degenerates

Degenerate is an adjective meaning having lost normal or desirable qualities, or deviating from a standard. Degeneration is the process or result of such deterioration. The term is used in various disciplines with different emphases: in science to describe deterioration or abnormal states; in mathematics to denote limiting or singular cases; and in social and cultural history as a label with controversial connotations.

Biology and medicine: Degeneration describes the deterioration of tissues or organs due to aging, injury, or disease. Degenerative diseases are conditions in which such deterioration progresses over time, such as osteoarthritis, Alzheimer's disease, or certain muscular dystrophies.

Mathematics, physics, and culture: In mathematics, a degenerate case is a limiting or simplified instance of a general object, such as a degenerate conic (a line or a point) or a degenerate polygon. A degenerate matrix has zero determinant and is not invertible. In physics, degeneracy refers to multiple quantum states sharing the same energy; degeneracy pressure is a quantum-statistical effect that supports matter at high density. The term gained notoriety in cultural history as "degenerate art"—a label used by Nazi authorities to condemn modernist works—illustrating how the concept has been used as political rhetoric.

Social and ethical considerations: Degeneration theory, prominent in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, linked perceived decline to heredity and influenced early eugenic policies in some places. Modern scholarship rejects these ideas as pseudoscience or harmful ideology. In contemporary usage, referring to people as degenerates is typically considered insulting and dehumanizing; precise, descriptive language is preferred.