Mipmapping
MIP Mapping
MIP comes from the Latin, multum in parvo, meaning a multitude in a small space.
MIP mapping (also sometimes spelled as mipmapping) is a technique where an original high-resolution texture map is scaled and filtered into multiple resolutions within the texture file. Each scaled texture, or MIP level, represents what the texture would look like at a specific distance from the users viewpoint.
In most cases each subsequent MIP level is half the size of the previous and through the use of filters gives a more natural representation of how colours and details tend to blend together when viewed at a distance. Without this filtering, a moiré pattern or "jaggies", have a habit of appearing on surfaces.
The main benefit of MIP mapping is that by pre-filtering and scaling the textures it avoids the need for it to be done in real-time, thus saving CPU cycles for other important tasks.