Extremum

Pronunciation: /ɪkˈstri.məm/ Explain

An extremum is a maximum or minimum value of a function. An extremum can be global - the maximum or minimum value on the entire range of a function, or local - the maximum or minimum value on an interval of a range. An extremum can be a finite number, positive infinity, or negative infinity. The types of extrema are:

ExtremumDescription
local minimumThe least value of a function over a finite portion of the range of the function.
global minimum or absolute minimumThe least value of a function over its entire range.
local maximumThe greatest value of a function over a finite portion of the range of the function.
global maximum or absolute maximumThe greatest value of a function over its entire range.
Table 1: Type of extrema

References

  1. McAdams, David E.. All Math Words Dictionary, extremum. 2nd Classroom edition 20150108-4799968. pg 77. Life is a Story Problem LLC. January 8, 2015. Buy the book

Cite this article as:

McAdams, David E. Extremum. 12/21/2018. All Math Words Encyclopedia. Life is a Story Problem LLC. http://www.allmathwords.org/en/e/extremum.html.

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Revision History

12/21/2018: Reviewed and corrected IPA pronunication. (McAdams, David E.)
7/5/2018: Removed broken links, updated license, implemented new markup, implemented new Geogebra protocol. (McAdams, David E.)
5/5/2011: Initial version. (McAdams, David E.)

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