Crossword clues for relaxation
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Relaxation \Re`lax*a"tion\ (r?`l?ks-?"sh?n;277), n. [L. relaxatio; cf. F. relaxation.]
The act or process of relaxing, or the state of being relaxed; as, relaxation of the muscles; relaxation of a law.
Remission from attention and effort; indulgence in recreation, diversion, or amusement. ``Hours of careless relaxation.''
--Macaulay.
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
late 14c., "rupture; mid-15c., "remission of a burden or penalty," from Old French relaxacion (14c.) and directly from Latin relaxationem (nominative relaxatio) "an easing, mitigation, relaxation," noun of action from past participle stem of relaxare (see relax). Meaning "relief from hard work or ordinary cares" is from 1540s.
Wiktionary
n. 1 The act of relaxing or the state of being relaxed; the opposite of stress or tension; the aim of recreation and leisure activities. 2 A diminution of tone, tension, or firmness; specifically in pathology: a looseness; a diminution of the natural and healthy tone of parts. 3 remission or abatement of rigor. 4 Remission of attention or application. 5 unbending; recreation; a state or occupation intended to give mental or bodily relief after effort. 6 (context physics English) The transition of an atom or molecule from a higher energy level to a lower one. 7 (context music English) The release following musical tension.
WordNet
n. (physiology) the gradual lengthening of inactive muscle or muscle fibers
(physics) the exponential return of a system to equilibrium after a disturbance [syn: relaxation behavior]
a state of refreshing tranquility [syn: easiness]
an occurrence of control or strength weakening; "the relaxation of requirements"; "the loosening of his grip"; "the slackening of the wind" [syn: loosening, slackening]
freedom from activity (work or strain or responsibility); "took his repose by the swimming pool" [syn: rest, ease, repose]
a method of solving simultaneous equations by guessing a solution and then reducing the errors that result by successive approximations until all the errors are less than some specified amount [syn: relaxation method]
the act of making less strict [syn: liberalization, liberalisation]
Wikipedia
Relaxation stands quite generally for a release of tension, a return to equilibrium. In the sciences, the term is used in the following ways:
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Relaxation (physics), and more in particular:
- Relaxation (NMR), processes by which nuclear magnetization returns to the equilibrium distribution
- Dielectric relaxation, the delay in the dielectric constant of a material
- Vibrational energy relaxation, the process by which molecules in high energy quantum states return to the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution.
- Chemical relaxation methods - see Relaxation (physics) and also Temperature jump
In mathematics:
:* Relaxation (approximation), a technique for transforming hard constraints into easier ones
:* Relaxation (iterative method), a technique for the numerical solution of equations
:* Relaxation (extension method), a technique for a natural extension in mathematical optimization or variational problems In computer science:
:*Relaxation, the act of substituting alternative program code during linking
In physiology, hypnosis, meditation, recreation:
- Relaxation technique, an activity that helps a person to relax
- Relaxed in Flow (psychology), a state of arousal, flow, over-learned self-control and relaxation
- Relaxation (psychology), the emotional state of low tension
In the physical sciences, relaxation usually means the return of a perturbed system into equilibrium. Each relaxation process can be characterized by a relaxation time τ. The simplest theoretical description of relaxation as function of time t is an exponential law exp(-t/τ).
In nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) the term relaxation describes how signals change with time. In general signals deteriorate with time, becoming weaker and broader. The deterioration reflects the fact that the NMR signal, which results from nuclear magnetization, arises from the over-population of an excited state. Relaxation is the conversion of this non-equilibrium population to a normal population. In other words, relaxation describes how quickly spins "forget" the direction in which they are oriented. The rates of this spin relaxation can be measured in both spectroscopy and imaging applications.
In mathematical optimization and related fields, relaxation is a modeling strategy. A relaxation is an approximation of a difficult problem by a nearby problem that is easier to solve. A solution of the relaxed problem provides information about the original problem.
For example, a linear programming relaxation of an integer programming problem removes the integrality constraint and so allows non-integer rational solutions. A Lagrangian relaxation of a complicated problem in combinatorial optimization penalizes violations of some constraints, allowing an easier relaxed problem to be solved. Relaxation techniques complement or supplement branch and bound algorithms of combinatorial optimization; linear programming and Lagrangian relaxations are used to obtain bounds in branch-and-bound algorithms for integer programming.
