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17-letter words containing f, o, d, c, n

  • fractal dimension — (mathematics)   A common type of fractal dimension is the Hausdorff-Besicovich Dimension, but there are several different ways of computing fractal dimension. Fractal dimension can be calculated by taking the limit of the quotient of the log change in object size and the log change in measurement scale, as the measurement scale approaches zero. The differences come in what is exactly meant by "object size" and what is meant by "measurement scale" and how to get an average number out of many different parts of a geometrical object. Fractal dimensions quantify the static *geometry* of an object. For example, consider a straight line. Now blow up the line by a factor of two. The line is now twice as long as before. Log 2 / Log 2 = 1, corresponding to dimension 1. Consider a square. Now blow up the square by a factor of two. The square is now 4 times as large as before (i.e. 4 original squares can be placed on the original square). Log 4 / log 2 = 2, corresponding to dimension 2 for the square. Consider a snowflake curve formed by repeatedly replacing ___ with _/\_, where each of the 4 new lines is 1/3 the length of the old line. Blowing up the snowflake curve by a factor of 3 results in a snowflake curve 4 times as large (one of the old snowflake curves can be placed on each of the 4 segments _/\_). Log 4 / log 3 = 1.261... Since the dimension 1.261 is larger than the dimension 1 of the lines making up the curve, the snowflake curve is a fractal. [sci.fractals FAQ].
  • frames per second — (unit)   (fps) The unit of measurement of the frame rate of a moving image.
  • french somaliland — a former name of Djibouti (def 1).
  • full load current — A full load current is the largest current that a motor or other device is designed to carry under particular conditions.
  • further education — adult education.
  • grandfather clock — a pendulum floor clock having a case as tall as or taller than a person; tall-case clock; long-case clock.
  • half-round chisel — a cold chisel with a semicircular cutting edge used for making narrow channels
  • hall of residence — Halls of residence are buildings with rooms or flats, usually built by universities or colleges, in which students live during the term.
  • hydrofluorocarbon — Any of a class of partly chlorinated and fluorinated hydrocarbons, used as an alternative to chlorofluorocarbons in foam production, refrigeration, and other processes.
  • hydrogasification — a high-temperature, high-pressure process for producing liquid or gaseous fuels from fine particles of coal and hydrogen gas
  • identity function — identity (def 9d).
  • induction furnace — a type of electric furnace used for melting a charge of scrap by the heat produced by its own electrical resistance.
  • line of induction — (formerly) a line of force in a magnetic field.
  • manufactured home — a prefabricated house, assembled in modular sections.
  • memoised function — memo function
  • memoized function — memo function
  • mend one's fences — a barrier enclosing or bordering a field, yard, etc., usually made of posts and wire or wood, used to prevent entrance, to confine, or to mark a boundary.
  • merchant of death — a company, nation, or person that sells military arms on the international market, usually to the highest bidder and without scruple or regard for political ramifications.
  • mexican stand-off — A Mexican stand-off is a situation in which neither of the people or groups in a conflict or dispute can win and neither wants to give in first.
  • microsoft windows — (operating system)   Microsoft's proprietary window system and user interface software released in 1985 to run on top of MS-DOS. Widely criticised for being too slow (hence "Windoze", "Microsloth Windows") on the machines available then. The 1996 market share of operating systems was: DOS/Windows 70% Windows 95 15% Windows NT 2% Other 13% Versions include 1985 Windows 1, 1987 Windows 2, 1987 Windows/386, 1990 Windows 3.0, 1992 Windows 3.1, 1992 Windows for Workgroups 3.1, 1993 Windows 3.11, 1993 Windows for Workgroups 3.11, 1993 Windows NT 3.1, 1994 Windows NT 3.5, 1995 Windows 95, 199? Windows NT 4, 1998 Windows 98, Windows NT 5, Windows XP, Windows 7, Windows 8.
  • misidentification — to identify incorrectly.
  • neck of the woods — the part of the body of an animal or human being that connects the head and the trunk.
  • object identifier — (programming)   (OID) Generally an implementation-specific integer or pointer that uniquely identifies an object.
  • odour of sanctity — sanctimoniousness
  • of its own accord — If something happens of its own accord, it seems to happen by itself, without anyone making it happen.
  • old norman french — Norman French (sense 1)
  • performance drugs — the drugs that are taken illegally by athletes to enhance their sporting performance
  • peridot of ceylon — a honey-colored tourmaline, used as a gem: not a true peridot.
  • periodic function — a function of a real or complex variable that is periodic.
  • phenylformic acid — benzoic acid.
  • pre-modifications — an act or instance of modifying.
  • presiding officer — the person who presides over the Scottish Parliament or Welsh Assembly
  • proficiency badge — an insignia or device granted by the Girl Scouts and worn especially on a uniform to indicate special achievement.
  • pseudo-scientific — any of various methods, theories, or systems, as astrology, psychokinesis, or clairvoyance, considered as having no scientific basis.
  • receding forehead — a forehead which slopes backwards
  • reduction formula — a formula, such as sin (90° ± A) = cos A, expressing the values of a trigonometric function of any angle greater than 90° in terms of a function of an acute angle
  • road-fund licence — a licence showing that the tax payable in respect of a motor vehicle has been paid
  • sacrificial anode — Chemistry. an anode that is attached to a metal object subject to electrolysis and is decomposed instead of the object.
  • scientific method — a method of research in which a problem is identified, relevant data are gathered, a hypothesis is formulated from these data, and the hypothesis is empirically tested.
  • self-acknowledged — widely recognized; generally accepted: an acknowledged authority on Chinese art.
  • self-commendation — the act of commending; recommendation; praise: commendation for a job well done.
  • self-condemnation — the act of condemning.
  • self-conditioning — Also called operant conditioning, instrumental conditioning. a process of changing behavior by rewarding or punishing a subject each time an action is performed until the subject associates the action with pleasure or distress.
  • self-dissociation — an act or instance of dissociating.
  • self-introduction — the act of introducing or the state of being introduced.
  • self-reproduction — the act or process of reproducing.
  • sound effects man — a man who produces sounds artificially or reproduces them from a recording, etc, to create a theatrical effect, such as the bringing together of two halves of a hollow coconut shell to simulate a horse's gallop. Such sound effects are used in plays, films, etc
  • standard function — a subprogram provided by a translator that carries out a task, for example the computation of a mathematical function, such as sine, square root, etc
  • sulfonyl chloride — a colorless liquid, SO 2 Cl 2 , having a very pungent odor and corrosive to the skin and mucous membranes: used as a chlorinating or sulfonating agent.
  • surface condenser — a device condensing steam or vapor by passing it over a cool surface.
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