accelerate

Accelerate is a verb meaning to increase speed or the rate of progress. It can describe physical motion, such as a car accelerating, or more abstract processes, like accelerating a project.

In physics, acceleration is the time rate of change of velocity. It is a vector quantity with both magnitude and direction. The standard relation is a = dv/dt, or a ≈ Δv/Δt for finite intervals. The SI unit is meters per second squared (m/s^2). Gravity provides a near-constant acceleration of about 9.81 m/s^2 near Earth’s surface, neglecting air resistance.

In computing and technology, acceleration refers to using specialized hardware or software to improve performance. Examples include graphics processing unit (GPU) acceleration and hardware acceleration for tasks such as video decoding. The Apple Accelerate framework is a software library that delivers optimized vector and matrix routines for high-performance numerical tasks.

In transportation, acceleration measures how quickly a vehicle increases speed. It is often quantified by the time to reach a given speed, such as 0–60 mph or 0–100 km/h, with shorter times indicating stronger performance.

In business and research, acceleration describes efforts to speed up development, deployment, or growth, including startup accelerators and programs designed to accelerate product innovation and market entry.

Etymology: accelerare, from Latin, meaning to hasten.