Beta

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

(Redirected from Β)
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Not to be confused with B, Betta, or Ve (Cyrillic).
For the German eszett, see ß. For the Chinese radical, see 阝. For the Malayalam
script, see ദ. For other uses, see Beta (disambiguation).

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this
article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be
challenged and removed.
Find sources: "Beta" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (December 2012)
(Learn how and when to remove this template message)
Beta uc lc.svg
Greek alphabet
Αα Alpha Νν Nu
Ββ Beta Ξξ Xi
Γγ Gamma Οο Omicron
Δδ Delta Ππ Pi
Εε Epsilon Ρρ Rho
Ζζ Zeta Σσς Sigma
Ηη Eta Ττ Tau
Θθ Theta Υυ Upsilon
Ιι Iota Φφ Phi
Κκ Kappa Χχ Chi
Λλ Lambda Ψψ Psi
Μμ Mu Ωω Omega
History
Archaic local variants

ϜͰϺϘͲͶ

Diacritics Ligatures

Numerals

ϛ (6)ϟ (90)ϡ (900)

Use in other languages

Bactrian Coptic Albanian

Related topics

Use as scientific symbols

Category

vte

Beta (UK: /ˈbiːtə/, US: /ˈbeɪtə/; uppercase Β, lowercase β, or cursive ϐ; Ancient

Greek: βῆτα, romanized: bē̂ta or Greek: βήτα, romanized: víta) is the second letter
of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 2. In
Modern Greek, it represents the voiced labiodental fricative IPA: [v] while
IPA: [b] in borrowed words is instead commonly transcribed as μπ.[1][2] Letters
that arose from beta include the Roman letter ⟨B⟩ and the Cyrillic letters ⟨Б⟩ and
⟨В⟩.
Contents

1 Name
2 History
3 Uses
3.1 Algebraic numerals
3.2 Computing
3.3 Finance
3.4 International Phonetic Alphabet
3.5 Meteorology
3.6 Mathematics and science
3.7 Rock climbing terminology
3.8 Slang
3.9 Statistics
3.10 Typography
3.11 Videotape formats
4 Character encodings
5 References

Name

Like the names of most other Greek letters, the name of beta was adopted from the
acrophonic name of the corresponding letter in Phoenician, which was the common
Semitic word *bait ('house'). In Greek, the name was βῆτα bêta, pronounced [bɛ̂ːta]
in Ancient Greek. It is spelled βήτα in modern monotonic orthography and pronounced
[ˈvita].
History
See also: Archaic Greek alphabets

The letter beta was derived from the Phoenician letter beth Beth.

The letter Β had the largest number of highly divergent local forms. Besides the
standard form (either rounded or pointed, Greek Beta 16.svg), there were forms as
varied as Greek Beta 12.svg (Gortyn), Greek Beta 01.svg and Greek Beta 10.svg
(Thera), Greek Beta 03.svg (Argos), Greek Beta 05.svg (Melos), Greek Beta Corinth
1.svg (Corinth), Greek Beta Byzantium 1.svg (Megara, Byzantium), and Greek Gamma C-
shaped.svg (Cyclades).[citation needed]
Uses
The Greek alphabet on an ancient black figure vessel, with the characteristically
angular beta of the time
Algebraic numerals

In the system of Greek numerals, beta has a value of 2. Such use is denoted by a
number mark: Β′.
Computing
See also: Software release life cycle § Beta, and Alpha–beta pruning
Finance

Beta is used in finance as a measure of (historical; pseudo-implied) financial

asset sensitivity to the relevant benchmark index. Conditional on the benchmark
index, the resulting beta value can vary considerably (S&P500 vs NASDAQ vs ETF of a
specific industry).

Beta should not to be confused with standard deviation (or the semi-variance, which
considers only negative returns): the preferred measure of the "riskiness"
(historical volatility of returns) of a financial asset or a portfolio in
isolation.

Beta can be calculated as the covariance of a financial asset (or portfolio) with
its benchmark index, divided by the variance of the benchmark index. Since the
industry of finance gravitates towards return generating activities, typically the
historical returns (percentage changes) are used in the calculations Beta values
(among others). There are numerous other methods a financial analyst can employ to
derive Beta values if historical prices are not available. Beta values change over
time (company restructuring; industry sentiment; endo/exogenous factors). Beta
values also vary, conditional on the time period used in calculating a Beta value.
Beta values can be negative, which infers the existence of financial assets which
historically, tended to move in opposite directions to one another by some unit
value. It would seem these are the optimal "hedges" to offset market-draw-downs,
during periods of market-stress and poor liquidity Beta values can vary
dramatically, and previously low or even negative correlations converge to "1".

A beta of 1.5 implies that for every 1% change in the value of the benchmark index,
the portfolio's value tends to change by 1.5%. The greater the absolute value, the
greater the implied move.
International Phonetic Alphabet

In the International Phonetic Alphabet, Greek minuscule beta denotes a voiced

bilabial fricative [β].

