29-letter words containing a, g, r, i, e
- longitudinal redundancy check — (storage, communications) (LRC, Block Redundancy Check) An error checking method that generates a longitudinal parity byte from a specified string or block of bytes on a longitudinal track. The longitudinal parity byte is created by placing individual bytes of a string in a two-dimensional array and performing a Vertical Redundancy Check vertically and horizontally on the array, creating an extra byte. This is an improvement over the VRC because it will catch two errors in the individual characters of the string, beyond the odd errors.
- management information system — a computerized information-processing system designed to support the activities and functions of company management. Abbreviation: MIS.
- mark-sweep garbage collection — Each cell has a bit reserved for marking which is clear initially. During garbage collection all active cells are traced from the root and marked. Then all cells are examined. Unmarked cells are freed.
- mecklenburg-western pomerania — a state in NE Germany. 8842 sq. mi. (22,900 sq. km). Capital: Schwerin.
- monday-morning quarterbacking — wisdom after the event, esp by spectators
- multimedia messaging services — (messaging) (MMS) A feature of some mobile telephones that allows them to send messages including text, sound, images and video.
- multiprotocol label switching — (networking) (MPLS) A packet switching protocol developed by the IETF. Initially developed to improve switching speed, other benefits are now seen as being more important. MPLS adds a 32-bit label to each packet to improve network efficiency and to enable routers to direct packets along predefined routes in accordance with the required quality of service. The label is added when the packet enters the MPLS network, and is based on an analysis of the packet header. The label contains information on the route along which the packet may travel, and the forwarding equivalence class (FEC) of the packet. Packets with the same FEC are routed through the network in the same way. Routers make forwarding decisions based purely on the contents of the label. This simplifies the work done by the router, leading to an increase in speed. At each router, the label is replaced with a new label, which tells the next router how to forward the packet. The label is removed when the packet leaves the MPLS network. Modern ASIC-based routers can look up routes fast enough to make the speed increase less important. However, MPLS still has some benefits. The use of FECs allows QoS levels to be guaranteed, and MPLS allows IP tunnels to be created through a network, so that VPNs can be implemented without encryption.
- ningxia hui autonomous region — an administrative division in N China. 25,640 sq. mi. (66,400 sq. km). Capital: Yinchuan.
- non-governmental organization — activism: independent group
- not with a bang but a whimper — If you say that something happens not with a bang but a whimper, you mean that it is less effective or exciting than was expected or intended.
- nuclear regulatory commission — an independent agency, created in 1975, that licenses and regulates the nonmilitary use of nuclear energy. Abbreviation: NRC.
- on-line analytical processing — (database) (OLAP) A category of database software which provides an interface such that users can transform or limit raw data according to user-defined or pre-defined functions, and quickly and interactively examine the results in various dimensions of the data. OLAP primarily involves aggregating large amounts of diverse data. OLAP can involve millions of data items with complex relationships. Its objective is to analyze these relationships and look for patterns, trends, and exceptions. The term was originally coined by Dr. Codd in 1993 with 12 "rules". Since then, the OLAP Council, many vendors, and Dr. Codd himself have added new requirements and confusion. Richard Creeth and Nigel Pendse define OLAP as fast analysis of shared multidimensional information. Their definition requires the system to respond to users within about five seconds. It should support logical and statistical processing of results without the user having to program in a 4GL. It should implement all the security requirements for confidentiality and concurrent update locking. The system must provide a multidimensional conceptual view of the data, including full support for multiple hierarchies. Other aspects to consider include data duplication, RAM and disk space requirements, performance, and integration with data warehouses. Various bodies have attempted to come up with standards for OLAP, including The OLAP Council and the Analytical Solutions Forum (ASF), however, the Microsoft OLE DB for OLAP API is the most widely adopted and has become the de facto standard.
- opportunity management system — (business) (OMS) A system that stores sales opportunities and related information. Each sales lead can be tracked with information such as source, type, worth, status, likelihood of closure etc. An OMS can perform other related tasks such as prioritising sales calls and generating analyses that assist the fine-tuning of marketing strategies. See also Customer Relationship Management.
- optical character recognition — the process or technology of reading data in printed form by a device (optical character reader) that scans and identifies characters. Abbreviation: OCR.
- professional graphics adapter — (graphics, specification) (PGA) A computer video display standard produced by IBM for early CAD applications. It had a resolution of 640x400 pixels.
- programmable logic controller — (hardware) (PLC) A device used to automate monitoring and control of industrial plant. Can be used stand-alone or in conjunction with a SCADA or other system.
- put sb/go through their paces — If you put someone through their paces or make them go through their paces, you get them to show you how well they can do something.
- put someone through his paces — to test the ability of someone
- run something up the flagpole — to pursue a tentative course of action in order to gauge the reaction it receives
- saint andrews static language — St Andrews Static Language
- scanning tunneling microscope — a device that uses a moving needle and the tunnel effect to generate a maplike image of the atomic surface structure of matter, thereby achieving even greater magnification than the scanning electron microscope.
- serotonin receptor antagonist — A serotonin receptor antagonist is a drug that inhibits the action of serotonin receptors.
