Connection - Definition and Overview

The term connection has various uses, including:

• An act of connecting two or more physical entities in a physical sense or connecting concepts in memory or imagination, see below
  • Telecommunications circuit switching
• That which connects, relates or joins:
  • An electrical connection
  • A telecommunication circuit such as a fiber-optic connection
  • LAN, PAN, MAN, WAN and other types of synchronous or asynchronous connections between computers using OSI or other protocols
  • The property of a device enabling it to be connected may be referred to as its connectivity.
  • A method of interaction between dance partners, see connection (dance).
  • A method for organizing prayer groups, see connexion.

• That to which an entity is connected, such as
  • A business or political connection
  • A means of transport used for a second or subsequent part of a journey
  • A supplier of illegal drugs

• In mathematics
  • A topological property of certain mathematical objects, better called connectedness: see connected space, connected graph.
  • A fundamental structure in differential geometry allowing the use of parallel transport on manifolds: see connection (mathematics)
  • The existence of one or more morphism between two or more objects in category theory. See connected (category theory).

• The Connexxion public transport company of the Netherlands

• In music and musical form, procedures of connection include gradation, amalgamation, and dissolution. Procedures of contrast include stratification, juxtaposition, and interpolation.

Methods of connecting/fastening include:

• anchor (combination of hooking and gravity)
• adhesion, adhesive
• belt
• buckle
• button
• carabiner
• chain
• clasping
• electrostatic force
• glue
• gravity (instead of calling this a way of fastening one can also say: there is no need to fasten, it will stay in place due to its weight)
• hook, e.g. with eye
• magnet
• nail
• rope, cable, lace (including shoelace), etc. with e.g. a knot
• screw, nut and bolt
• sewing
• stapling
• Velcro
• welding
• zipper

See also

• link, rapport