CHEMISTRY GLOSSARY

1. Degree is a unit of temperature on a specified scale. The temperatures of boiling and freezing water are: in the Fahrenheit system 212 and 32 degrees; in the Celsius system 100 and 0 (zero) degrees.

2. Degree is a unit of angular measure. A circle is divided into 360 degrees, represented by the symbol °. Degrees are each divided into 60 minutes. Each minute has 60 seconds. Symbols for degree, minute, and second for plane angle is placed after the numerical value and a no space between the numerical value and the unit symbol (α = 2°3'4").

3. In algebra, the degree of a polynomial is the highest power of the variable in the polynomial. For example, 4x³ + 3x² + x + 7 have degree 3.