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fluxion

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flux⋅ion

  [fluhk-shuhn]
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–noun
1. an act of flowing; a flow or flux.
2. Mathematics. the derivative relative to the time.
Origin:
1535–45; < MF < LL fluxiōn- (s. of fluxiō) a flowing. See flux, -ion

Related forms:
flux⋅ion⋅al, flux⋅ion⋅ar⋅y, adjective
flux⋅ion⋅al⋅ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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de·riv·a·tive   (dĭ-rĭv'ə-tĭv)   
adj.  

  1. Resulting from or employing derivation: a derivative word; a derivative process.

  2. Copied or adapted from others: a highly derivative prose style.

n.  

  1. Something derived.

  2. Linguistics A word formed from another by derivation, such as electricity from electric.

  3. Mathematics

    1. The limiting value of the ratio of the change in a function to the corresponding change in its independent variable.

    2. The instantaneous rate of change of a function with respect to its variable.

    3. The slope of the tangent line to the graph of a function at a given point. Also called differential coefficient, fluxion.

  4. Chemistry A compound derived or obtained from another and containing essential elements of the parent substance.

  5. Business An investment that derives its value from another more fundamental investment, as a commitment to buy a bond for a certain sum on a certain date.

de·riv'a·tive·ly adv., de·riv'a·tive·ness n.
flux·ion   (flŭk'shən)   
n.  

    1. A flow or flowing.

    2. Continual change.

    3. See derivative.

    4. fluxions Differential calculus.

  2. Archaic

    1. See derivative.

    2. fluxions Differential calculus.


[French, from Late Latin flūxiō, flūxiōn-, from Latin flūxus, flux; see flux.]
flux'ion·al, flux'ion·ar'y (flŭk'shə-něr'ē) adj., flux'ion·al·ly adv.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Encyclopedia

fluxion

in mathematics, the original term for derivative (q.v.), introduced by Isaac Newton in 1665. Newton referred to a varying (flowing) quantity as a fluent and to its instantaneous rate of change as a fluxion. Newton stated that the fundamental problems of the infinitesimal calculus were: (1) given a fluent (that would now be called a function), to find its fluxion (now called a derivative); and, (2) given a fluxion (a function), to find a corresponding fluent (an indefinite integral). Thus, if y = x3, the fluxion of the quantity y equals 3x2 times the fluxion of x; in modern notation, dy/dt = 3x2(dx/dt). Newton's terminology and notations of fluxions were eventually discarded in favour of the derivatives and differentials that were developed by G.W. Leibniz. See also calculus

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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