Kernel may refer to:

Computing

Kernel (operating system) A kernel is a computer program at the core of a computer's operating system that always has complete control over everything in the system. The kernel is also responsible for preventing and mitigating conflicts between different processes. It is ...

, the central component of most operating systems * Kernel (image processing), a matrix used for image convolution *

Compute kernel In computing, a compute kernel is a routine compiled for high throughput accelerators (such as graphics processing units (GPUs), digital signal processors (DSPs) or field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs)), separate from but used by a main pro ...

, in GPGPU programming * Kernel method, in machine learning * Kernelization, a technique for designing efficient algorithms ** Kernel, a routine that is executed in a vectorized loop, for example in

general-purpose computing on graphics processing units General-purpose computing on graphics processing units (GPGPU, or less often GPGP) is the use of a graphics processing unit (GPU), which typically handles computation only for computer graphics, to perform computation in applications traditional ...

KERNAL KERNAL is Commodore's name for the ROM-resident operating system core in its 8-bit home computers; from the original PET of 1977, followed by the extended but related versions used in its successors: the VIC-20, Commodore 64, Plus/4, Commodore ...

, the Commodore operating system

Mathematics

Objects

Kernel (algebra) In algebra, the kernel of a homomorphism is the relation describing how elements in the domain of the homomorphism become related in the image. A homomorphism is a function that preserves the underlying algebraic structure in the domain to it ...

, a general concept that includes: **

Kernel (linear algebra) In mathematics, the kernel of a linear map, also known as the null space or nullspace, is the part of the domain which is mapped to the zero vector of the co-domain; the kernel is always a linear subspace of the domain. That is, given a linear ...

or null space, a set of vectors mapped to the zero vector **

Kernel (category theory) In category theory and its applications to other branches of mathematics, kernels are a generalization of the kernels of group homomorphisms, the kernels of module homomorphisms and certain other kernel (algebra), kernels from algebra. Intuitive ...

, a generalization of the kernel of a homomorphism **

Kernel (set theory) In set theory, the kernel of a function f (or equivalence kernel.) may be taken to be either * the equivalence relation on the function's domain that roughly expresses the idea of "equivalent as far as the function f can tell",. or * the cor ...

, an equivalence relation: partition by image under a function ** Difference kernel, a binary equalizer: the kernel of the difference of two functions

Functions

Kernel (geometry) In geometry, a star-shaped polygon is a polygonal region in the plane that is a star domain, that is, a polygon that contains a point from which the entire polygon boundary is Visibility polygon, visible. Formally, a polygon is star-shaped if ...

, the set of points within a polygon from which the whole polygon boundary is visible *

Kernel (statistics) The term kernel is used in statistics, statistical analysis to refer to a window function. The term "kernel" has several distinct meanings in different branches of statistics. Bayesian statistics In statistics, especially in Bayesian statistics ...

, a weighting function used in kernel density estimation to estimate the probability density function of a random variable *

Integral kernel In mathematics, an integral transform is a type of transform (mathematics), transform that maps a function (mathematics), function from its original function space into another function space via integral, integration, where some of the propert ...

or kernel function, a function of two variables that defines an integral transform *

Heat kernel In the mathematical study of heat conduction and diffusion, a heat kernel is the fundamental solution to the heat equation on a specified domain with appropriate boundary conditions. It is also one of the main tools in the study of the spectrum ...

, the fundamental solution to the heat equation on a specified domain * Convolution kernel * Stochastic kernel, the transition function of a stochastic process * Transition kernel, a generalization of a stochastic kernel * Pricing kernel, the stochastic discount factor used in mathematical finance * Positive-definite kernel, a generalization of a positive-definite matrix * Kernel trick, in statistics *

Reproducing kernel Hilbert space In functional analysis, a reproducing kernel Hilbert space (RKHS) is a Hilbert space of functions in which point evaluation is a continuous linear functional. Specifically, a Hilbert space H of functions from a set X (to \mathbb or \mathbb) is ...

Science

Seed In botany, a seed is a plant structure containing an embryo and stored nutrients in a protective coat called a ''testa''. More generally, the term "seed" means anything that can be Sowing, sown, which may include seed and husk or tuber. Seeds ...

, inside the nut of most plants or the fruitstone of drupes, especially: ** Apricot kernel **

Corn kernel Corn kernels are the fruits of Maize, corn (called maize in many countries). Maize is a grain, and the kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable or a source of starch. The kernel comprise endosperm, Germ (grain), germ, pericarp, and tip cap. ...

** Palm kernel ** Wheat kernel *

Atomic nucleus The atomic nucleus is the small, dense region consisting of protons and neutrons at the center of an atom, discovered in 1911 by Ernest Rutherford at the Department_of_Physics_and_Astronomy,_University_of_Manchester , University of Manchester ...

, the center of an atom

Companies

* Kernel (agriculture company), a Ukrainian producer of sunflower oil * Kernel (neurotechnology company), a developer of neural interfaces * The Kernel Brewery, a craft brewery in London * '' The Kernel'', an Internet culture website, now part of ''The Daily Dot''

Other uses

* ''Kernel'' (EP), by the band Seam * Kernel Fleck, a character in ''The Demonata'' series of books * Brigitte Kernel (born 1959), French journalist and writer