An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics
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A colorless gas with a pungent, suffocating odor used as an adhering component of glues in many wood products. Formaldehyde (H₂CO) is obtained most commonly by the oxidation of methanol or petroleum gases such as methane, ethane, etc.
In the → interstellar medium, formaldehyde is formed the surface of → dust grains. It is then converted into gas phase by → photodesorption. H₂CO was the first → organic molecule discovered in the ISM (Lewis E. Snyder et al. 1969, Phys. Rev. Lett., 22, 679).

From form(ic) acid, from Fr. formique, + → aldehyde.

1) Excessive adherence to prescribed forms.
2) Math., Logic: → Formalized expression of a set of elements; the nature of such expression.
3) A philosophical view of mathematics in which mathematics, including the logic used in proofs, can be based on the formal manipulation of symbols irrespective of their meaning.

From → formal + → -ism.

1) Condition or quality of being formal; accordance with required or traditional rules, procedures, etc.
2) Strict adherence to established rules and procedures (Dictionary.com).

→ formal; → -ity.

1) The act of giving something a form or structure by introducing rules and procedures.
2) The act of formalizing.

→ formalize; → -tion.

1) To state in symbolic form; to give a definite structure to.
2) To give something legal or formal status.

From → formal + → -ize.

Compound verb, from disevar, → formal, + kardan "to do, to make;" Mid.Pers. kardan; O.Pers./Av. kar- "to do, make, build;" Av. kərənaoiti "he makes;" cf. Skt. kr- "to do, to make," krnoti "he makes, he does," karoti "he makes, he does," karma "act, deed;" PIE base k^wer- "to do, to make."

1) General: The way in which something is presented, organized, or arranged.
Publishing: The shape and size of a book, magazine, or newspaper, including the typeface, binding, quality of paper, margins, etc.
Computers: The structure or arrangement of digital data in a specific type of file. A computer program accepts data as input in a certain format, processes it, and provides it as output in the same or another format.
2) Computers: To prepare a storage medium, usually a disk, for reading and writing.

From Fr. format, from Mod.L. liber formatus "a book formed" (in such and such a way), referring to shape, size; from formatus p.p. of formare "to form," → form.

1) Disâr, from dis, → form + -âr contraction of âvar agent noun of âvardan "to bring; to cause, produce" (Mid.Pers. âwurtan, âvaritan; Av. ābar- "to bring; to possess," from prefix ā- + Av./O.Pers. bar- "to bear, carry," bareθre "to bear (infinitive)," bareθri "a female that bears (children), a mother;" Mod.Pers. bordan "to carry;" Skt. bharati "he carries;" Gk. pherein; L. fero "to carry").
2) Infinitive from dis, → form.

1) The act or process of forming or the state of being formed, such as → star formation.
2) Geology: A laterally continuous rock unit with a distinctive set of characteristics that make it possible to recognize and map from one → outcrop or well to another. The basic rock unit of stratigraphy.

Verbal noun of → form, + -ate + -ion.

Diseš, verbal noun of disidan, → from dis-, → form, + -eš.

The process of preparing a hard disk or other storage medium for use by an operating system. Before a hard disk can be used, it needs to be formatted so that it will be able to store files and applications.

→ format; → -ing.

A colorless, corrosive fuming liquid with pungent odor. It occurs in various plants and in the venom of many ant species. Used in dyeing, tanning, and electroplating. Also called methanoic acid. HCOOH is the simplest organic acid and the first identified in the interstellar medium (Zuckerman et al. 1971, ApJ, 163, L41). It has been observed principally in star-forming regions such as Orion KL, Sgr B2, Sgr A, and W51 and is associated with → hot molecular cores and → massive star formation. Recently, it has also been shown to be present in some → hot corinos associated with formation of stars similar to our Sun. Due to the presence of carboxyl radical (COOH), it plays an important role in the pathway formation of → prebiotic molecules like amino acids, in the interstellar clouds and comets (see, e.g., Lattanzi et al. 2008, ApJS 176, 536).

From L. formica "ant," ultimately from from PIE *morwi-, *wormiko- "ant;" cf. Av. maoiri-; Mid.Per. môr; Pers. mur, murcé "ant;" Skt. vamra- "ant;" Gk. murmeks, wormikas; O.C.S. mraviji; O.Ir. moirb; O.N. maurr.

1) Physics, Math.: A statement of facts in a symbolical or general form, by substitution in which a result applicable to particular data may be obtained.
2) Chemistry: An expression of the constituents of a compound by symbols and figures.

From L. formula "form, rule, method, formula," literally "small form," from forma, → form, + → -ule diminutive suffix.

Disul, from dis, → form, + -ul, → -ule.

To express in precise → form; state definitely or systematically. To reduce to or express in a → formula.

Verbal form of → form.

1) The act or process of formulating.
2) A particular expression of an idea, thought, or theory.
3) Something prepared according to a → formula.

→ formulate; → -tion.

A powerful mathematical tool which is the generalization of the → Fourier series for the analysis of non-periodic functions. The Fourier transform transforms a function defined on physical space into a function defined on the space of frequencies, whose values quantify the "amount" of each periodic frequency contained in the original function. The inverse Fourier transform then reconstructs the original function from its transformed frequency components. The integral F(α) = ∫ f(u)e^-iαudu is called the Fourier transform of F(x) = (1/2π)∫ f(α)e^iαxdx, both integrals from -∞ to + ∞.

→ Fourier analysis; → transform.

The study dealing with the processes that gave rise to galaxies in a remarkably → early Universe. See also → structure formation, → protogalaxy

→ galaxy; → formation.

The method of relating a measurement in one → reference frame to another moving with a constant velocity with respect to the first within the → Newtonian mechanics. The Galilean transformation between the coordinate systems (x,y,z,t) and (x',y',z',t') is expressed by the relations: x' = x - vt, y' = y, z' = z. Galilean transformations break down at high velocities and for electromagnetic phenomena and is superseded by the → Lorentz transformations.

→ Galilean; → transformation.

A change of the fields of a gauge theory that does not change the value of any measurable quantity.

→ gauge; → transformation.

The process by which dust grains are assembled or produced.

→ grain; → formation.

A reformulation of classical mechanics that predicts the same outcomes as classical mechanics. → Hamiltonian dynamics.

→ Hamiltonian; → mechanics.

A cosmological → structure formation model in which the smallest gravitationally bound structures (→ quasars and galaxies) form first, followed by → groups, → galaxy clusters, and → superclusters of galaxies.

→ hierarchical; → structure; → formation.

The meeting of light rays emanating from an object after crossing an optical system.

→ image; → formation.