An idea or notion of an abstract, or theoretical nature; as, to fight for mere abstractions.

a concept or idea not associated with any specific instance; "he loved her only in the abstract--not in person"

the process of formulating general concepts by abstracting common properties of instances

a general concept formed by extracting common features from specific examples

The separation of the logical properties of data or function from its implementation in a computer program. See: encapsulation, information hiding, software engineering.

a description of the problem at some level of generalization that allows us to concentrate on the key aspects of the problem without getting mired in the details

a design transformation that takes a design and generates a simpler design which retains certain interesting properties of the original design for verification purposes but discards other details

a mental facility that permits humans to view real-world problems with varying degrees of detail depending on the current context of the problem; the process of focusing on the essential, inherent aspects of an entity and ignoring its accidental properties; the selective examination of certain aspects of a problem

indicates that something is left out of a description or definition.

a play that is wholly or partly not representational. Example: "Ohio Impromptu," an abstraction by Samuel Beckett, 2m or 2f.

a device in art which alters or simplifies reality (nature) to facilitate the expressive purposes of the artist (e.g., the exaggerated antelope horns and ears of the masks used in the Chi Wara ritual of the Bamana people of Mali).

When an artist simplifies or diffuses the natural forms into simpler forms but is not creating abstract art.

The act process of leaving out of consideration one or more properties of a complex object so as to attend to others; analysis. Thus, when the mind considers the form of a tree by itself, or the color of the leaves as separate from their size or figure, the act is called abstraction. So, also, when it considers whiteness, softness, virtue, existence, as separate from any particular objects.

A separation from worldly objects; a recluse life; as, a hermit's abstraction.

Absence or absorption of mind; inattention to present objects.

Changing the interface of an object and exposing it in a more useful form. Abstraction may be done by providing a layer of software which makes an object or collection of objects easier to manage by exposing a different object with a different interface.

A process in which the mind fixes its attention upon one or the other characteristic of a thing or upon one element common to many things, excluding others which are joined to it in the real order.

a single thing, yet if it is a good one, it can have many applications, even an infinite number of them

This is one of the goals of the structured programing style. On the user-level, this refers to structuring a program in such a way that the user is unaware (and, more importantly, does not need to be aware) of how things work underneath it all. On the program-level, this refers to structuring sections of code so that they are self-contained and do not depend on other chunks. In this way, an interface to your chunk can be specified for the use of other programmers and they will never need to worry about the actual implementation. As a matter of fact, the implementation can change (to something more efficient, say) while the interface remains constant. see also: componentization

The logical form which analogous things have in common. Also, the process of identifying characteristics that distinguish a collection of similar objects.

non figurative art: art in which the depiction of objects in nature is subordinated or entirely discarded

Style of art that does not represent its subject matter in a realistic way. It emphasizes the elements of art—line, color, shape, texture, and form—to express its subject.

Term synonymous with abstract art which is applied to art produced from the early 20th century onwards which does not resemble a recognisable form. It is the opposite of figurative art.

a work of art whose subject matter is changed or distorted in a way that is not realistic. Often, abstract art leaves out specific details of the subject.

On-line, multi-user RPG. Generally looks like MUD with pretty web-based UI. 5 races, 20 classes. Now in development. We looking for world-builders! And... sorry, our game is only in Russian .

a set of classes that work together to provide the behavior you're modeling

The principle of abstraction means that information can be accessed in a way that isolates how data is stored from how it is accessed and used. See also Classes, Encapsulation, Inheritance, and Polymorphism.

The act of abstracting, separating, or withdrawing, or the state of being withdrawn; withdrawal.

A separation of volatile parts by the act of distillation.

the act of withdrawing or removing something

Removing water from its natural location, e.g. the water table or a river.

The removal of water from surface water or groundwater,usually by pumping.

The removal of water before it enters the river.

Method for computing depreciation by comparing the replacement cost of the improvements to the sales price less land value.

A method of valuing land. The indicated value of the improvement is deducted from the sale price.

Method of finding land value in which all improvement costs (less depreciation) are deducted from sales price. Also called extraction.