What is "range"

Range \Range\ (r[=a]nj), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Ranged (r[=a]njd); p. pr. & vb. n. Ranging (r[=a]n"j[i^]ng).] [OE. rengen, OF. rengier, F. ranger, OF. renc row, rank, F. rang; of German origin. See Rank, n.]

1. To set in a row, or in rows; to place in a regular line or lines, or in ranks; to dispose in the proper order; to rank; as, to range soldiers in line.

   Maccabeus ranged his army by bands.
   --2 Macc. xii. 20.

2. To place (as a single individual) among others in a line, row, or order, as in the ranks of an army; -- usually, reflexively and figuratively, (in the sense) to espouse a cause, to join a party, etc.

   It would be absurd in me to range myself on the side of the Duke of Bedford and the corresponding society.
   --Burke.

3. To separate into parts; to sift. [Obs.]
   --Holland.

4. To dispose in a classified or in systematic order; to arrange regularly; as, to range plants and animals in genera and species.

5. To rove over or through; as, to range the fields.

   Teach him to range the ditch, and force the brake.
   --Gay.

6. To sail or pass in a direction parallel to or near; as, to range the coast.

   Note: Compare the last two senses (5 and 6) with the French ranger une c[^o]te.

7. (Biol.) To be native to, or to live in; to frequent.

Range \Range\, n. [From Range, v.: cf. F. rang['e]e.]

1. A series of things in a line; a row; a rank; as, a range of buildings; a range of mountains.

2. An aggregate of individuals in one rank or degree; an order; a class.

   The next range of beings above him are the immaterial intelligences.
   --Sir M. Hale.

3. The step of a ladder; a rung.
   --Clarendon.

4. A kitchen grate. [Obs.]

   He was bid at his first coming to take off the range, and let down the cinders.
   --L'Estrange.

5. An extended cooking apparatus of cast iron, set in brickwork, and affording conveniences for various ways of cooking; also, a kind of cooking stove.

6. A bolting sieve to sift meal. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]

7. A wandering or roving; a going to and fro; an excursion; a ramble; an expedition.

   He may take a range all the world over.
   --South.

8. That which may be ranged over; place or room for excursion; especially, a region of country in which cattle or sheep may wander and pasture.

9. Extent or space taken in by anything excursive; compass or extent of excursion; reach; scope; discursive power; as, the range of one's voice, or authority.

   Far as creation's ample range extends.
   --Pope.

   The range and compass of Hammond's knowledge filled the whole circle of the arts.
   --Bp. Fell.

   A man has not enough range of thought.
   --Addison.

10. (Biol.) The region within which a plant or animal naturally lives.

11. (Gun.)

    1. The horizontal distance to which a shot or other projectile is carried.

    2. Sometimes, less properly, the trajectory of a shot or projectile.

    3. A place where shooting, as with cannons or rifles, is practiced.

12. In the public land system of the United States, a row or line of townships lying between two successive meridian lines six miles apart.

    Note: The meridians included in each great survey are numbered in order east and west from the ``principal meridian'' of that survey, and the townships in the range are numbered north and south from the ``base line,'' which runs east and west; as, township No. 6, N., range 7, W., from the fifth principal meridian.

13. (Naut.) See Range of cable, below.

    Range of accommodation (Optics), the distance between the near point and the far point of distinct vision, -- usually measured and designated by the strength of the lens which if added to the refracting media of the eye would cause the rays from the near point to appear as if they came from the far point.

    Range finder (Gunnery), an instrument, or apparatus, variously constructed, for ascertaining the distance of an inaccessible object, -- used to determine what elevation must be given to a gun in order to hit the object; a position finder.

    Range of cable (Naut.), a certain length of slack cable ranged along the deck preparatory to letting go the anchor.

    Range work (Masonry), masonry of squared stones laid in courses each of which is of even height throughout the length of the wall; -- distinguished from broken range work, which consists of squared stones laid in courses not continuously of even height.

