1 [software] The process, using formal methods, of evaluating a system or software component to determine whether it functions as expected and achieves the intended results.
2 [data quality] The process, using formal methods, of evaluating the integrity and correctness of data or a measurement.
3 [modeling] In modeling, the evaluation of a method to show whether it is assessing the parameter of interest rather than something else.
4 [data quality] The process of comparing the topology rules against the features in a dataset. Features that violate the rules are marked as error features. Topology validation is typically performed after the initial topology rules have been defined, after the feature classes have been modified, or if additional feature classes or rules have been added to the map topology.