Calculus (disambiguation)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Calculus is Latin for pebble, and has a number of meanings in English:

[edit] Mathematical meanings

Calculus in its most general sense can mean any method or system of calculation.

• Calculus most commonly refers to mathematical analysis, which investigates motion and rates of change. The denotation "the calculus" is sometimes used to distinguish this from other mathematical meanings.
• In symbolic logic:
  • the propositional calculus specifies the rules of inference governing the logic of propositions.
  • the predicate calculus specifies the rules of inference governing the logic of predicates.
  • a proof calculus is a framework for expressing systems of logical inference.
• Lambda calculus, a formulation of the theory of reflexive functions with deep connections to computational theory; due in final form to Alonzo Church of Princeton University.
• Modal μ-calculus, is a common temporal logic used by formal verification methods like model checking.
• Pi-calculus, a formulation of the theory of concurrent, communicating processes, invented by Robin Milner.
• Join calculus, a theoretical model for distributed programming.
• Tuple calculus, a calculus for the relational data model, inspired the SQL language.
• Domain relational calculus, a calculus for the relational data model.
• Rho calculus, introduced as a general means to uniformly integrate rewriting and lambda calculus.
• the calculus of sums and differences, also called the finite-difference calculus.
• Precalculus is a family of mathematical topics that prepare students to begin to study differential and integral calculus.

[edit] Other meanings

• Calculus (dental) consists of deposits of calcium phosphate salts on teeth, also known as tartar.
• Calculus (medicine) is a stone formed in the body such as a gall stone or kidney stone.
• In The Adventures of Tintin, Cuthbert Calculus is a hard-of-hearing professor and inventor and is a dear friend of Tintin, Captain Haddock, and others.
• Refinement calculus is a way of refining models of programs into efficient programs.
• Calculus is a spider genus (Oonopidae).