 of a moving series of video images. 30 fps is considered to be 'full-motion' video in Japan and the US, while 25 fps is considered to be full- motion video in Europe. fractal compression An asymmetrical compression technique that shrinks an image into extremely small resolution- independent files and stores it as a mathematical equation rather than as pixels. The process starts with the identification of patterns within an image, and results in collection of shapes that resemble each other but that have different sizes and locations. Each shape-pattern is summarized and reproduced by a formula that starts with the largest shape, repeatedly displacing and shrinking it. Patterns are stored as equations and the image is reconstructed by iterating the mathematical model. Fractal compression can store as many as 60,000 images on one CD-ROM and competes with techniques such as JPEG, which uses DCT to drop redundant information. One disadvantage of fractal compression is that it requires considerable processing power. JPEG is much faster but fractal compression is more efficient; it squeezes information into smaller files. Applications using fractal compression center on desktop publishing and presentation creation. fractal geometry The underlying mathematics behind fractal image compression, discovered by two Georgia Tech mathematicians, Michael Barnsley and Alan Sloan. Fractal Image Format FIF. A compression technique that uses on-board ASIC chips to look for patterns. Exact matches are rare; the basis of the process is to find close matches using a function known as an affine map. Glossary of Terms fractional T-1 FT-1 or fractional T-1 refers to any data transmission rate between 56 Kbps and 1.544 Mbps. It is typically provided by a carrier in lieu of a full T-1 connection and is a point-to-point arrangement. A specialized multiplexer is used by the customer to channelize the carrier's signals. frame An individual television, film or video image. There are either 25 or 30 frames per-second sent with television, 24 a