1. The quality of being strong or powerful. 2. The degree of intensity. 3. The property of materials by which they endure the application of force without yielding or breaking.
- associative s. in psychology, the s. of a stimulus response linkage as measured by the frequency with which a stimulus elicits a particular response. See conditioning.
- biting s. SYN: force of mastication.
- compressive s. tensile s., except that the stress is in compression.
- fatigue s. the stress level below which a particular component will survive an indefinite number of load cycles (typically about 50% of the ultimate s. of the component).
- ionic s. (I) symbolized as Γ/2 or I and set equal to 0.5Σmizi2, where mi equals the molar concentration and zi the charge of each ion present in solution; if molar concentrations (ci) are used instead of molality (and the solution is dilute), then I = 0.5(1/ρo)Σcizi2 where ρo is the density of the solvent; a number of biochemically important events ( e.g., protein solubility and rates of enzyme action) vary with the ionic s. of a solution.
- tensile s. the maximum tensile stress or load that a material is capable of sustaining; usually expressed in pounds per square inch.
- ultimate s. the maximum stress achieved prior to failure of a component on a single application of the load.
- yield s. the amount of stress at which a permanent (plastic) deformation in a component becomes measurable (usually taken as 0.2% permanent strain).
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1) the quality or state of being strong: capacity for exertion or endurance
2) degree of potency of effect or of concentration
3) degree of ionization of a solution used of acids and bases
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(strength) intensity or power.Medical dictionary. 2011.