- "to bind, tie, fasten," bandhah "a tying, bandage."

Bandidan "to bind, confine" [Mo'in, Dehxodâ], from band "band, tie" + -idan infinitive suffix; cognate with E. bind, as explained above.

1) Of a gravitational system, the difference in energies between the hypothetical state where all bodies of the system are infinitely separated from each other and the actual bound state.
2) The energy which must be supplied to a nucleus in order to cause it to decompose into its constituent neutrons and protons.

Binding, noun from → bind; → energy.

Kâruž, → energy; bandeš noun from bandidan, → bind.

Combining a few adjacent CCD pixels in bins, during readout; the method used to assemble the bins and transfer the charge by means of an electronic clock. Binning improves signal-to-noise ratio at the expense of spatial resolution.

Binning, from → bin.

Bâvineš, from bâvin, → bin.

A small optical instrument with two tubes that is used to magnify the view of distant or astronomical objects. → prism binoculars.

From Fr. binoculaire, from binocle, from L. bini "double" (L. bis, bi- "twice," Av. biš "twice") + ocularis "of the eye," from oculus "eye" (compare with Av. axš-, aš- "eye," Skt. akshi- "eye," Gk. ops "eye," opsis "sight, appearance," from PIE okw- "to see;" also O.E. ege, eage, from P.Gmc. *augon, Goth. augo, Lith. akis, Armenian aku).

Docašmi "binocular," from do, → two + cašm, → eye, + -i adj. suffix; durbin, → telescope.

1a) An algebraic expression containing 2 terms, as x + y and 2x² - 3x. In other words, a → polynomial with 2 terms.
1b) Biology: A pair of Latin (or latinized) words forming a scientific name for organisms. The first word represents the genus, and the second the species.
2) Of, pertaining to, or consisting of a binomial.

From L.L. binomi(us) "having two names," + → -al, → nominal.

The factor multiplying the variable in a term of a → binomial expansion. For example, in (x + y)⁴ = x⁴ + 4x³y + 6x²y² + 4xy³ + y⁴ the binomial coefficients are 1, 4, 6, 4, and 1. In general, the r-th binomial coefficient in the expression (x + y)ⁿ is: (n,r) = n!/[r!(n - r)!].

→ binomial; → coefficient.

An expression of the form x^m(a + bxⁿ)^pdx, where m, n, p, a, and b are constants.

→ binomial; → differential.

A probability distribution for independent events for which there are only two possible outcomes i.e., success and failure. The probability of x successes in n trials is: P(x) = [n!/x!(n - x)!] p^x.q^{n - x}, where p is the probability of success and q = 1 - p the probability of failure on each trial. These probabilities are given in terms of the → binomial theorem expansion of (p + q)ⁿ.

→ binomial; → distribution.

A rule for the expansion of an expression of the form (x + y)ⁿ. The variables x and y can be any → real numbers and n is an → integer. The general formula is known as the → binomial theorem.

→ binomial; → expansion.

A system introduced by Carl von Linné (1707-1778), the Swedish botanist, in which each organism is identified by two names. The first is the name of the genus (generic name), written with a capital letter. The second is the name of the species (specific name). The generic and specific names are in Latin and are printed in italic type. For example, human beings belong to species Homo sapiens.

→ binomial; → nomenclature.

A rule for writing an equivalent expansion of an expression such as (a + b)ⁿ without having to perform all multiplications involved. → binomial expansion. The general expression is (a + b)ⁿ = &Sigma (n,k)a^kb^{n - k}, where the summation is from k = 0 to n, and (n,k) = n!/[r!(n - k)!]. For n = 2, (a + b)² = a² + 2ab + b². Historically, the binomial theorem as applied to (a + b)² was known to Euclid (320 B.C.) and other early Greek mathematicians. In the tenth century the Iranian mathematician Karaji (953-1029) knew the binomial theorem and its accompanying table of → binomial coefficients, now known as → Pascal's triangle. Subsequently Omar Khayyam (1048-1131) asserted that he could find the 4th, 5th, 6th, and higher roots of numbers by a special law which did not depend on geometric figures. Khayyam's treatise concerned with his findings is lost. In China there appeared in 1303 a work containing the binomial coefficients arranged in triangular form. The complete generalization of the binomial theorem for all values of n, including negative integers, was established by Isaac Newton (1642-1727).

→ binomial; → theorem.

Bio-, Gk., from bios "life," from PIE base *gweie- "to live;" cf. O.Pers./Av. gay- "to live," Av. gaya- "life," gaeθâ- "being, world, mankind," jivya-, jva- "aliving, alive," Skt. jivah "alive, living;" Mid.Pers. zivastan "to live," zivik, zivandag "alive, living," L. vivus "living, alive," vita "life," O.E. cwic "alive," E. quick, Lith. gyvas "living, alive."

Zist "life, existence," from zistan "to live," Mid.Pers. zivastan "to live," zivižn "life," O.Pers./Av. gay-, as explained above.

A common branch of astronomy and biology dealing with the study of life throughout the Universe; synonymous with → astrobiology and → exobiology.

Bioastronomy, from → bio- + → astronomy.

Zistaxtaršenâsi, from zist-, → bio-, + axtaršenâsi, → astronomy.

The → variety of → plant and → animal → species in a particular → environment.

→ bio-; → diversity.

The retrieval and analysis of biochemical and biological data using mathematics and computer science, as in the study of genomes (Dictionary.com).

→ bio-; → informatics.

An expert or specialist in biology.

Biologist, from → biology + → -ist.

The study of living organisms and their interactions with the non living world.

Biology, from → bio- + → -logy.

The production and emission of light by a living organism as the result of a chemical reaction (→ chemiluminescence). In other words, bioluminescence is chemiluminescence from living organisms. It is widespread in the marine environment, but rare in terrestrial and especially freshwater environments.

→ chemi-; → luminescence.

A biologic feature that is measured and evaluated as an indicator of normal biological processes, pathogenic processes, or pharmacological responses to a therapeutic intervention. For example, prostate specific antigen (PSA) is a biomarker for cancer of the prostate.

→ bio-; → marker.