Total variation
Total variation is a term we use in math to describe how different something is from the average. Let's imagine you and your friends are taking a test at school. The average score is 75 out of 100. If your score is 90, you did really well and your score has low total variation. But if your score is 50, you did not do so well and your score has high total variation.
Think of it like this: "variation" means how things are different from each other. "Total" means we're looking at all the differences together. So "total variation" is just the sum of all the ways things vary from each other.
Another example can be imagining a line graph. If the line is very wiggly and all over the place, that graph has high total variation. But if the line is mostly a straight line, or barely moving up and down, that graph has low total variation.
So, total variation is just a way to measure how much things differ from each other, whether it's scores on a test, data points on a graph, or anything else that can be analyzed for differences or variation.
Think of it like this: "variation" means how things are different from each other. "Total" means we're looking at all the differences together. So "total variation" is just the sum of all the ways things vary from each other.
Another example can be imagining a line graph. If the line is very wiggly and all over the place, that graph has high total variation. But if the line is mostly a straight line, or barely moving up and down, that graph has low total variation.
So, total variation is just a way to measure how much things differ from each other, whether it's scores on a test, data points on a graph, or anything else that can be analyzed for differences or variation.
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