18-letter words containing d, e, c, o, m
- computer-generated — produced by a computer program
- considered harmful — (programming, humour) A type of phrase based on the title of Edsger W. Dijkstra's famous note in the March 1968 Communications of the ACM, "Goto Statement Considered Harmful", which fired the first salvo in the structured programming wars. Amusingly, the ACM considered the resulting acrimony sufficiently harmful that it will (by policy) no longer print articles taking so assertive a position against a coding practice. In the ensuing decades, a large number of both serious papers and parodies bore titles of the form "X considered Y". The structured-programming wars eventually blew over with the realisation that both sides were wrong, but use of such titles has remained as a persistent minor in-joke.
- consolato del mare — a code of maritime law compiled in the Middle Ages: it drew upon ancient law and has influenced modern law.
- contact dermatitis — dermatitis caused by direct contact with an irritating substance, as an allergen or chemical
- content data model — (standard, documentation, language) (CDM) An SGML-based specification for interactive maintenance manuals, developed by the Air Force Human Resourceas Laboratory (AFHRL) with assistance from RJO Enterprises, Incorporated. CDM models data hierachically and data are identified by their content structure with SGML mark-up used to identify information classes such as "system information", "functions", "tasks" and "steps".
- costume department — the department in a theatre or television company that is responsible for actors' costumes
- cot death syndrome — the unexplained sudden death of an infant during sleep
- creme de framboise — a liqueur flavored with raspberries.
- crookes radiometer — a type of radiometer consisting of an evacuated glass bulb containing a set of lightweight vanes, each blackened on one side. The vanes are mounted on a vertical axis and revolve when light, or other radiant energy, falls on them
- cushing's syndrome — a medical condition characterized by obesity, hypertension, excessive hair growth, etc., caused by an overactive adrenal gland or large doses of corticosteroids
- customs and excise — Customs and Excise is a British government department which is responsible for collecting taxes on imported and exported goods. Compare Customs Service.
- decompartmentalize — to remove excessive compartmentalization from (an organization)
- democratic deficit — any situation in which there is believed to be a lack of democratic accountability and control over the decision-making process
- dermot macmurrough — ?1110–71, king of Leinster, who, by enlisting the support of the English to win back his kingdom, was responsible for the English conquest of Ireland
- diaminofluorescein — (organic compound) A fluorescein into which two amino groups have been substituted.
- diamondback turtle — any edible North American terrapin of the genus Malaclemys, esp M. terrapin, occurring in brackish and tidal waters and having diamond-shaped markings on the shell: family Emydidae
- diatomaceous earth — an unconsolidated form of diatomite
- diplomatic service — diplomatic corps
- diplomatic shuttle — a series of diplomatic visits to other states made by an official, such as an ambassador or envoy
- direct examination — the first interrogation of a witness by the side that has called that witness.
- dispatch documents — documents sent with a parcel, etc, detailing information such as contents, delivery address, etc
- domenico veneziano — died 1461, Italian painter, noted for the St Lucy Altarpiece
- domestic appliance — a machine used for household tasks, for example, a washing machine, refrigerator, etc.
- dominican republic — a republic in the West Indies, occupying the E part of the island of Hispaniola. 19,129 sq. mi. (49,545 sq. km). Capital: Santo Domingo.
- domremy-la-pucelle — a village in Lorraine, NE France, SW of Nancy: birthplace of Joan of Arc.
- double achievement — a representation of the arms of a husband beside those of his wife such that a difference of rank between them is shown.
- dramatic monologue — a poetic form in which a single character, addressing a silent auditor at a critical moment, reveals himself or herself and the dramatic situation.
- dynamically scoped — dynamic scope
- dysthymic disorder — a psychiatric disorder characterized by generalized depression that lasts for at least a year
- east india company — the company chartered by the English government in 1600 to carry on trade in the East Indies: dissolved in 1874.
- economic indicator — business statistic
- eigendecomposition — (linear algebra) The factorization of a matrix into a canonical form, whereby the matrix is represented in terms of its eigenvalues and eigenvectors.
- eighty-column mind — (abuse) The sort said to be possessed by persons for whom the transition from punched card to paper tape was traumatic (nobody has dared tell them about disks yet). It is said that these people, including (according to an old joke) the founder of IBM, will be buried "face down, 9-edge first" (the 9-edge being the bottom of the card). This directive is inscribed on IBM's 1402 and 1622 card readers and is referenced in a famous bit of doggerel called "The Last Bug", the climactic lines of which are as follows: He died at the console Of hunger and thirst. Next day he was buried, Face down, 9-edge first. The eighty-column mind is thought by most hackers to dominate IBM's customer base and its thinking. See fear and loathing, card walloper.
- electrocardiograms — Plural form of electrocardiogram.
- electrodynamometer — An instrument that measures electric current by indicating the strength of repulsion or attraction between the magnetic fields of two sets of coils, one fixed and one movable.
- euclid's algorithm — (algorithm) (Or "Euclidean Algorithm") An algorithm for finding the greatest common divisor (GCD) of two numbers. It relies on the identity gcd(a, b) = gcd(a-b, b) To find the GCD of two numbers by this algorithm, repeatedly replace the larger by subtracting the smaller from it until the two numbers are equal. E.g. 132, 168 -> 132, 36 -> 96, 36 -> 60, 36 -> 24, 36 -> 24, 12 -> 12, 12 so the GCD of 132 and 168 is 12. This algorithm requires only subtraction and comparison operations but can take a number of steps proportional to the difference between the initial numbers (e.g. gcd(1, 1001) will take 1000 steps).
- first class module — (programming) A module that is a first class data object of the programming language, e.g. a record containing functions. In a functional language, it is standard to have first class programs, so program building blocks can have the same status.
- fixed-focus camera — a camera with an unadjustable focal length and with a relatively large depth of field.
- forced development — the processing of underexposed photographic film to increase the image density
- forward compatible — forward compatibility
- fourth commandment — “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy”: fourth of the Ten Commandments.
- golden bantam corn — a horticultural variety of sweet corn having yellow kernels.
- good conduct medal — a medal awarded an enlisted person for meritorious behavior during the period of service.
- government deficit — A government deficit is a situation in which a government spends more money than it has.
- hebdomadal council — the governing council or senate of Oxford University
- hemorrhoidectomies — Plural form of hemorrhoidectomy.
- higher-order macro — A means of expressing certain higher-order functions in a first order language. Proposed by Phil Wadler. Higher-order macros cannot be recursive at the top level but they may contain recursive definitions. E.g. See partial evaluation.
- hypermodern school — a style of chess characterized by control of the centre from the flanks
- hypodermic syringe — a small glass piston or barrel syringe having a detachable, hollow needle for use in injecting solutions subcutaneously.
- immunodeficiencies — Plural form of immunodeficiency.