Pairing
Pairing is the act of forming or identifying a pair—two elements treated as a unit or related by a rule. In mathematics, a pairing is a function that takes two inputs and returns a single output in a third set, often preserving algebraic structure. A common example is the inner product on a vector space, which is bilinear. The Cantor pairing function provides a bijection between pairs of natural numbers and natural numbers, illustrating how a pair can be encoded as a single object.
In biology, base pairing refers to specific hydrogen-bonding between nucleotides in DNA and RNA (A with T
Chemistry includes ion pairing, which describes the association of a cation and an anion in solution, often
Computing and networking use pairing to describe the process of establishing a trusted connection between devices,
Social sciences and human interaction also employ the term, with pairing or matchmaking describing the formation
Across domains, pairing captures the general idea of two items being treated as a unit or related