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In his book Control System Design, Bernard Friedland writes (section 4.2, page 115):

The roots of the denominator [of a rational function] are called the poles of the transfer function because $H(s)$ becomes infinite at these complex frequencies and a contour map of the complex plane appears as if it has poles sticking up from these points.

Is there any historical legitimacy to this explanation of the origin of the word "pole" to describe a root of the denominator of a rational function?

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    I always thought that poles come from electric poles which are singularities of the electric force, that is, a place where a function becomes infinite.2012-03-21
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    I don't see any direct math-history connection when looking at: http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=pole&allowed_in_frame=0, or it's very convoluted? lhf's logic seems sound?2012-03-21
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    @lhf What do you mean by 'electric pole'? a point charge?2012-03-21
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    @TobinFricke, yes, sorry for the noise. I probably mixed it with *magnetic pole*.2012-03-21
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    Yes, I guess the word 'pole' is probably related to its usage in *monopole*, *dipole*, ..., *multipole*, etc.2012-03-21
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    The word 'pole' has an entry in Jeff Miller's list (which is oft-referenced around here): http://jeff560.tripod.com/p.html2012-03-21
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    This question also has other references to check: http://math.stackexchange.com/questions/19397/a-place-to-learn-about-math-etymology2012-03-21

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