| limit | 1. That which terminates, circumscribes, restrains, or confines; the bound, border, or edge; the utmost extent; as, the limit of a walk, of a town, of a country; the limits of human knowledge or endeavor. "As eager of the chase, the maid Beyond the forest's verdant limits strayed." (Pope) 2. The space or thing defined by limits. "The archdeacon hath divided it Into three limits very equally." (Shak) 3. That which terminates a period of time; hence, the period itself; the full time or extent. "The dateless limit of thy dear exile." (Shak) "The limit of your lives is out." (Shak) 4. A restriction; a check; a curb; a hindrance. "I prithee, give no limits to my tongue." (Shak) 5. <logic> A determining feature; a distinguishing characteristic a differentia. 6. <mathematics> A determinate quantity, to which a variable one continually approaches, and may differ from it by less than any given difference, but to which, under the law of variation, the variable can never become exactly equivalent. Elastic limit. See Elastic. Prison limits, a definite, extent of space in or around a prison, within which a prisoner has liberty to go and come. Synonym: Boundary, border, edge, termination, restriction, bound, confine. Origin: From L. Limes, limitis: cf. F.limite; -or from E. Limit, v. See Limit. To apply a limit to, or set a limit for; to terminate, circumscribe, or restrict, by a limit or limits; as, to limit the acreage of a crop; to limit the issue of paper money; to limit one's ambitions or aspirations; to limit the meaning of a word. <astronomy> Limiting parallels, those parallels of latitude between which only an occultation of a star or planet by the moon, in a given case, can occur. Origin: F. Limiter, L. Limitare, fr. Limes, limitis, limit; prob. Akin to limen threshold, E. Eliminate; cf. L. Limus sidelong. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
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| limit dextrin | The polysaccharide fragments remaining at the end (limit) of exhaustive hydrolysis of amylopectin or glycogen by alpha-1,4-glucan maltohydrolase, which cannot hydrolyze the alpha-1,6 bonds at branch points; accumulates in individuals with type III glycogen storage disease. Synonym: dextrin limit. (05 Mar 2000) |
| limit dextrinase | <enzyme> An enzyme with action similar to that of isoamylase; it cleaves 1,6-alpha-glucosidic linkages in pullalan, amylopectin, and glycogen, and in alpha-and beta-amylase limit-dextrins of amylopectin and glycogen. Compare: isoamylase. Synonym: limit dextrinase, pullulanase, R enzyme. (05 Mar 2000) |
| limit dextrinosis | Glycogenosis due to amylo-1,6-glucosidase deficiency, resulting in accumulation of abnormal glycogen with short outer chains in liver and muscle. Synonym: Cori's disease, debranching deficiency limit dextrinosis, limit dextrinosis, Forbes' disease. (05 Mar 2000) |
| limit of resolution | 1. <optics> The resolution of an optical system defines the closest proximity of two objects that can be seen as two distinct regions of the image. This limit depends upon the Numerical Aperture of the optical system, the contrast step between objects and background and the shape of the objects. The often quoted Airy limit applies only to self luminous discs. 2. <genetics> The smallest map distance measurable by an experiment involving a certain number of classified recombinant progency. (10 Mar 1998) |
| limitation | 1. The act of limiting; the state or condition of being limited; as, the limitation of his authority was approved by the council. "They had no right to mistake the limitation . . . Of their own faculties, for an inherent limitation of the possible modes of existence in the universe." (J. S. Mill) 2. That which limits; a restriction; a qualification; a restraining condition, defining circumstance, or qualifying conception; as, limitations of thought. "The cause of error is ignorance what restraints and limitations all principles have in regard of the matter whereunto they are applicable." (Hooker) 3. A certain precinct within which friars were allowed to beg, or exercise their functions; also, the time during which they were permitted to exercise their functions in such a district. 4. A limited time within or during which something is to be done. "You have stood your limitation, and the tribunes Endue you with the people's voice." (Shak) 5. A certain period limited by statute after which the claimant shall not enforce his claims by suit. A settling of an estate or property by specific rules. A restriction of power; as, a constitutional limitation. To know one's own limitations, to know the reach and limits of one's abilities. Origin: L. Limitatio: cf. F. Limitation. See Limit. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| limited habitat | A habitat type that is rare or has been significantly reduced from its historical distribution, either locally or statewide, and is of special importance meeting the general life requirements of many wildlife species. (09 Oct 1997) |
