quaternion
1
9.9
- noun
- /kwɔːrˈtɛnɪən/
- Specialized
:
cuaternión
- All sorts of computational approaches fall into this category: quaternions, numerical Fourier transforms, Bayesian-related methods
Examples
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In computer graphics, a quaternion is often used to smoothly rotate objects in three-dimensional space.
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So I invented this symbol which is a quaternion that has no vector part.
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So that's a direct way of going from quaternion to rotation matrix.
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Python: calculate the inverse of a 4x4 matrix and set of quaternion rotations; I'm too slow.
Blog text (32) -
" They are celebrating Hamilton's quaternions, which are beautiful and mathematically interesting, even though they never proved to be of that much use for physics," says Gell-Mann.
Academic text (2002) -
The lecture is part of Hamilton Day, which will be celebrated on 16 October, the date on which, in 1843, William Rowan Hamilton scratched his formulas for quaternion algebra onto a stone on Broome Bridge outside Dublin.
Academic text (2002) -
The scientist demonstrated how a quaternion can represent the orientation of a spacecraft during flight.
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Mathematicians use a quaternion to efficiently describe rotations without suffering from gimbal lock.
Surface Forms
Morphology
quaternion = quaternary (opaque) = quatern + ion
The mathematical sense uses the historical 'four-part' construction, but the combining form is obscure to most learners, making the morphological link non-obvious.
Etymology
The word quaternion comes from the Latin quaternio, meaning 'a set of four'. Think of a quartet: a quaternion in math is four numbers that work together to turn things in 3D, which is why it is used for smooth rotations in animation and robotics.