Word Origin and History for attenuate Expand v. to make thin, to make less, 1520s, from Latin attenuatus enfeebled, weak, past participle of attenuare to make thin, lessen, diminish, from ad-to (see ad-) + tenuare make thin, from tenuis thin (see tenet).
Dependent Variable Definition: A dependent variable is the variable being tested in a scientific experiment. The dependent variable is 'dependent' on the independent variable. As the experimenter changes the independent variable, the change in the dependent variable is observed and recorded.
Therefore, in a formula, a dependent variable is a variable that is implicitly a function of another (or several other) variables. An independent variable is a variable that is not dependent. The property of a variable to be dependent or independent depends often of the point of view and is not intrinsic. For example, in the notation f(x, y, z) , the three variables may be all independent and the notation represents a function of three variables.