    To get the range of (an object) (Gun.), to find the angle at which the piece must be raised to reach (the object) without carrying beyond.

Range \Range\, v. i.

1. To rove at large; to wander without restraint or direction; to roam.

   Like a ranging spaniel that barks at every bird he sees.
   --Burton.

2. To have range; to change or differ within limits; to be capable of projecting, or to admit of being projected, especially as to horizontal distance; as, the temperature ranged through seventy degrees Fahrenheit; the gun ranges three miles; the shot ranged four miles.

3. To be placed in order; to be ranked; to admit of arrangement or classification; to rank.

   And range with humble livers in content.
   --Shak.

4. To have a certain direction; to correspond in direction; to be or keep in a corresponding line; to trend or run; -- often followed by with; as, the front of a house ranges with the street; to range along the coast.

   Which way the forests range.
   --Dryden.

5. (Biol.) To be native to, or live in, a certain district or region; as, the peba ranges from Texas to Paraguay.

   Syn: To rove; roam; ramble; wander; stroll.

c.1200, rengen, "move over a large area, roam with the purpose of searching or hunting," from Old French ranger, earlier rengier "to place in a row, arrange; get into line," from reng "row, line," from a Germanic source (see rank (n.)). Sense of "to arrange in rows" is recorded from c.1300; intransitive sense of "exist in a row or rows" is from c.1600. Related: Ranged; ranging.

c.1200, "row or line of persons" (especially hunters or soldiers), from Old French range "range, rank" (see range (v.)). General sense of "line, row" is from early 14c.; meaning "row of mountains" is from 1705.\n

\nMeaning "scope, extent" first recorded late 15c.; that of "area over which animals seek food" is from 1620s, from the verb. Specific U.S. sense of "series of townships six miles in width" is from 1785. Sense of "distance a gun can send a bullet" is recorded from 1590s; meaning "place used for shooting practice" is from 1862. The cooking appliance so called since mid-15c., for unknown reasons. Originally a stove built into a fireplace with openings on top for multiple operations. Range-finder attested from 1872.

n. 1 A line or series of mountains, buildings, etc. 2 A fireplace; a fire or other cooking apparatus; now specifically, a large cooking stove with many hotplates. 3 Selection, array. vb. 1 (context intransitive English) To travel (term: over) (an area, etc); to roam, wander. (from 15th c.) 2 (context transitive English) To rove over or through. 3 (context obsolete intransitive English) To exercise the power of something over something else; to cause to submit (term: to), (term: over). (16th-19th c.) 4 (context transitive English) To bring (something) into a specified position or relationship (especially, of opposition) with something else. (from 16th c.) 5 (context intransitive English) (''mathematics, computing''; ''followed by'' '''over''') Of a variable, to be able to take any of the values in a specified range.

1. v. change or be different within limits; "Estimates for the losses in the earthquake range as high as $2 billion"; "Interest rates run from 5 to 10 percent"; "The instruments ranged from tuba to cymbals"; "My students range from very bright to dull" [syn: run]

2. move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment; "The gypsies roamed the woods"; "roving vagabonds"; "the wandering Jew"; "The cattle roam across the prairie"; "the laborers drift from one town to the next"; "They rolled from town to town" [syn: roll, wander, swan, stray, tramp, roam, cast, ramble, rove, drift, vagabond]

3. have a range; be capable of projecting over a certain distance, as of a gun; "This gun ranges over two miles"

4. range or extend over; occupy a certain area; "The plants straddle the entire state" [syn: straddle]

5. lay out in a line [syn: array, lay out, set out]

6. feed as in a meadow or pasture; "the herd was grazing" [syn: crop, browse, graze, pasture]

7. let eat; "range the animals in the prairie"

8. assign a rank or rating to; "how would you rank these students?"; "The restaurant is rated highly in the food guide" [syn: rate, rank, order, grade, place]

1. n. an area in which something acts or operates or has power or control: "the range of a supersonic jet"; "the ambit of municipal legislation"; "within the compass of this article"; "within the scope of an investigation"; "outside the reach of the law"; "in the political orbit of a world power" [syn: scope, reach, orbit, compass, ambit]

