26-letter words containing a, u, d, i, t, o
- mutual assured destruction — a U.S. doctrine of reciprocal deterrence resting on the U.S. and Soviet Union each being able to inflict unacceptable damage on the other in retaliation for a nuclear attack.
- national database language — (database, standard) (NDL) A US standard for portability of database definitions and application programs.
- newfoundland standard time — one of the standard times used in Canada, three and a half hours behind Greenwich Mean Time
- nondeterministic automaton — (theory) (Or "probabilistic automaton") An automaton in which there are several possible actions (outputs and next states) at each state of the computation such that the overall course of the computation is not completely determined by the program, the starting state, and the initial inputs. See also nondeterministic Turing Machine.
- obscene publications squad — a division of the police force which deals with illegal books, pictures, or films which are judged obscene because they deal with sex or violence in a way that is considered offensive to the general public
- official production system — (language) (OPS) The first production system (i.e. rule based) programming language, developed at CMU in 1970 and used for building expert systems. OPS was originally written in Franz Lisp and later ported to other LISP dialects.
- open document architecture — (standard) (ODA) ISO standard (8613) for describing documents. It allows text, graphics, and facsimile documents to be transferred between different systems.
- overdraft checking account — a bank account with a credit line permitting checks to be written for an amount above the account balance, subject to a finance charge on the overdraft.
- period-luminosity relation — the relationship between the period of light variation and of the absolute magnitude of Cepheid variable stars.
- pick up the threads of sth — If you pick up the threads of an activity, you start it again after an interruption. If you pick up the threads of your life, you become more active again after a period of failure or bad luck.
- post-and-beam construction — wall construction in which beams rather than studs are used to support heavy posts.
- pulse-amplitude modulation — modulation of the amplitude of a train of electric pulses used to carry signals (pulse carrier) Abbreviation: PAM.
- quasi-stellar radio source — a quasar having detectable radio emission. Abbreviation: QSS.
- reticuloendothelial system — the aggregate of the phagocytic cells, including certain cells of the bone marrow, lymphatic system, liver, and spleen, that have reticular and endothelial characteristics and function in the immune system's defense against foreign bodies. Abbreviation: RES.
- sangre de cristo mountains — a mountain range in S Colorado and N New Mexico: part of the Rocky Mountains. Highest peak: Blanca Peak, 4364 m (14 317 ft)
- sixty-four-dollar question — the critical or basic question or problem: Whether the measure will get through Congress this session or not is the sixty-four-dollar question.
- staffordshire bull terrier — one of an English breed of strong, stocky, muscular dogs having a broad skull and a smooth coat, in combinations of red, white, black, or blue, originally raised for bullbaiting and later dogfighting, but now bred as a companion dog.
- state of the union address — an annual message to Congress in which the president reports on the state of the nation and outlines a legislative program: required by the Constitution (Article II, Section 3). Abbreviation: SOTU.
- straight from the shoulder — direct, honest, and forceful in expression; outspoken.
- straight-from-the-shoulder — direct, honest, and forceful in expression; outspoken.
- textured vegetable protein — soya meat; a meat substitute that is made from soy flour
- the royal and ancient club — a golf club, headquarters of the sport's ruling body, based in St Andrews, Scotland
- to be made public property — to become known to everyone
- to rub salt into the wound — If someone or something rubs salt into the wound, they make the unpleasant situation that you are in even worse, often by reminding you of your failures or faults.
- turn something on its head — to treat or present something in a completely new and different way
- udmurt autonomous republic — an autonomous republic in the Russian Federation in Europe. 16,250 sq. mi. (42,088 sq. km). Capital: Izhevsk.
- ulster defence association — (in Northern Ireland) a Loyalist paramilitary organization
- united press international — a business organization of newspapers in the U.S., together with representatives abroad, for the reporting and interchange of news. Abbreviation: UPI, U.P.I.
- united states marine corps — Marine Corps. Abbreviation: USMC.
- united states of indonesia — former official name of the Republic of Indonesia.
- universal time coordinated — incorrect term for coordinated universal time.
- upper side-band modulation — (communications) (USB) A kind of modulation applied to a sinusoidal carrier.
- victoria and albert museum — a museum of the fine and applied arts in London, originating from 1856 and given its present name and site in 1899
- vienna definition language — (VDL) IBM Vienna Labs. A language for formal, algebraic definition via operational semantics. Used to specify the semantics of PL/I. See also VDM.
- you wouldn't read about it — an expression of dismay, disgust, or disbelief