Higher Education · Numerical Methods
Interpolation
What is it
Interpolation estimates unknown values that fall between known data points, using techniques like linear interpolation (drawing a straight line between two points) or polynomial interpolation (fitting a curve through several points).
Why it matters
Interpolation is how missing or in-between values are estimated from real, incomplete data — used throughout engineering, computer graphics, and scientific measurement wherever data is only available at discrete sample points.
Exam tip
Higher-degree polynomial interpolation isn't automatically better — fitting a high-degree polynomial through many points can produce wild oscillations between the data points (Runge's phenomenon), so simpler, piecewise methods are often more reliable in practice.
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