2. the limits within which something can be effective; "range of motion"; "he was beyond the reach of their fire" [syn: reach]

3. a large tract of grassy open land on which livestock can graze; "they used to drive the cattle across the open range every spring"; "he dreamed of a home on the range"

4. a series of hills or mountains; "the valley was between two ranges of hills"; "the plains lay just beyond the mountain range" [syn: mountain range, range of mountains, chain, mountain chain, chain of mountains]

5. a place for shooting (firing or driving) projectiles of various kinds; "the army maintains a missile range in the desert"; "any good golf club will have a range where you can practice"

6. the limits of the values a function can take; "the range of this function is the interval from 0 to 1"

7. a variety of different things or activities; "he answered a range of questions"; "he was impressed by the range and diversity of the collection"

8. the limit of capability; "within the compass of education" [syn: compass, reach, grasp]

9. a kitchen appliance used for cooking food; "dinner was already on the stove" [syn: stove, kitchen stove, kitchen range, cooking stove]

Range may refer to:

In arithmetic, the range of a set of data is the difference between the largest and smallest values.

However, in descriptive statistics, this concept of range has a more complex meaning. The range is the size of the smallest interval which contains all the data and provides an indication of statistical dispersion. It is measured in the same units as the data. Since it only depends on two of the observations, it is most useful in representing the dispersion of small data sets.

In mathematics, and more specifically in naive set theory, the range of a function refers to either the codomain or the image of the function, depending upon usage. Modern usage almost always uses range to mean image.

The codomain of a function is some arbitrary set. In real analysis, it is the real numbers. In complex analysis, it is the complex numbers.

The image of a function is the set of all outputs of the function. The image is always a subset of the codomain.

In computer science, the term range may refer to one of three things:

1. The possible values that may be stored in a variable.
2. The upper and lower bounds of an array.
3. An alternative to iterator.

Range, a geographic term referring to a chain of hills or mountains; a somewhat linear, complex mountainous or hilly area.

In music, the range of a musical instrument is the distance from the lowest to the highest pitch it can play. For a singing voice, the equivalent is vocal range. The range of a musical part is the distance between its lowest and highest note.

The terms sounding range, written range, designated range, duration range and dynamic range have specific meanings.

The sounding range

"Music theory online : musical instrument ranges & names",
Brian Blood, Dolmetsch.com, 2009, webpage:
Dolmetsch-M29.

refers to the pitches produced by an instrument, while the written range refers to the compass (span) of notes written in the sheet music, where the part is sometimes transposed for convenience. A piccolo, for example, typically has a sounding range one octave higher than its written range. The designated range is the set of notes the player should or can achieve while playing. All instruments have a designated range, and all pitched instruments have a playing range. Timbre, dynamics, and duration ranges are interrelated and one may achieve registral range at the expense of timbre. The designated range is thus the range in which a player is expected to have comfortable control of all aspects.

The duration range is the difference between the shortest and longest rhythm used. Dynamic range is the difference between the quietest and loudest volume of an instrument, part or piece of music.

Although woodwind instruments and string instruments have no theoretical upper limit to their range (subject to practical limits), they generally cannot go below their designated range. Brass instruments, on the other hand, can play beyond their designated ranges. Notes lower than the brass instrument's designated range are called pedal tones. The playing range of a brass instrument depends on both the technical limitations of the instrument and the skill of the player.

Classical arrangements seldom make woodwind or brass instruments play beyond their designed range. String musicians play the bottom of their ranges very frequently, but the top of a string instrument's range is rather fuzzy, and it is unusual for a string player to exceed the designated range. It is quite rare for wind musicians to play the extremes of their instruments. The most common exception is that in many 20th century works, pedal tones are called for in bass trombones.

This chart uses standard numberings for octaves where middle C corresponds to C4. In the MIDI language middle C is simply referred to as 'Middle C', which is MIDI note number 60.

