ENCYCLOPEDIA OF DISTANCES




  • Preliminary version: Dictionary of Distances, Elsevier, 2006; its online ScienceDirect version

  • Russian updated translation: Encyclopedic Dictionary of Distances, Naouka, 2008

  • Encyclopedia of Distances (1st edition), Springer, 2009;

  • 2nd edition, Springer, 2012; its online SpringerLink version

  • 3rd edition, Springer, 2014; its online SpringerLink version

  • 4th edition, Springer, 2016; its online SpringerLink version

    Nice distances (as a perspective) images: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15



    Encyclopedia of Distances (4th edition) - CORRECTIONS, ADDITIONS AND UPDATES:


  • CHAPTER 3: in Section 3.2 put new indexed term by putting in item "$J$-metric":

    The space $(H,G)$ is called a {\index{\bf Kre\u{i}n space}} (or {\em $J$-space}). It is a generalization of a Hilbert space as a {\bf pseudo-Euclidean space} (Sect. 7.1) is a generalization of a Euclidean space. A Kre\u{i}n space with finite rank of indefiniteness is called a {\em Pontryagin space}.

    instead of

    The space $(H,G)$ is called a {\em $J$-space}. A $J$-space with finite rank of indefiniteness is called a {\em Pontryagin space}.


  • CHAPTER 9: Add in Section 9.1 after the end of item "Demyanov distance", i,e, on page 188 after line 13, from \newline:

    \item{\index{\bf Minkowski length of lattice polytope}}

    Let $P$ be a convex $d$-dimensional {\em lattice polytope} in $\mathbb {R}^d$, i.e., a convex hull of finitely many points in the integer lattice $\mathbb{Z}^d \subset \mathbb{R}^d$. The {\em lattice diameter} $l((P)$ is defined as one less than the largest number of collinear lattice points in $P$.

    For any $1\le n\le d$, the {\em $n$-th Minkowski length} $L_n(P)$ is defined (Soprunov--Soprunova, 2009) as the largest number of lattice polytopes of positive dimension whose Minkowski sum is contained in $P$, i.e., the largest number of lattice segments whose Minkowski sum is at most $n$-dimensional and is contained in $P$; so, $L_1(P)=l(P)$. The {\bf Minkowski length} of $P$ is $L_d(P)$.


  • CHAPTER 15: add in Section 15.2, in the item "$D$-distance graph"

    A $D$-distance graph is called a {\index {\bf graph of diameters}} if the {\bf diameter} $Diam$ of $(X,d)$ is finite and $D=\{Diam \}$.

  • CHAPTER 15: add in Section 15.2, before the item "Distance-related graph embedding", new item

    \item{\index{\bf Radio labeling}}

    A {\em radio labeling} of a graph $G=(V,E)$ is (Chartrand {\em et al.}, 2001) an assignment of labels $f(v)$ from the set $\{0, 1, \dots , \lambda\}$ of integers to the vertices $v \in V$, such that

    $$d(u,v)+|f(u)-f(v)|\ge diam(G)+1$$

    holds for any $u,v\in V$. The {\em radio number} of $G$ is defined as $rn(G)= \min_f span(f)$, where $span(f)$ is defined as $\max_{u,v\in V} |f(u)-f(v)|$. A radio labeling $f$ of $G$ is called {\em optimal} if $span(f)= rn(G)$.

  • CHAPTER 15: add on line 5 in Section 15.4, new indexed term:

    The {\index{\bf leaf distance}} of a tree is the maximum $d$ such that the distance between any pair of its leaves is at least $d$.


  • CHAPTER 17: add in Section 17.4, before the item "Similarity ratio", new item

    \item{\index{\bf Correlation matrix distance}}

    The {\bf correlation matrix distance} between two correlation matrices $R$ and $Q$ is defined (Herdin {\em et al.}, 2005) by

    \begin{displaymath} 1-\frac{Tr(RQ)}{||R|| _{Fr}\cdot ||Q||_{Fr}}= 1- \frac{\langle \vec{R}, \vec{Q}\rangle}{||\vec{R}|| _2\cdot ||\vec{Q}||_2}, \end{displaymath} where $||.||_{Fr}$ denotes the Frobenius norm and $\vec{A}$ denotes vectorized matrix $A$.


  • CHAPTER 21: in the end of Sect. 21.1 change \item{\index{\bf Dynamic time wrapping distance}}

    on

    \item{\index{\bf Dynamic time warping distance}}


  • CHAPTER 23: Add in Section 23.3 (in"Collective motion") on page 471 line 17 from below, from \newline:

    The largest synchronized movement of biomass on Earth is diel vertical migration of zooplankton in the ocean and lakes.


  • CHAPTER 25: Add in Section 25.1 before \item{\index{\bf Distance cartogram}}:

    \item{\index{\bf Isoline}}

    An {\bf isoline} (or {\em contour line}, {\em isopleth}) of a function of two variables is a curve along which the function has a constant value. For example, an {\bf isotherm}, {\em isobar}, {\em isopycnal} and {\em isotach} are the lines that connects points on a map that have the same temperature, pressure, density and wind direction, respectively.

    ``Contour line'' is the most common usage in cartography, but {\bf isobath} for underwater depths on bathymetric maps and {\bf isohypse} for elevations are also used. An {\em isocline} is a line joining points with equal slope.

    The {\em gradient} of the function is always perpendicular to the isolines.

  • CHAPTER 25: Add on page 547 line 6 from below:

    $50-300$ km: unexplored slice of atmosphere, where the air is too thin to support research balloons, but it is too thick for satellites to survive the drag forces for more than a few months.

