English Dictionary
◊ PARITY
parity
n 1: (mathematics) a relation between a pair of integers: if both
integers are odd or both are even they have the same
parity; if one is odd and the other is even they have
different parity
2: (computer science) an error detection procedure in which a
bit (0 or 1) added to each group of bits so that it will
have either an odd number of 1's or an even number of 1's;
e.g., if the parity is odd then any group of bits that
arrives with an even number of 1's must contain an error
[syn: {parity bit}]
3: parity is conserved in a universe in which the laws of
physics are the same in a right-handed system of
coordinates as in a left-handed system [syn: {conservation
of parity}, {space-reflection symmetry}, {mirror symmetry}]
4: functional equality
English Computing Dictionary
◊ PARITY
parity
An extra bit added to a {byte} or
{word} to reveal errors in storage (in {RAM} or {disk}) or
transmission. Even (odd) parity means that the parity bit is
set so that there are an even (odd) number of one bits in the
word, including the parity bit. A single parity bit can only
reveal single bit errors since if an even number of bits are
wrong then the parity bit will not change. Moreover, it is
not possible to tell which bit is wrong, as it is with more
sophisticated {error detection and correction} systems.
See also {longditudinal parity}, {checksum}, {cyclic
redundancy check}.
(1996-03-01)