The lowest note that a pipe organ can sound (with a true pipe) is C-1 (or CCCC), which is 8 Hz, not visible on this chart. However, if acoustic combination (a note and its fifth) counts, the lowest note is C-2 (or CCCCC), which is 4 Hz.

In biology, the range or distribution of a species is the geographical area within which that species can be found. Within that range, dispersion is variation in local density.

The term is often qualified:

• Sometimes a distinction is made between a species' natural, endemic, or native range where it historically originated and lived, and the range where a species has more recently established itself. Many terms are used to describe the new range, such as non-native, naturalized, introduced, transplanted, invasive, or colonized range. Introduced typically means that a species has been transported by humans (intentionally or accidentally) across a major geographical barrier.
• For species found in different regions at different times of year, terms such as summer range and winter range are often employed.
• For species for which only part of their range is used for breeding activity, the terms breeding range and non-breeding range are used.
• For mobile animals, the term natural range is often used, as opposed to areas where it occurs as a vagrant.
• Geographic or temporal qualifiers are often added: for example, British range or pre-1950 range.

There are at least five types of distribution patterns:

• Scattered/random (Random placement)
• Clustered/grouped (Most are placed in one area)
• Linear (Their placements form a line)
• Radial (Placements form an ' x ' shape)
• Regular/ordered (They are not random at all, but follow a set placement. Much like a grid)

The maximal total range is the maximum distance an aircraft can fly between takeoff and landing, as limited by fuel capacity in powered aircraft, or cross-country speed and environmental conditions in unpowered aircraft. The range can be seen as the cross-country ground speed multiplied by the maximum time in the air. The fuel time limit for powered aircraft is fixed by the fuel load and rate of consumption. When all fuel is consumed, the engines stop and the aircraft will lose its propulsion.

Ferry range means the maximum range the aircraft can fly. This usually means maximum fuel load, optionally with extra fuel tanks and minimum equipment. It refers to transport of aircraft for use on remote location without any passengers or cargo. Combat range is the maximum range the aircraft can fly when carrying ordnance. Combat radius is a related measure based on the maximum distance a warplane can travel from its base of operations, accomplish some objective, and return to its original airfield with minimal reserves.

In passing through matter, charged particles ionize and thus lose energy in many steps, until their energy is (almost) zero. The distance to this point is called the range of the particle. The range depends on the type of particle, on its initial energy and on the material through which it passes.

For example, if the ionising particle passing through the material is a positive ion like an alpha particle or proton, it will collide with atomic electrons in the material via Coulombic interaction. Since the mass of the proton or alpha particle is much greater than that of the electron, there will be no significant deviation from the radiation's incident path and very little kinetic energy will be lost in each collision. As such, it will take many successive collisions for such heavy ionising radiation to come to a halt within the stopping medium or material. Maximum energy loss will take place in a head-on collision with an electron.

Since large angle scattering is rare for positive ions, a range may be well defined for that radiation, depending on its energy and charge, as well as the ionisation energy of the stopping medium. Since the nature of such interactions is statistical, the number of collisions required to bring a radiation particle to rest within the medium will vary slightly with each particle (i.e., some may travel further and undergo less collisions than others). Hence, there will be a small variation in the range, known as straggling.

The energy loss per unit distance (and hence, the density of ionization), or stopping power also depends on the type and energy of the particle and on the material. Usually, the energy loss per unit distance increases while the particle slows down. The curve describing this fact is called the Bragg curve. Shortly before the end, the energy loss passes through a maximum, the Bragg Peak, and then drops to zero (see the figures in Bragg Peak and in stopping power). This fact is of great practical importance for radiation therapy.

The range of alpha particles in ambient air amounts to only several centimeters; this type of radiation can therefore be stopped by a sheet of paper. Although beta particles scatter much more than alpha particles, a range can still be defined; it frequently amounts to several hundred centimeters of air.

The mean range can be calculated by integrating the inverse stopping power over energy.