A superscript version may also indicate a compressed vowel, like [ɯᵝ].

Meteorology

Beta has twice been used to name an Atlantic Basin tropical cyclone:

Hurricane Beta, in 2005

Tropical Storm Beta, in 2020

Mathematics and science

Beta is often used to denote a variable in mathematics and physics, where it often
has specific meanings for certain applications. In physics a stream of unbound
energetic electrons is commonly referred to as beta radiation or beta rays. Decays
producing electrons or their antiparticles are called beta decays. In regression
analysis, ⟨B⟩ symbolizes nonstandardized partial slope coefficients, whereas ⟨β⟩
represents standardized (standard deviation-score form) coefficients; in both
cases, the coefficients reflect the change in the criterion Y per one-unit change
in the value of the associated predictor X. β is also used in biology, for instance
in β-Carotene, a primary source of provitamin A, or the β cells in pancreatic
islets, which produce insulin.

β is sometimes used as a placeholder for an ordinal number if α is already used.

For example, the two roots of a quadratic equation are typically labelled α and β.

In spaceflight, beta angle describes the angle between the orbit plane of a
spacecraft or other body and the vector from the sun.

β is sometimes used to mean the proton-to-electron mass ratio.

Rock climbing terminology

The term "beta" refers to advice on how to successfully complete a particular

climbing route, boulder problem, or crux sequence.[3]
Slang
Main article: Alpha and beta male

Beta male, or simply beta, is a slang term for men derived from the designation for
beta animals in ethology, along with its counterpart, alpha male.[4][5] The term
has been used as a pejorative self-identifier among members of manosphere
communities, particularly incels, who do not believe they are assertive or
traditionally masculine, and feel overlooked by women.[6][7] It is also used to
negatively describe other men who are not assertive, particularly in heterosexual
relationships.
Statistics

In statistics, beta may represent type II error, or regression slope.

Typography

In some high-quality typesetting, especially in the French tradition, a typographic

variant of the lowercase letter without a descender is used within a word for
ancient Greek: βίβλος is printed βίϐλος.[8]

In typesetting technical literature, it is a commonly made mistake to use the

German letter ß (a s–z or s–s ligature) as a replacement for β. The two letters
resemble each other in some fonts, but they are unrelated.[9]
Videotape formats

"Beta" can be used to refer to several consumer and professional videotape formats
developed by Japan's Sony Corporation. Although similarly named, they are very
different in function and obsolescence.

Betamax was the name of a domestic videotape format developed in the 1970s and
1980s. It competed with the Video Home System (VHS) format developed by the
Japanese Victor Company, to which it eventually succumbed. The Betamax format was
also marketed Betacord by (Sanyo); some cassettes were simply labeled "Beta", and
the logo was a lower-case beta. Betamax lost in the market and is an oft-used
example of a technically superior solution that failed due to market forces.
Betacam, including Beta SP and DigiBeta, is a family of professional videotape
formats launched in 1982 that was the de facto standard for professional video,
advertising, and television production through the 2000s. The formats outlasted
analog NTSC television, and their scarcity today is because the industry has moved
to HD formats.

Character encodings

Greek Beta

Character information Preview Β β ϐ ᵝ ᵦ

Unicode name GREEK CAPITAL LETTER BETA GREEK SMALL LETTER BETA GREEK
BETA SYMBOL MODIFIER LETTER SMALL BETA GREEK SUBSCRIPT SMALL LETTER BETA
Encodings decimal hex dec hex dec hex dec hex dec hex
Unicode 914 U+0392 946 U+03B2 976 U+03D0 7517 U+1D5D
7526 U+1D66
UTF-8 206 146 CE 92 206 178 CE B2 207 144 CF 90
225 181 157 E1 B5 9D 225 181 166 E1 B5 A6
Numeric character reference Β Β β β ϐ
ϐ ᵝ ᵝ ᵦ ᵦ
Named character reference Β β
DOS Greek 129 81 153 99
DOS Greek-2 165 A5 215 D7
Windows 1253 194 C2 226 E2
TeX \beta

Latin Beta
Character information Preview Ꞵ ꞵ
Unicode name LATIN CAPITAL LETTER BETA LATIN SMALL LETTER BETA
Encodings decimal hex dec hex
Unicode 42932 U+A7B4 42933 U+A7B5
UTF-8 234 158 180 EA 9E B4 234 158 181 EA 9E B5
Numeric character reference Ꞵ Ꞵ ꞵ ꞵ

