17-letter words containing a, d, n
- forward quotation — the price quoted on a forward delivery.
- foucault pendulum — a pendulum that demonstrates the rotation of the earth by exhibiting an apparent change in its plane of oscillation.
- foundation course — A foundation course is a course that you do at some colleges and universities in order to prepare yourself for a longer or more advanced course.
- fractal dimension — (mathematics) A common type of fractal dimension is the Hausdorff-Besicovich Dimension, but there are several different ways of computing fractal dimension. Fractal dimension can be calculated by taking the limit of the quotient of the log change in object size and the log change in measurement scale, as the measurement scale approaches zero. The differences come in what is exactly meant by "object size" and what is meant by "measurement scale" and how to get an average number out of many different parts of a geometrical object. Fractal dimensions quantify the static *geometry* of an object. For example, consider a straight line. Now blow up the line by a factor of two. The line is now twice as long as before. Log 2 / Log 2 = 1, corresponding to dimension 1. Consider a square. Now blow up the square by a factor of two. The square is now 4 times as large as before (i.e. 4 original squares can be placed on the original square). Log 4 / log 2 = 2, corresponding to dimension 2 for the square. Consider a snowflake curve formed by repeatedly replacing ___ with _/\_, where each of the 4 new lines is 1/3 the length of the old line. Blowing up the snowflake curve by a factor of 3 results in a snowflake curve 4 times as large (one of the old snowflake curves can be placed on each of the 4 segments _/\_). Log 4 / log 3 = 1.261... Since the dimension 1.261 is larger than the dimension 1 of the lines making up the curve, the snowflake curve is a fractal. [sci.fractals FAQ].
- frames per second — (unit) (fps) The unit of measurement of the frame rate of a moving image.
- francis ferdinand — 1863–1914, archduke of Austria: heir apparent to the thrones of Austria and Hungary whose assassination precipitated the outbreak of World War I (nephew of Francis Joseph I).
- frankenstein food — any foodstuff that has been genetically modified
- freedmen's bureau — an agency of the War Department set up in 1865 to assist freed slaves in obtaining relief, land, jobs, fair treatment, and education.
- french somaliland — a former name of Djibouti (def 1).
- freund's adjuvant — a water-in-oil emulsion injected with immunogen (Freund's incomplete adjuvant) or with immunogen and killed mycobacteria (Freund's complete adjuvant) to enhance the immune response to the immunogen.
- from hand to hand — the terminal, prehensile part of the upper limb in humans and other primates, consisting of the wrist, metacarpal area, fingers, and thumb.
- front-end payment — a payment required or incurred in advance of a project in order to get it under way
- full load current — A full load current is the largest current that a motor or other device is designed to carry under particular conditions.
- further education — adult education.
- fuss and feathers — an excessively elaborate or pretentious display; ostentation.
- galapagos islands — a group of 15 islands in the Pacific west of Ecuador, of which they form a province: discovered (1535) by the Spanish; main settlement on San Cristóbal. Pop: 18 640 (2001). Area: 7844 sq km (3028 sq miles)
- game as ned kelly — extremely brave; indomitable
- garden apartments — a complex of low apartment buildings surrounded by lawn or landscaped areas
- garden heliotrope — the common valerian, Valeriana officinalis, especially when cultivated as an ornamental.
- garden mignonette — a Mediterranean plant, Resida odorata, which has spikes of small greenish-white flowers with prominent anthers
- garden strawberry — a plant which has white flowers and red edible fruits and is spread by runners, Fragaria ananassa
- gaseous diffusion — the passage of gas through microporous barriers, a technique used for isotope separation, especially in the preparation of fuel for nuclear reactors.
- general admission — an admission charge for unreserved seats at a theatrical performance, sports event, etc.
- general discharge — a discharge from military service of a person who has served honorably but who has not met all the conditions of an honorable discharge.
- general knowledge — commonly known facts
- generalized other — an individual's internalized impression of societal norms and expectations.
- giovanni demedici — Catherine de', Catherine de Médicis.
- giscard d'estaing — Valéry [va-ley-ree] /va leɪˈri/ (Show IPA), born 1926, French political leader: president 1974–81.
- gnu privacy guard —
- go down the drain — to withdraw or draw off (a liquid) gradually; remove slowly or by degrees, as by filtration: to drain oil from a crankcase.
- goldbeater's skin — the prepared outside membrane of the large intestine of the ox, used by goldbeaters to lay between the leaves of the metal while they beat it into gold leaf.
- golden alexanders — a plant, Zizia aurea, of the parsley family, native to eastern North America, having compound leaves and umbels of yellow flowers.
- golden hand-shake — a special incentive, as generous severance pay, given to an older employee as an inducement to elect early retirement.
- gomez de la serna — Ramón [rah-mawn] /rɑˈmɔn/ (Show IPA), ("Ramón") 1888–1963, Spanish novelist, dramatist, biographer, and critic.
- graduated pension — the money that an employee receives after retirement if they have paid into the graduated pension scheme
- grain of paradise — Usually, grains of paradise. one of the pungent, peppery seeds of an African plant, Aframomum melegueta, of the ginger family, used to strengthen cordials and in veterinary medicine.
- grand climacteric — Physiology. a period of decrease of reproductive capacity in men and women, culminating, in women, in the menopause.
- grand touring car — GT (def 2).
- grand union canal — a canal in S England linking London and the Midlands: opened in 1801
- grande chartreuse — the Carthusian monastery at Grenoble, France: the chief monastery of the Carthusians until 1903.
- grandfather clock — a pendulum floor clock having a case as tall as or taller than a person; tall-case clock; long-case clock.
- grandmother clock — a pendulum clock similar to a grandfather's clock but shorter.
- grandstand finish — a close or exciting ending to a sports match or competition
- great namaqualand — an arid coastal region in the S part of Namibia, extending into the Cape of Good Hope province of the Republic of South Africa, divided by the Orange River into two regions, one in Namibia (Great Namaqualand) the other in South Africa (Little Namaqualand) inhabited by the Nama.
- great st. bernard — Great, a mountain pass between SW Switzerland and NW Italy, in the Pennine Alps: Napoleon led his army through it in 1800; location of a hospice. 8108 feet (2470 meters) high.
- great-grandfather — a grandfather of one's father or mother.
- great-grandmother — a grandmother of one's father or mother.
- great-grandnephew — a grandson of one's nephew or niece.
- great-grandparent — a grandfather or grandmother of one's father or mother.
- greater celandine — celandine (def 1).