Vocabulary of Chapter two of A Brief History of Science

1.paradox:something(such as a situation) that is made up of twoopposite things and that seems impossible but is actually true or possible

eg:She is an interesting paradox, an infinitely shy person who, in apparent contradiction, possesses an enormously intuitive gift for understanding people.

2.arena:a building for sportsand other forms of entertainment that has a large central area surrounded by seats, an area of activity, interest, or competition

eg:Environmental education offers an arena in which these skills can be developed, which is essential for these children as future decision-makers.

3.curvature:the rate of change (at a point) of the angle between a curve and a tangent to the curve

eg:Then, with a few assumptions about the curvature and contents of the universe, they can reconstruct the positions of those objects from redshifts.

4.repel: to force (an enemy, attacker, etc.) to stop an attack and turn away, or to keep (something) out or away

eg:The gravitational force makes stars repel each other rather than attract.

5.geodesic:(mathematics) the shortest line between two points on a mathematically defined surface (as a straight line on a plane or an arc of a great circle on a sphere

eg:In an attempt to settle the matter once and for all, Nepal this week launched a two-year geodesic survey to measure the Himalayan peak.

6.slope: The rate at which an ordinate of a point of a line on a coordinateplane changes with respect to a change in the abscissa.

eg:This climatic phenomenon was accused of wrecking tourism, causing allergies, melting the ski-slopes and causing 22 deaths.

7.longitude:the angular distance between a point on any meridian and the prime meridian at Greenwich

eg:Each of the satellites is constantly sending out signals, and each signal contains important information that can be used to determine the longitude, latitude and elevation at any point on the Earth’s surface.

8.latitude:the angular distance between an imaginary line around a heavenly body parallel to its equator and the equator itself

eg:The information can be used to determine the longitude and latitude of anypoint on the earth’s surface.

9.diagram:a drawing intended to explain how something works; a drawing showing the relation between the parts

eg:The diagram indicates that there has been a sharp increase in unemployment rate for three months.

10.proportional:properly related in size or degree or other measurable characteristics; usually followed by `to'

eg:There are two kinds of traditional reinsurance-proportional reinsurance and excess of loss reinsurance.

11.motion:a natural event that involves a change in the position or location of something

eg:For years Newton had been curious about the cause of the orbital motion of the moon and planets.

12.partial:the derivative of a function of two or morevariables with respect to a single variable while the other variables are considered to be constant

eg:Long exposure to loudnoises can produce a partial or complete loss of hearing.

13.Jupiter:the largest of the planets and the fifth from the sun

eg:The world anxiously watched as a hurtling chunk of comet plunged into the atmosphere of Jupiter.

14.infrared:the infrared region of the electromagneticspectrum; electromagnetic wave frequencies below the visible range

eg:The detective attached the infraredvideo camera on the ceiling of the hall.

15.ultraviolet:radiation lying in the ultraviolet range; wave lengths shorter than light but longer than X rays

eg: This sunblock protects your skin from ultraviolet.

16.coordinate:a number that identifies a position relative to an axis

eg:When reading a graph, understand what the x and y coordinates represent respectively first.

17.refute:prove to be false or incorrect

eg:One of the best ways to refute a point is to cite examples from your own experiences.

18.irrational:not based on logicalreasons or clear thinking

eg:The theory that the earth revolves around the sun, put forward by Polish astronomer Copernicus, seemed to be somewhat irrationalin 15th century.

19.crest:the highest part or point of something

eg:Near the crest, I sat down to a lunch of bread, Irish Cheddar and Spanish chorizo, and looked out at the valley.

20.postulate:to suggest something(an idea or theory) especially in order to start a discussion

eg:The teacher postulated that all of the students in his class would pass the final exam.