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curvature
c u r v a t u r e hex:#99;#117;#114;#118;#97;#116;#117;#114;#101;
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- Curvature - n. - The act of curving, or the state of being bent or curved; a curving or bending, normal or abnormal, as of a line or surface from a rectilinear direction; a bend; a curve.
- Curvature - n. - The amount of degree of bending of a mathematical curve, or the tendency at any point to depart from a tangent drawn to the curve at that point.
- Arc - n. - A curvature in the shape of a circular arc or an arch; as, the colored arc (the rainbow); the arc of Hadley's quadrant.
- Scoliosis - n. - A lateral curvature of the spine.
- Osculate - v. t. - To touch closely, so as to have a common curvature at the point of contact. See Osculation, 2.
- Indicatrix - n. - A certain conic section supposed to be drawn in the tangent plane to any surface, and used to determine the accidents of curvature of the surface at the point of contact. The curve is similar to the intersection of the surface with a parallel to the tangent plane and indefinitely near it. It is an ellipse when the curvature is synclastic, and an hyperbola when the curvature is anticlastic.
- Sheer - n. - The longitudinal upward curvature of the deck, gunwale, and lines of a vessel, as when viewed from the side.
- Spherometer - n. - An instrument for measuring the curvature of spherical surface, as of lenses for telescope, etc.
- Lordosis - n. - Any abnormal curvature of the bones.
- Chicken-breasted - a. - Having a narrow, projecting chest, caused by forward curvature of the vertebral column.
- Geodesy - n. - That branch of applied mathematics which determines, by means of observations and measurements, the figures and areas of large portions of the earth's surface, or the general figure and dimenshions of the earth; or that branch of surveying in which the curvature of the earth is taken into account, as in the surveys of States, or of long lines of coast.
- Pseudosphere - n. - The surface of constant negative curvature generated by the revolution of a tractrix. This surface corresponds in non-Euclidian space to the sphere in ordinary space. An important property of the surface is that any figure drawn upon it can be displaced in any way without tearing it or altering in size any of its elements.
- Ophthalmometer - n. - An instrument devised by Helmholtz for measuring the size of a reflected image on the convex surface of the cornea and lens of the eye, by which their curvature can be ascertained.
- Arch - n. - Any curvature in the form of an arch; as, the arch of the aorta.
- Level - a. - Even; flat; having no part higher than another; having, or conforming to, the curvature which belongs to the undisturbed liquid parts of the earth's surface; as, a level field; level ground; the level surface of a pond or lake.
- Pott's disease - - Caries of the vertebrae, frequently resulting in curvature of the spine and paralysis of the lower extremities; -- so named from Percival Pott, an English surgeon.
- Apophyge - n. - The small hollow curvature given to the top or bottom of the shaft of a column where it expands to meet the edge of the fillet; -- called also the scape.
- Lordosis - n. - A curvature of the spine forwards, usually in the lumbar region.