23-letter words containing a, e, r, o, s, t
- parametric polymorphism — Polymorphism was first identified by Christopher Strachey in 1967 and developed by Hindley and Milner. For example we could specify that the argument of the "head" function was a list without specifying a type for the elements of the list. In Haskell we would write: head :: [a] -> a meaning head has type function from "list of a" to "a" where "a" is a type variable). This is known as parametric polymorphism. Polymorphic typing allows strong type checking as well as generic functions. ML in 1976 was the first language with polymorphic typing. See also generic type variable.
- parasexual reproduction — reproduction by recombination of genes from genetically dissimilar nuclei within binucleate or multinucleate cells, as in filamentous fungi.
- participant observation — a technique of field research, used in anthropology and sociology, by which an investigator (participant observer) studies the life of a group by sharing in its activities.
- pay one's last respects — If you pay your last respects to someone who has just died, you show your respect or affection for them by coming to see their body or their grave.
- percentage distribution — a frequency distribution is which individual frequencies are shown as a percentage of the total frequencies
- pest control department — the local government department responsible for controlling such pests as rats and mice
- pharmaceuticals company — a company specialising in developing and marketing pharmaceuticals
- pithecanthropus erectus — Java man
- political incorrectness — Political incorrectness is the attitude or policy shown by someone who does not care if they offend or upset any group of people in society who have a disadvantage, or who have been treated differently because of their sex, race, or disability.
- positive discrimination — special opportunities
- postcode discrimination — discrimination on the basis of the area where someone lives, with relation to employment, credit rating, etc
- potassium acid tartrate — cream of tartar.
- presidential government — a system of government in which the powers of the president are constitutionally separate from those of the legislature.
- price escalation clause — a clause in a contract allowing the seller to raise prices if the cost of inputs increases
- printer access protocol — (networking, protocol, printer) (PAP) A protocol used in Mac OS Appletalk to provide bi-directional communication between PostScript printers and the client computer.
- process intensification — Process intensification is a change made to a process to make it work in a smaller volume for the same performance.
- professional misconduct — a violation of the rules or boundaries set by the governing body of a profession
- progressive cavity pump — A progressive cavity pump is a pump with an electric motor that rotates rods to make fluid in cavities move upward.
- psychomotor retardation — a generalized slowing of psychological and physical activity, frequently occurring as a symptom of severe depression.
- put the record straight — to correct an error or misunderstanding
- put through one's paces — a rate of movement, especially in stepping, walking, etc.: to walk at a brisk pace of five miles an hour.
- quantum electrodynamics — the quantum field theory that deals with the electromagnetic field and its interaction with electrons and positrons. Abbreviation: QED.
- quay financial software — CSK Software
- queen charlotte islands — a group of about 150 islands off the W coast of Canada: part of British Columbia. Pop: about 6000 (latest est). Area: 9596 sq km (3705 sq miles)
- quod erat demonstrandum — (at the conclusion of a proof, esp of a theorem in Euclidean geometry) which was to be proved
- quota share reinsurance — Quota share reinsurance is a form of reinsurance in which the reinsurer accepts a certain percentage of all or certain parts of the business of the reinsured person or company.
- quote chapter and verse — [by analogy with the mainstream phrase] To cite a relevant excerpt from an appropriate bible. "I don't care if "rn" gets it wrong; "Followup-To: poster" is explicitly permitted by RFC 1036. I'll quote chapter and verse if you don't believe me." See also legalese, language lawyer, RTFS (sense 2).
- rank outsider/outsiders — If one of the people in a competition is described as a rank outsider, they are considered to have very little chance of winning.
- real simple syndication — (spelling) Illiterate form of Really Simple Syndication.
- rectangular coordinates — Usually, rectangular coordinates. either of two Cartesian coordinates in which the axes meet at right angles.
- refinery waste disposal — Refinery waste disposal is the system for dealing with waste materials, especially hazardous ones, in a refinery.
- regressive assimilation — assimilation in which a following sound has an effect on a preceding one, as in pronouncing have in have to as [haf] /hæf/ (Show IPA) influenced by the voiceless (t) in to.
- relative molecular mass — the sum of all the relative atomic masses of the atoms in a molecule; the ratio of the average mass per molecule of a specified isotopic composition of a substance to one-twelfth the mass of an atom of carbon-12
- relative sunspot number — a number indicating the degree of sunspot activity on the sun as a factor of observer idiosyncrasies, the number of sunspot groups, and the number of individual sunspots.
- respectability politics — the set of beliefs holding that conformity to socially acceptable or mainstream standards of appearance and behavior will protect a member of a marginalized or minority group from prejudices and systemic injustices: Black respectability politics perpetuate the fiction of a meritocracy in public education.
- response generalization — generalization (def 4b).
- response-generalization — the act or process of generalizing.
- retrolental fibroplasia — an unusual eye disease occurring in premature infants, usually from being given high concentrations of oxygen, which causes abnormal formation of fibrous tissue behind the lens and often results in blindness.
- reverse polish notation — postfix notation
- rite of intensification — a ritual or ceremony performed by a community in a time of crisis that affects all members, as a rain dance during a drought.
- rotation-inversion axis — an axis of a crystal such that rotating about the axis and then inverting the crystal brings the crystal back to its original position.
- route of administration — A route of administration is the means by which a drug or agent enters the body, such as by mouth or by injection.
- rub sb up the wrong way — If you rub someone up the wrong way in British English, or rub someone the wrong way in American English, you offend or annoy them without intending to.
- saint christopher-nevis — St. Kitts-Nevis.
- saint george's mushroom — an edible whitish basidiomycetous fungus, Tricholoma gambosum, with a floury smell
- sb doesn't miss a trick — If you say that someone does not miss a trick, you mean that they always know what is happening and take advantage of every situation.
- schizotypal personality — a personality disorder characterized by a group of symptoms similar to but less severe than schizophrenia, as odd behavior, peculiar thinking, and social isolation.
- secondary seventh chord — a chord formed by superposition of three thirds upon any degree of the scale except the dominant.
- secondary sex character — any of a number of manifestations, as development of breasts or beard, muscularity, distribution of fat tissue, and change of pitch in voice, specific to each sex and incipient at puberty but not essential to reproduction.
- security association id — (networking) (SAID) A 32-bit field added to packet headers for encryption and authentication in the proposed Internet Protocol Version 6.