| limited range audiometer | A pure-tone audiometer designed to test restricted ranges of frequency and sound pressure. (05 Mar 2000) |
| limiting angle | The angle of incidence at which a ray of light, in passing between two media, changes from refraction to total reflection. Synonym: limiting angle. (05 Mar 2000) |
| limiting factor | Environmental factor that limits the growth or activities of an organism or that restricts the size of a population or its geographical range. (09 Oct 1997) |
| limiting layers of cornea | anterior limiting layer of cornea, posterior limiting layer of cornea |
| limiting membrane of retina | One of two layers of the retina: (05 Mar 2000) |
| limiting sulcus | The medial longitudinal groove on the inner surface of the neural tube separating the alar and basal plates. Synonym: sulcus limitans. (05 Mar 2000) |
| limiting sulcus of Reil | A saemicircular fissure demarcating the insula from the opercula above, below, and behind. Synonym: sulcus circularis insulae, circular sulcus of Reil, limiting sulcus of Reil. (05 Mar 2000) |
| limiting sulcus of rhomboid fossa | A lateral groove running the whole length of the floor of the rhomboid fossa on either side of the midline, representing the remains of the sulcus demarcating the alar (dorsal) from the basal (ventral) plate of the embryonic rhombencephalon. Synonym: sulcus limitans fossae rhomboideae. (05 Mar 2000) |
| Abbe limit | <physics> Ernst Abbe's specification for the limit of resolution of a diffraction-limited micro-scope. According to Abbe, a detail with a particular spacing in the specimen is resolved when the numerical aperture of the objective lens is large enough to capture the first-order diffraction pattern produced by the detail at the wavelength employed. See: Rayleigh criterion, Sparrow limit. (05 Aug 1998) |
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| beta limit | <radiobiology> if the plasma pressure in a tokamak becomes too high, the so-called ballooning modes become unstable and lead to a loss of confinement (sometimes catastrophic, sometimes not). The exact value at which this occurs depends strongly on the magnetic field B, the plasma minor radius a, and the toroidal plasma current I, such that maximum value of the normalised beta, beta_N=betaBa/I, is around 4% (with B in Teslas, a in metres, and I in Mega-amperes). The exact value depends on details of the plasma shape, the plasma profiles, and the safety factor. Synonym: troyon limit. (09 Oct 1997) |
| visibility, limit of | <microscopy> For the normal eye, the limit of visibility is considerably below the limits of resolution. It depends largely on contrast and intensity of illumination. (05 Aug 1998) |
| central limit theorem | The sum (or average) of n realizations of the same process, provided only that it has a finite variance, will approach the gaussian distribution as n becomes indefinitely large. This theory provides a broad warrant for the use of normal theory even for nongaussian data. In the form stated here, it constitutes the classical version; more general versions allow serious relaxation of the usual assumptions. (05 Mar 2000) |
| permissible exposure limit | An occupational health standard to safeguard workers against dangerous contaminants in the workplace. (05 Mar 2000) |
| control limit | A regulatory value applied to the airborne concentration in the workplace of a potentially poisonous substance which is judged to be reasonably practicable for the whole spectrum of work activities and which must not normally be exceeded. (09 Oct 1997) |
| Hayflick's limit | <cell culture> The limit of human cell division in subcultures; such cells will divide only about 50 times before dying out. (05 Mar 2000) |
| proportional limit | The greatest stress that a material is capable of sustaining without any deviation from proportionality of stress to strain (Hooke's law). (05 Mar 2000) |
| short-term exposure limit | The maximum concentration of a chemical to which workers may be exposed continuously for up to 15 minutes without danger to health or work efficiency and safety. (05 Mar 2000) |
| sparrow limit | <microscopy> The spatial frequency at which the modulation transfer function just becomes 0. See: Abbe limit, Rayleigh criterion. (05 Aug 1998) |
| dextrin limit | The polysaccharide fragments remaining at the end (limit) of exhaustive hydrolysis of amylopectin or glycogen by alpha-1,4-glucan maltohydrolase, which cannot hydrolyze the alpha-1,6 bonds at branch points; accumulates in individuals with type III glycogen storage disease. Synonym: dextrin limit. (05 Mar 2000) |
| quantum limit | The shortest wavelength found in an X-ray spectrum. (05 Mar 2000) |
| threshold limit value | The maximum concentration of a chemical recommended by the American Conference of Government Industrial Hygienists for repeated exposure without adverse health effects on workers. (05 Mar 2000) |
| elastic limit | The greatest stress to which a material may be subjected and still be capable of returning to its original dimensions when the forces are released. (05 Mar 2000) |