To recognize or identify what makes something distinct from other things. In mathematics and biology, it refers to specific processes of change or specialization.
From Latin differentia meaning 'difference', from differre 'to carry apart, differ'. The term entered English in the 19th century, with mathematical and biological senses developing from the core meaning of distinguishing differences.
In calculus, differentiation literally means finding how fast something changes at any given point - it's like measuring the steepness of a hill at every step you take. Biology borrowed this mathematical precision to describe how generic cells become specialized into heart cells, brain cells, or muscle cells.
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