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tensor
A generalization of a vector; tensors originated in the 19th century as an abstract mathematical concept. A tensor is specified in terms of a set of coordinates, so that its form changes if a different set of mathematical coordinates is chosen. However, tensors have the property that any equation involving them that is true in one set of coordinates remains true when the equation is written in the same form in any other set of coordinates. A tensor can be thought of as providing information about the rate at which things are changing at a point.
An ordinary vector can be described as a tensor of the first rank and a 2-dimensional matrix as a tensor of the second rank.
Related category
• ALGEBRA
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