coefficient
[ko″ĕ-fish´ent] 1. an expression of the change or effect produced by the variation in certain variables, or of the ratio between two different quantities.
2. in chemistry, a number or figure put before a chemical formula to indicate how many times the formula is to be multiplied.
Bunsen coefficient the number of milliliters of gas dissolved in a milliliter of liquid at atmospheric pressure (760 mm Hg) and a specified temperature. Symbol, α.
confidence coefficient the probability that a
confidence interval will contain the true value of the population parameter. For example, if the confidence coefficient is 0.95, 95 per cent of the confidence intervals so calculated for a large number of random samples would contain the parameter.
correlation coefficient a numerical value that indicates the degree and direction of relationship between two variables; the coefficients range in value from +1.00 (perfect positive relationship) to 0.00 (no relationship) to −1.00 (perfect negative or inverse relationship).
coefficient of digestibility the proportion of a food that is digested compared to what is absorbed, expressed as a percentage.
dilution coefficient a number that expresses the effectiveness of a disinfectant for a given organism. It is calculated by the equation tcn = k, where t is the time required for killing all organisms, c is the concentration of disinfectant, n is the dilution coefficient, and k is a constant. A low coefficient indicates the disinfectant is effective at a low concentration.
linear absorption coefficient the fraction of a beam of radiation absorbed per unit thickness of absorber.
mass absorption coefficient the linear absorption coefficient divided by the density of the absorber.
sedimentation coefficient the velocity at which a particle sediments in a centrifuge divided by the applied centrifugal field, the result having units of time (velocity divided by acceleration), usually expressed in Svedberg units (S), which equal 10−13 second. Sedimentation coefficients are used to characterize the size of macromolecules; they increase with increasing mass and density and are higher for globular than for fibrous particles.
Miller-Keane Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health, Seventh Edition. © 2003 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.
cor·re·la·tion co·ef·fi·cient
a measure of association that indicates the degree to which two variables have a linear relationship; this coefficient, represented by the letter r, can vary between +1 and -1; when r = +1, there is a perfect positive linear relationship in which one variable relates directly with the other; when r = -1, there is a perfect negative linear relationship between the variables.
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