Mathematical Beta

Character information Preview 𝚩 𝛃 𝛣 𝛽 𝜝 𝜷

Unicode name MATHEMATICAL BOLD
CAPITAL BETA MATHEMATICAL BOLD
SMALL BETA MATHEMATICAL ITALIC
CAPITAL BETA MATHEMATICAL ITALIC
SMALL BETA MATHEMATICAL BOLD ITALIC
CAPITAL BETA MATHEMATICAL BOLD ITALIC
SMALL BETA
Encodings decimal hex dec hex dec hex dec hex dec hex dec
hex
Unicode 120489 U+1D6A9 120515 U+1D6C3 120547 U+1D6E3
120573 U+1D6FD 120605 U+1D71D 120631 U+1D737
UTF-8 240 157 154 169 F0 9D 9A A9 240 157 155 131 F0 9D 9B 83
240 157 155 163 F0 9D 9B A3 240 157 155 189 F0 9D 9B BD 240
157 156 157 F0 9D 9C 9D 240 157 156 183 F0 9D 9C B7
UTF-16 55349 57001 D835 DEA9 55349 57027 D835 DEC3 55349 57059
D835 DEE3 55349 57085 D835 DEFD 55349 57117 D835 DF1D 55349
57143 D835 DF37
Numeric character reference 𝚩 𝚩 𝛃 𝛃
𝛣 𝛣 𝛽 𝛽 𝜝 𝜝
𝜷 𝜷

Character information Preview 𝝗 𝝱 𝞑 𝞫

Unicode name MATHEMATICAL SANS-SERIF
BOLD CAPITAL BETA MATHEMATICAL SANS-SERIF
BOLD SMALL BETA MATHEMATICAL SANS-SERIF
BOLD ITALIC CAPITAL BETA MATHEMATICAL SANS-SERIF
BOLD ITALIC SMALL BETA
Encodings decimal hex dec hex dec hex dec hex
Unicode 120663 U+1D757 120689 U+1D771 120721 U+1D791
120747 U+1D7AB
UTF-8 240 157 157 151 F0 9D 9D 97 240 157 157 177 F0 9D 9D B1
240 157 158 145 F0 9D 9E 91 240 157 158 171 F0 9D 9E AB
UTF-16 55349 57175 D835 DF57 55349 57201 D835 DF71 55349 57233
D835 DF91 55349 57259 D835 DFAB
Numeric character reference 𝝗 𝝗 𝝱 𝝱
𝞑 𝞑 𝞫 𝞫

These characters are used only as mathematical symbols. Stylized Greek text should
be encoded using the normal Greek letters, with markup and formatting to indicate
text style.
References
Look up Β or β in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

"UN Romanization of Greek for Geographical Names (1987)". www.eki.ee. Retrieved

2022-11-13.
"Pronouncing the Greek Alphabet". ThoughtCo. Retrieved 2022-11-13.
Rock and Ice (3 October 2016). "Rock & Ice – Climbing Terminology".
Hawley, P. H.; Little, Todd D.; Card, Noel A. (January 2008). "The myth of the
alpha male: A new look at dominance-related beliefs and behaviors among adolescent
males and females". International Journal of Behavioral Development. 32 (1): 76–88.
Hosie, Rachel (9 May 2017). "The Myth of the Alpha Male". The Independent.
Jones, Callum; Trott, Verity; Wright, Scott (2020). "Sluts and soyboys: MGTOW and
the production of misogynistic online harassment". New Media & Society. 22 (10):
1903–1921. doi:10.1177/1461444819887141. ISSN 1461-4448. S2CID 210530415.
Nicholas, Lucy; Agius, Christine (2018). The Persistence of Global Masculinism:
Discourse, Gender and Neo-Colonial Re-Articulations of Violence. Cham, Switzerland:
Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-68360-7. ISBN 978-3-319-68359-1.
LCCN 2017954971. Archived from the original on 2020-08-11. Retrieved 2020-07-17.
Haralambous, Yannis (1999). "From Unicode to typography, a case study: the Greek
script" (PDF). p. 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-06-15.

Aguilar Ruiz, Manuel José (2013). ""Las normas ortográficas y ortotipográficas

de la nueva Ortografía de la lengua española (2010) aplicadas a las publicaciones
biomédicas en español: una visión de conjunto" (PDF). Panace@. 14 (37): 104.

Categories:

Greek lettersPhonetic transcription symbols

Navigation menu

Not logged in
Talk
Contributions
Create account
Log in

Article
Talk

Read
Edit
View history

Main page
Contents
Current events
Random article
About Wikipedia
Contact us
Donate

Contribute

Help
Learn to edit
Community portal
Recent changes
Upload file

Tools

What links here

Related changes
Special pages
Permanent link
 Page information
Cite this page
Wikidata item

Print/export

Download as PDF
Printable version

In other projects

Wikimedia Commons

Languages

‫العربية‬
বাংলা
Cymraeg
Deutsch
Español
Français
ਪੰਜਾਬੀ
Polski
தமிழ்

Edit links

This page was last edited on 17 December 2022, at 21:41 (UTC).

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License
3.0; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use
and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia
Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

Privacy policy
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Contact Wikipedia
Mobile view
Developers
Statistics
Cookie statement

Wikimedia Foundation
Powered by MediaWiki