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On the cubic hermite spline Wikipedia page, the formula for interpolating between $x_k$ and $x_{k+1}$ is given by


Where $t = (x-x_k)/(x_{k+1}-x_k)$ and $h$ refers to the basis functions.

I have a slight problem in understanding this: When given $h(t)$, is it $h \times t$, or $h$ of $t$?

This of course makes a big difference in the equation. Judging from the 0 to 1 interval, I'd say it's $h$ of $t$, but I'd rather make sure.

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Note: this shouldn't be tagged homework at all, but the tag search seems to be broken, so I don't know which tags are similar to "cubic hermite spline". – Lazlo Jan 14 '12 at 20:33

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Yes, it's the function $h$ applied to $t$. It's a linear combination of basis functions, stretched to fit the interval $[x_k, x_{k+1}]$.

If they had meant $h$ times $t$, they would probably just have written $ht$.

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