Ros

Ros is a term with multiple meanings that appear in names, science, technology, and geography.

As a given name or surname, Ros is often a short form of Rose or Rosemary, though it is also used independently as a feminine given name in several languages.

Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) are a group of oxygen-containing molecules and radicals produced by cellular respiration and other metabolic processes. They play roles in cell signaling and homeostasis at low levels but can cause oxidative damage at high levels, contributing to aging and disease.

Robot Operating System (ROS) is an open-source software framework for building robot applications. It provides modular components called nodes that communicate via topics and services, and supports simulation, hardware drivers, and tooling for development, testing, and deployment. ROS has evolved into ROS 2, which emphasizes real-time capabilities, security, and multi-robot systems, and is maintained by the Open Robotics foundation.

Geographically, Ros appears in various place names and toponyms across languages, and may form part of longer names. The term’s meaning therefore depends on context. In everyday use, Ros most often refers to a personal name or to one of the two acronyms described above.