  • Chapter 25: Add on page 548 after line 9 from \newline:

    At $100,000$ km $\approx 15.5$ Earth radii: the {\em geocorona}, a layer of UV-luminescent hydrogen atoms, the end of the luminous part of the exosphere.

  • CHAPTER 25: Add a new index term in Sect. 25. 2, before \item{\index{\bf Plume height}:

    In general, main spatio-temporal data are on events or on moving points (trajectories), say, $(\vec{u},v)\in \mathbb{R}^n \times \mathbb{R}$; see the {\bf total distance between trajectories} in Sect. 18.1, {\bf dynamic time warping distance} in Sect. 21.1 and {\bf spike train distances} in Sect. 23.4. The {\index{\bf cylindrical neigborhood}} of $(\vec{u},v)$ with {\em spatial radius} $r>0$ and {\em temporal radius} $t>0$, is defined as

    $$B[(\vec{u},v),r,t] =B[\vec{u},r]\times [v-t,v+t]= \{(\vec{a},b)\in \mathbb{R}^n \times \mathbb{R}: ||\vec{u}-\vec{a}||_2 \le r, |v-b|\le t\} ,$$

    where $B[\vec{u},r]=\{\vec{a}\in \mathbb{R}^n: |\vec{u}-\vec{a}||_2 \le r\}$ is the Euclidean {\bf metric ball} (Sect. 1.2).

  • CHAPTER 25: Add new item in the end of Chapter 25:

    \item{\index{\bf Earth's location in terms of distances}}

    It is still undetermined whether the Universe is infinite and whether it is only one example within a higher multiverse. But considering Earth as the center of the observable universe, the Earth's position with respect to specific structures, which exist at various scales, can be presented in terms of distances to them. Cf. also {\bf atmosphere distances} in Sect. 25.2 and {\bf solar distances} in this Sect. 25.3.

    {\em Earth's orbit} relative to the Sun (average diameter): $2$ AU $\approx 299.2$ million km.

    {\em Inner Solar System} (Sun, Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, asteroid belt): $\sim 6.54$ AU; it is the outer limit of the asteroid belt, in the $2:1$ resonance with Jupiter.

    {\em Outer Solar System} (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune): $60.14$ AU; it is the orbital diameter of Neptune.

    {\em Kuiper belt} of icy objects surrounding the outer Solar System: $96$ AU; it is the outer edge of the main Kuiper belt, in the $2:1$ resonance with Neptune.

    {\em Heliosphere} (maximum extent of the solar wind): $160$ AU.

    {\em Scattered disc} of sparsely scattered icy objects surrounding the Kuiper belt: $195.3$ AU; it is is twice the aphelion of Eris, the farthest known scattered disc object.

    Spherical shell of over a trillion comets: $100,000 -200,000$ AU.

    (Hypothetical) {\em Oort cloud}: $0.613-1.23$ pc.

    {\em Solar System}: $1.23$ pc; it is diameter of the Sun's {\em Hill sphere} (the region of its gravitational influence).

    {\em Local Interstellar Cloud} of gas through which the Sun is traveling: $9.2$ pc.

    {\em Local Bubble} (cavity in the interstellar medium caused by a past supernova, in which the Sun and a number of other stars are traveling): $2.82-250$ pc.

    {\em Gould Belt} (ring of young stars through which the Sun is traveling): $1,000$ pc.

    The length of the {\em Orion Arm} (spiral arm of the Milky Way Galaxy through which the Sun is traveling): $3$ kpc.

    {\em Orbit of the Solar System} relative to the Galactic Center (average diameter): $17.2$ kpc. One orbital period of the Solar System lasts $225-250$ million years.

    Our home {\em Milky Way Galaxy}, composed of $200-400$ billion stars: $30$ kpc.

    {\em Milky Way subgroup}: $840.5$ kpc; it is the orbital diameter of the Leo T Dwarf galaxy, the most distant galaxy gravitationally bound to the Milky Way.

    {\em Local Group} of at least $47$ galaxies (Andromeda, the Milky Way, Triangulum and dwarf galaxies): $3$ Mpc.

    {\em Local Sheet} (group of galaxies including the Local Group moving at the same relative velocity towards the Virgo cluster and away from the Local Void): $7$ Mpc.

    {\em Virgo Supercluster} of $>100$ galaxy groups and clusters in which the Local Group is located on the outer edge and the Virgo Cluster at the center: $30$ Mpc.

    {\em Laniakea} (or {\em Local Supercluster}) (group, containing Virgo Supercluster and centered on the Great Attractor in the Hydra-Centaurus Supercluster): $160$ Mpc.

    {\em Observable universe} ($>100$ billion galaxies, arranged in millions of superclusters, galactic filaments, and voids, creating a foam-like superstructure): $28$ Gpc.


  • CHAPTER 27: Add in \item{\index{\bf Length scales in Physics}} before "At the atomic scale":

    Also, distances of ${10^{-7}$ m or less are called {\em quantum scale} (or {\em quantum realm}), since it is where the action or angular momentum is quantized.


  • CHAPTER 28: add in Section 28.2, after 6-th line of the item "Distances between people", from /newline:

    Guterstam {\em et al.}, 2016, showed that our {\em proprioception} (the sense of the relative position of neighboring parts of the body and strength of effort being employed in movement) extends to a part, from touching to $30$ cm, of the intimate space.


    REFERENCES, add within their place in alphabetic order:


    FURTHER COMMENTS should be sent to Michel Deza at this address: Michel.Deza@ens.fr