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14-letter words containing h, o, r, s, c

  • scrape through — only just succeed
  • scratch monkey — (humour)   As in "Before testing or reconfiguring, always mount a scratch monkey", a proverb used to advise caution when dealing with irreplaceable data or devices. Used to refer to any scratch volume hooked to a computer during any risky operation as a replacement for some precious resource or data that might otherwise get trashed. This term preserves the memory of Mabel, the Swimming Wonder Monkey, star of a biological research program at the University of Toronto. Mabel was not (so the legend goes) your ordinary monkey; the university had spent years teaching her how to swim, breathing through a regulator, in order to study the effects of different gas mixtures on her physiology. Mabel suffered an untimely demise one day when a DEC engineer troubleshooting a crash on the program's VAX inadvertently interfered with some custom hardware that was wired to Mabel. It is reported that, after calming down an understandably irate customer sufficiently to ascertain the facts of the matter, a DEC troubleshooter called up the field circus manager responsible and asked him sweetly, "Can you swim?" Not all the consequences to humans were so amusing; the sysop of the machine in question was nearly thrown in jail at the behest of certain clueless droids at the local "humane" society. The moral is clear: When in doubt, always mount a scratch monkey. A corespondent adds: The details you give are somewhat consistent with the version I recall from the Digital "War Stories" notesfile, but the name "Mabel" and the swimming bit were not mentioned, IIRC. Also, there's a very detailed account that claims that three monkies died in the incident, not just one. I believe Eric Postpischil wrote the original story at DEC, so his coming back with a different version leads me to wonder whether there ever was a real Scratch Monkey incident.
  • second chamber — the parliament of the Netherlands, consisting of an upper chamber (First Chamber) and a lower chamber (Second Chamber)
  • secret history — a version of historical events which differs from the official or commonly accepted record and purports to be the true version
  • servomechanism — an electronic control system in which a hydraulic, pneumatic, or other type of controlling mechanism is actuated and controlled by a low-energy signal.
  • sex chromosome — a chromosome, differing in shape or function from other chromosomes, that determines the sex of an individual.
  • share of voice — the proportion of the total audience or readership commanded by a media group across its full range of publishing and broadcasting activities
  • sheepback rock — roche moutonnée.
  • sherry cobbler — a cobbler drink made with sherry, sliced fruits, and ice.
  • sheva brachoth — the seven blessings said during the marriage service and repeated at the celebration thereafter
  • shock absorber — a device for damping sudden and rapid motion, as the recoil of a spring-mounted object from shock.
  • short covering — purchases that close out short sales on stocks or commodities.
  • shoulder patch — a cloth emblem worn on the upper part of a sleeve of a uniform typically as identification of the organization to which the wearer is assigned.
  • shower cubicle — a shower enclosure
  • shower curtain — waterproof sheet around a shower
  • simchath torah — a Jewish festival, celebrated on the 23rd day of Tishri, being the 9th day of Sukkoth, that marks the completion of the annual cycle of the reading of the Torah in the synagogue and the beginning of the new cycle.
  • sleeping porch — a porch enclosed with glass or screening or a room with open sides or a row of windows used for sleeping in the open air.
  • smoker's cough — a chronic cough caused by smoking.
  • sobriety coach — a person who is employed to help another to refrain from drinking alcohol
  • social chapter — The social chapter is an agreement between countries in the European Union concerning workers' rights and working conditions.
  • social charter — a declaration of the rights, minimum wages, maximum hours, etc, of workers in the European Union, later adopted in the Social Chapter
  • social history — a view of historical events seen in terms of social trends
  • social sharing — the activity of sharing photos, videos, links, etc., on a social-media website, within an interactive application, or through other online channels.
  • soldier orchid — a European orchid, Orchis militaris, having pale purple flowers with a four-lobed lower lip
  • soul-searching — the act or process of close and penetrating analysis of oneself, to determine one's true motives and sentiments.
  • sound archives — official records or files (as in a library) of sound recordings, broadcasts, or performances, esp those from radio programmes
  • south american — a continent in the S part of the Western Hemisphere. About 6,900,000 sq. mi. (17,871,000 sq. km).
  • south carolina — a state in the SE United States, on the Atlantic coast. 31,055 sq. mi. (80,430 sq. km). Capital: Columbia. Abbreviation: SC (for use with zip code), S.C.
  • southern cross — Also called Cross. Astronomy. a southern constellation between Centaurus and Musca. Compare Northern Cross.
  • southern crown — the constellation Corona Australis.
  • southern ocean — that part of the Indian Ocean south of Australia
  • spermatothecae — a female reproductive organ in some insects
  • sphaerocrystal — a spherical crystalline mass
  • spinthariscope — an instrument that detects ionizing radiation by picking up sparks of light from alpha particles.
  • spirochaetosis — a disease caused by infection with a spirochete.
  • sporotrichosis — a widespread infectious disease marked by nodules or ulcers of the skin, chiefly affecting humans and domestic mammals and caused by the fungus Sporothrix schenckii.
  • spotted orchid — any of various common Eurasian orchids, esp the heath and common spotted orchids (Dactylorhiza maculata and D. fuchsii). The flowers are variable but usually have dark blotches
  • staghorn coral — staghorn coral.
  • staghorn sumac — a sumac, Rhus typhina, of eastern North America, having leaves that turn scarlet, orange, and purple in the autumn.
  • starch blocker — a substance ingested in the belief that it inhibits the body's ability to metabolize starch and thereby promotes weight loss: declared illegal in the U.S. by the FDA.
  • station church — any of the churches in Rome that have been used from ancient times as points of assembly for religious processions
  • steganographic — of, or pertaining to, steganography
  • stereochemical — of, relating to, stereochemistry
  • stick together — be united
  • stoichiometric — of or relating to stoichiometry.
  • streptothricin — an antibacterial substance produced by a soil fungus, Actinomyces lavendulae.
  • subatmospheric — (of a quantity) having a value lower than that of the atmosphere: subatmospheric temperatures.
  • summer clothes — light clothes which are suitable for summer
  • supercargoship — a giant cargo ship
  • surgical shock — a state of shock that can occur during or after surgery
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