Assimilation

From Wikinfo

Assimilation, from Latin assimilatio, meaning "to render similar". The term assimilation is used to describe various phenomena:

• The process of assimilating new ideas into a cognitive structure. See Assimilation (cognitive science)
• A linguistic process by which a sound becomes similar to an adjacent sound. See Assimilation (linguistics).
• The conversion of nutriment into the fluid or solid substance of the body, by the processes of digestion and absorption. See Assimilation (biology).
• The process whereby a minority group gradually adopts the customs and attitudes of the prevailing culture. See Assimilation (sociology).
• Process used by the Borg race to integrate a being into the collective structure. See Assimilation (Star Trek).

References

• Adapted from the Wikipedia article, "Assimilation" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assimilation, used under the GNU Free Documentation License