- sing from the same hymn sheet — If you say that people, especially people in the same organization, are singing from the same hymn sheet or are singing from the same song sheet, you mean that they are saying the same things in public about something and appear to agree about it.
- sing from the same song sheet — to say the same things about a subject in order to give the impression of unity or agreement
- single edge contact cartridge — (hardware) (SEC, SECC) The cased daughterboard housing Intel's Pentium II, Pentium III, and Xeon microprocessors. A SECC fits into a Slot 1 or Slot 2 connector.
- single edge processor package — (hardware) (SEPP) The caseless daughterboard containing Intel's Celeron processor. A SEPP fits into a Slot 1 connector.
- someone has raised their game — If you say that someone has raised their game, you mean that they have begun to perform better, usually because they were under pressure to do so.
- surgical specialist registrar — a hospital doctor senior to a house officer but junior to a consultant, specializing in surgery
- symbolic automatic integrator — (mathematics, tool) (SAINT) A symbolic mathematics program written in Lisp by J. Slagle at MIT in 1961.
- synchronous digital hierarchy — (communications, standard) (SDH) An international digital telecommunications network hierarchy which standardises transmission around the bit rate of 51.84 megabits per second, which is also called STS-1. Multiples of this bit rate comprise higher bit rate streams. Thus STS-3 is 3 times STS-1, STS-12 is 12 times STS-1, and so on. STS-3 is the lowest bit rate expected to carry ATM traffic, and is also referred to as STM-1 (Synchronous Transport Module-Level 1). The SDH specifies how payload data is framed and transported synchronously across optical fibre transmission links without requiring all the links and nodes to have the same synchronized clock for data transmission and recovery (i.e. both the clock frequency and phase are allowed to have variations, or be plesiochronous). SDH offers several advantages over the current multiplexing technology, which is known as Plesiochronous Digital Hierarchy. Where PDH lacks built-in facilities for automatic management and routing, and locks users into proprietary methods, SDH can improve network reliability and performance, offers much greater flexibility and lower operating and maintenance costs, and provides for a faster provision of new services. Under SDH, incoming traffic is synchronized and enhanced with network management bits before being multiplexed into the STM-1 fixed rate frame. The fundamental clock frequency around which the SDH or SONET framing is done is 8 KHz or 125 microseconds. SONET (Synchronous Optical Network) is the American version of SDH.
- thinking machines corporation — (company) The company that introduced the Connection Machine parallel computer ca 1984. Four of the world's ten most powerful supercomputers are Connection Machines. Thinking Machines is the leader in scalable computing, with software and applications running on parallel systems ranging from 16 to 1024 processors. In developing the Connection Machine system, Thinking Machines also did pioneering work in parallel software. The 1993 technical applications market for massively parallel systems was approximately $310 million, of which Thinking Machines Corporation held a 29 percent share. Thinking Machines planned to become a software provider by 1996, by which time the parallel computing market was expected to have grown to $2 billion. Thinking Machines Corporation has 200 employees and offices worldwide. Address: 245 First Street, Cambridge, MA 02142-1264, USA. Telephone: +1 (617) 234 1000. Fax: +1 (617) 234 4444.
- throw cold water on something — to be unenthusiastic about or discourage something
- throw one's hat into the ring — to enter a contest, esp. one for political office
- thyrotropin-releasing hormone — a small peptide hormone, produced by the hypothalamus, that controls the release of thyrotropin by the pituitary. Abbreviation: TRH.
- to draw a veil over something — If you draw a veil over something, you stop talking about it because it is too unpleasant to talk about.
- to get sb in the party spirit — to make someone feel like going to a party
- to have a learning disability — to be unable to reach the average standard of people of the same age group as regards intellectual and cognitive skills and performance
- to run the gamut of something — To run the gamut of something means to include, express, or experience all the different things of that kind, or a wide variety of them.
- training opportunities scheme — a former government scheme offering vocational training to unemployed people
- trust territory of new guinea — (until 1975) an administrative division of the former Territory of Papua and New Guinea, consisting of the NE part of the island of New Guinea together with the Bismarck Archipelago; now part of Papua New Guinea
- two wrongs don't make a right — If someone says 'Two wrongs don't make a right', they mean that you should not do harm to a person who has done harm to you, even if you think that person deserves it.
- united kingdom unionist party — a political party (1995–2008), based in Northern Ireland: it was non-sectarian but opposed to a united Ireland
- variational graphics extended — (software) (VGX) Software developed by SDRC for use in 3D CAD solid modelling.
- virtual storage access method — (database) (VSAM) An IBM disk file storage scheme first used in S/370 and virtual storage. VSAM comprises three access methods: Keyed Sequenced Data Set (KSDS), Relative Record Data Set (RRDS), and Entry Sequenced Data Set (ESDS). Both IMS/DB and DB2 are implemented on top of VSAM and use its underlying data structures.
- workflow management coalition — (body) (WfMc) A non-profit, international organisation of workflow vendors, users, and analysts committed to establishing standards for workflow terminology, interoperability, and connectivity. WfMC was founded in 1993 and now (1999) has over 130 members.
- works progress administration — WPA.