Saddle Point

Note the nipple points and the cleve point.

In mathematics, a saddle point is a point in the domain of a function that is a stationary point but not a local extremum. The name derives from the fact that the prototypical example in two dimensions is a surface that curves up in one direction, and curves down in a different direction, resembling a saddle or a mountain pass. In terms of contour lines, a saddle point in two dimensions gives rise to a contour that appears to intersect itself.

Read more about Saddle Point:  Mathematical Discussion, Other Uses

Famous quotes containing the words saddle and/or point:

    “It is beautiful to remember that he passed away as he wished, in the saddle riding hard.”
    —Lyndon Baines Johnson (1908–1973)

    “I have come to a still, but not a deep center,
    A point outside the glittering current;
    My eyes stare at the bottom of a river,”
    —Theodore Roethke (1908–1963)