Focal point
Encyclopedia
A focal point may mean:
- Focus (optics)Focus (optics)In geometrical optics, a focus, also called an image point, is the point where light rays originating from a point on the object converge. Although the focus is conceptually a point, physically the focus has a spatial extent, called the blur circle. This non-ideal focusing may be caused by...
, the point at which initially collimated rays of light meet after passing through a convex lens, or reflecting from a concave mirror. - In Fine ArtFine artFine art or the fine arts encompass art forms developed primarily for aesthetics and/or concept rather than practical application. Art is often a synonym for fine art, as employed in the term "art gallery"....
, a Focal Point focuses specifically on a point of interest which makes a canvas unique. (e.g. Girl with a Pearl EarringGirl with a Pearl EarringGirl with a Pearl Earring is a painting by Johannes Vermeer.Girl With a Pearl Earring may also refer to:* Girl with a Pearl Earring , by Tracy Chevalier* Girl with a Pearl Earring...
by Johannes VermeerJohannes VermeerJohannes, Jan or Johan Vermeer was a Dutch painter who specialized in exquisite, domestic interior scenes of middle class life. Vermeer was a moderately successful provincial genre painter in his lifetime...
) - In mathematics:
- Focus (geometry)Focus (geometry)In geometry, the foci are a pair of special points with reference to which any of a variety of curves is constructed. For example, foci can be used in defining conic sections, the four types of which are the circle, ellipse, parabola, and hyperbola...
, a special point used in describing conic sections. - Focal point is a critical pointCritical point (mathematics)In calculus, a critical point of a function of a real variable is any value in the domain where either the function is not differentiable or its derivative is 0. The value of the function at a critical point is a critical value of the function...
of a distance function.
- Focus (geometry)
- In an antenna (electronics):
- The driven element, directly connected to the transmission lineTransmission lineIn communications and electronic engineering, a transmission line is a specialized cable designed to carry alternating current of radio frequency, that is, currents with a frequency high enough that its wave nature must be taken into account...
or source - The passive radiatorPassive radiatorIn a radio antenna, a passive radiator or parasitic element is a conductive element, typically a metal rod, which is not electrically connected to anything else. Multielement antennas such as the Yagi-Uda antenna typically consist of a "driven element" which is connected to the radio receiver...
- The driven element, directly connected to the transmission line
- In game theory, a focal point is an equilibrium more likely to be chosen by the players because it seems special, natural or relevant to them.
- In computer programs, Telelogic Focal Point is a configurable Web-based decision support platform for requirements management, product management and project portfolio management.
- Focal PointFocal Point (album)Focal Point is a 1976 album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner, his tenth to be released on the Milestone label. It was recorded in August 1976 and features performances by Tyner with Charles Fambrough and Eric Gravatt...
, a studio album by McCoy Tyner - Focal Point, an imprint of National GeographicNational Geographic SocietyThe National Geographic Society , headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institutions in the world. Its interests include geography, archaeology and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical...
- In businessBusinessA business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
, the person or organization responsible for the coordination of activities and tasks among several groups or networks. - Among science fiction fanzines, a fanzine which in its era was central to the fannish culture of the day.