15-letter words containing c, h, e, m, s
- collenchymatous — Relating to collenchyma.
- common shelduck — a large, brightly coloured gooselike duck of the Old World, Tadorna tadorna
- community chest — a fund raised by voluntary contribution for local welfare activities
- comprehensively — Something that is done comprehensively is done thoroughly.
- comprehensivize — to make (an educational system) comprehensive
- comptrollership — controller (def 1).
- computer ethics — (philosophy) Ethics is the field of study that is concerned with questions of value, that is, judgments about what human behaviour is "good" or "bad". Ethical judgments are no different in the area of computing from those in any other area. Computers raise problems of privacy, ownership, theft, and power, to name but a few. Computer ethics can be grounded in one of four basic world-views: Idealism, Realism, Pragmatism, or Existentialism. Idealists believe that reality is basically ideas and that ethics therefore involves conforming to ideals. Realists believe that reality is basically nature and that ethics therefore involves acting according to what is natural. Pragmatists believe that reality is not fixed but is in process and that ethics therefore is practical (that is, concerned with what will produce socially-desired results). Existentialists believe reality is self-defined and that ethics therefore is individual (that is, concerned only with one's own conscience). Idealism and Realism can be considered ABSOLUTIST worldviews because they are based on something fixed (that is, ideas or nature, respectively). Pragmatism and Existentialism can be considered RELATIVIST worldviews because they are based or something relational (that is, society or the individual, respectively). Thus ethical judgments will vary, depending on the judge's world-view. Some examples: First consider theft. Suppose a university's computer is used for sending an e-mail message to a friend or for conducting a full-blown private business (billing, payroll, inventory, etc.). The absolutist would say that both activities are unethical (while recognising a difference in the amount of wrong being done). A relativist might say that the latter activities were wrong because they tied up too much memory and slowed down the machine, but the e-mail message wasn't wrong because it had no significant effect on operations. Next consider privacy. An instructor uses her account to acquire the cumulative grade point average of a student who is in a class which she instructs. She obtained the password for this restricted information from someone in the Records Office who erroneously thought that she was the student's advisor. The absolutist would probably say that the instructor acted wrongly, since the only person who is entitled to this information is the student and his or her advisor. The relativist would probably ask why the instructor wanted the information. If she replied that she wanted it to be sure that her grading of the student was consistent with the student's overall academic performance record, the relativist might agree that such use was acceptable. Finally, consider power. At a particular university, if a professor wants a computer account, all she or he need do is request one but a student must obtain faculty sponsorship in order to receive an account. An absolutist (because of a proclivity for hierarchical thinking) might not have a problem with this divergence in procedure. A relativist, on the other hand, might question what makes the two situations essentially different (e.g. are faculty assumed to have more need for computers than students? Are students more likely to cause problems than faculty? Is this a hold-over from the days of "in loco parentis"?).
- consumer choice — the range of competing products and services from which a consumer can choose
- crash programme — a short intensive programme to learn a skill, language, etc
- cut the mustard — to come up to expectations
- cytophotometers — Plural form of cytophotometer.
- dendrochemistry — (chemistry) the science, related to dendrochronology, that uses the analysis of trace minerals in tree rings to study air pollution in past times.
- dermatoglyphics — the lines forming a skin pattern, esp on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet
- deus ex machina — (in ancient Greek and Roman drama) a god introduced into a play to resolve the plot
- dichotomous key — a key used to identify a plant or animal in which each stage presents descriptions of two distinguishing characters, with a direction to another stage in the key, until the species is identified
- dichotomousness — the quality of being dichotomous
- dutchman's-pipe — a climbing vine, Aristolochia durior, of the birthwort family, having large, heart-shaped leaves and brownish-purple flowers of a curved form suggesting a tobacco pipe.
- echinodermatous — belonging or pertaining to the echinoderms.
- echocardiograms — Plural form of echocardiogram.
- electrothermics — the study of electricity and heat, or of electrically generated heat
- enfranchisement — The act of enfranchising.
- ethnocentricism — Ethnocentrism.
- ethnomusicology — The study of the music of different cultures, especially non-Western ones.
- euphemistically — In a euphemistic manner.
- fluid mechanics — an applied science dealing with the basic principles of gaseous and liquid matter.
- fluorochemicals — Plural form of fluorochemical.
- forthcomingness — coming, forth, or about to come forth; about to appear; approaching in time: the forthcoming concert.
- french tamarisk — a shrub or small tree, Tamarix gallica, of the Mediterranean region, having bluish foliage and white or pinkish flowers.
- geodemographics — the study and grouping of the people in a geographical area according to socioeconomic criteria, esp for market research
- hamamelidaceous — belonging to the Hamamelidaceae, the witch hazel family of plants.
- hard-shell clam — quahog.
- harmonic series — a series in which the reciprocals of the terms form an arithmetic progression.
- have a smack at — to attempt
- hedonic damages — compensation based on what the victim of a crime might have earned in the future
- hemangiosarcoma — A fast-growing, highly invasive variety of cancer, a sarcoma arising from the lining of blood vessels, occurring almost exclusively in dogs and rarely in cats.
- hemicolectomies — Plural form of hemicolectomy.
- hemiglossectomy — (surgery) The surgical removal of a portion of the tongue.
- hemochromatosis — a rare metabolic disorder characterized by a bronzed skin, cirrhosis, and severe diabetes, caused by the deposit in tissue, especially of the liver and pancreas, of hemosiderin and other pigments containing iron.
- histochemically — In a histochemical manner.
- homeostatically — the tendency of a system, especially the physiological system of higher animals, to maintain internal stability, owing to the coordinated response of its parts to any situation or stimulus that would tend to disturb its normal condition or function.
- homo economicus — a theoretical human being who rationally calculates the costs and benefits of every action before making a decision, used as the basis for a number of economic theories and models
- homochlamydeous — (of a plant) having a perianth in which the sepals and petals are fused together and indistinguishable
- hopper casement — a casement with a sash hinged at the bottom.
- horned screamer — a screamer, Anhima cornuta, of tropical South America, having a long, slender hornlike process projecting from the forehead.
- how come/how so — You ask 'How come?' or 'How so?' when you are surprised by something and are asking why it happened or was said.
- human resources — (used with a plural verb) people, especially the personnel employed by a given company, institution, or the like.
- hypercatabolism — an abnormally high metabolic breakdown of a substance or tissue which leads to weight loss and physical deterioration
- hypersomnolence — sleepy; drowsy.
- hypoinsulinemic — Having hypoinsulinemia.
- immunochemistry — the study of the chemistry of immunologic substances and reactions.