The modeling strategy of relaxation should not be confused with iterative methods of relaxation, such as successive over-relaxation (SOR); iterative methods of relaxation are used in solving problems in differential equations, linear least-squares, and linear programming. However, iterative methods of relaxation have been used to solve Lagrangian relaxations.
In numerical mathematics, relaxation methods are iterative methods for solving systems of equations, including nonlinear systems.
Relaxation methods were developed for solving large sparse linear systems, which arose as finite-difference discretizations of differential equations. They are also used for the solution of linear equations for linear least-squares problems and also for systems of linear inequalities, such as those arising in linear programming. They have also been developed for solving nonlinear systems of equations.
Relaxation methods are important especially in the solution of linear systems used to model elliptic partial differential equations, such as Laplace's equation and its generalization, Poisson's equation. These equations describe boundary-value problems, in which the solution-function's values are specified on boundary of a domain; the problem is to compute a solution also on its interior. Relaxation methods are used to solve the linear equations resulting from a discretization of the differential equation, for example by finite differences.
These iterative methods of relaxation should not be confused with " relaxations" in mathematical optimization, which approximate a difficult problem by a simpler problem, whose "relaxed" solution provides information about the solution of the original problem.
Relaxation in psychology, is the emotional state of a living being, of low tension, in which there is an absence of arousal that could come from sources such as anger, anxiety, or fear. According to the Oxford dictionary relaxation is when the body and mind is free from tension and anxiety. Relaxation is a form of mild ecstasy coming from the frontal lobe of the brain in which the backward cortex sends signals to the frontal cortex via a mild sedative. Relaxation can be achieved through meditation, autogenics, and progressive muscle relaxation. Relaxation helps improve coping with stress. Stress is the leading cause of mental problems and physical problems, therefore feeling relaxed is beneficial for a person's health. When we are stressed, the sympathetic nervous system is activated because we are in a fight-or-flight response mode; over time, this could have negative effects on a human body.
Usage examples of "relaxation".
She waited in the seeming relaxation that made the Bene Gesserit-trained so terrifying in combat.
They range from hypnosis to sensory isolation, meditation, task motivation instructions, relaxation procedures, biofeedback, yoga, and many more All these techniques have features in common relating to the mind.
She found beauty in the glitter of gun cartridges worn as jewelry and in the subsonic murmur of relaxation subliminals piped in over the sound system under the familiar beat of a bod anthem.
I was out of breath, but could not rest a moment, since the least relaxation would have let the boat slip a far way back, and this would have been a distance hard to recover.
She breathed through the top of her head and felt the cool relaxation come up from the smooth functionings of the diencephalon, the oldest part of the brain, which sat on the end of the spinal cord like a ball joint and let the hemispheres of the cerebrum tilt crazily about it while itself remaining still.
No Gamer would trust another forever, but Gamers took relaxation when they could.
Florida that day with two fellow female scientists, headed to Key West for a week of childless and husbandless relaxation.
The necessity for relaxation and entertainment is stressed by the people of Havatoo, and Ero Shan was constantly dragging me away from my drawing board or my conferences with the corps of assistants that had been placed at my disposal by Mohar to take me to this thing or that.
As usual, Afra demured and took from his belt pouch a half-folded origami, his special form of relaxation.
The court reconvened and a new talesman was called, resembling in appearance a professional hangman who for relaxation leaned toward the execution of Italians.
A full menu of spa treatments, outdoor pool and natural hot springs, and a holistic vibe round out the relaxation.
In vitro is still jammed, and he has nothing to fall back on but the torture of relaxation.
They were at the Tuesday-night antenatal class, they lay next to each other on the floor and waited for the relaxation teacher to return from assisting a woman in the Ready-to-Pop class who had gone into premature labor.
The rigorous schedule of trips to the clinic and injections and providing samples gave way to antenatal check-ups and relaxation classes.
LSD and mescaline, psychodrama, group dynamics, sensory-awareness techniques, Quakerism, Gurdjieff exercises, relaxation therapies,the Alexander method, autogenic training, and self-hypnosis.