inflection points
Where curves bend
An inflection point is where a curve changes direction—from curving upward to curving downward, or vice versa.
The mathematical term has become common in business and strategy discussions, where it describes a moment when circumstances shift decisively: The pandemic was an inflection point for remote work.
The plural often appears without the specific mathematical meaning, just signaling significant turning points.
Drainage area boundary
- crossroadsMeeting of routes
- milestoneNotable event marking progress
- breakthroughSudden important advance
- paradigm shiftWholesale replacement of frameworks
game-changer · catalyst · sea change · moment of truth · threshold · juncture · defining moment · fork in the road
Smooth, angleless line
- tangentLine touching curve once
- concavityInward-curving surface quality
- convexityOutward-curving quality
- vertexPoint where edges converge
slope · axis · plot · coordinate · parabola · cubic · S-curve · sigmoid
Change in rate of change
- concavityInward-curving surface quality
- curvatureDeviation from flatness
- tangent lineCurve-touching straight path
- convexityOutward-curving quality
rate of change · optimization · continuity · differential calculus
watershed
Drainage area boundary
- crossroadsMeeting of routes
- milestoneNotable event marking progress
- breakthroughSudden important advance
paradigm shift · game-changer · catalyst · sea change · moment of truth · threshold · juncture · defining moment · fork in the road · transformation
curve
Smooth, angleless line
- tangentLine touching curve once
- concavityInward-curving surface quality
- convexityOutward-curving quality
vertex · slope · axis · plot · coordinate · parabola · cubic · S-curve · sigmoid · function
second derivative
Change in rate of change
- concavityInward-curving surface quality
- curvatureDeviation from flatness
- tangent lineCurve-touching straight path
convexity · rate of change · optimization · continuity · differential calculus
- calculusderivatives, integral, integrals, limits, differential calculus
- curvescurve, arc, curves, curls, curl
inflection pointsasymptotes
Lines curves approach infinitely
extrema · local maxima · straight lines · peaks · troughs
inflection pointssteady state
Unchanging system condition
status quo · equilibrium · plateaus · continuity · stasis
inflection, inflect, inflected, inflecting, inflects, inflectional, point, points, pointed