17-letter words containing m, i, n, o, r, t
- 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].
- functional isomer — any of several structural isomers that have the same molecular formula but with the atoms connected in different ways and therefore falling into different functional groups.
- garden mignonette — a Mediterranean plant, Resida odorata, which has spikes of small greenish-white flowers with prominent anthers
- general sarmiento — a city in E Argentina, a suburb of Buenos Aires.
- genetic algorithm — (GA) An evolutionary algorithm which generates each individual from some encoded form known as a "chromosome" or "genome". Chromosomes are combined or mutated to breed new individuals. "Crossover", the kind of recombination of chromosomes found in sexual reproduction in nature, is often also used in GAs. Here, an offspring's chromosome is created by joining segments choosen alternately from each of two parents' chromosomes which are of fixed length. GAs are useful for multidimensional optimisation problems in which the chromosome can encode the values for the different variables being optimised.
- geomagnetic storm — magnetic storm.
- gold import point — an exchange rate at which it is as cheap to settle international accounts by importing gold bullion as by selling bills of exchange
- government action — intervention by a government, esp to influence financial markets
- haematocrystallin — Alternative form of hematocrystallin.
- haemoglobinometer — an instrument used to determine the haemoglobin content of blood
- harmonic interval — an intervening period of time: an interval of 50 years.
- heat of formation — the heat evolved or absorbed when one mole of a compound is formed from its constituent atoms
- hemoconcentration — an increase in the concentration of cellular elements in the blood, resulting from loss of plasma.
- heteronormativity — The view that all human beings are either male or female, both in sex and in gender, and that sexual and romantic thoughts and relations are normal only when between people of different sexes.
- histamine blocker — any of various substances that act at a specific receptor site to block certain actions of histamine.
- ho chi minh trail — a network of jungle paths winding from North Vietnam through Laos and Cambodia into South Vietnam, used as a military route by North Vietnam to supply the Vietcong during the Vietnam War.
- hollerith, herman — Herman Hollerith
- home improvements — improvements to one's home, such as new kitchens and bathrooms, central heating etc
- homeland security — national defence
- honorable mention — a citation conferred on a contestant, exhibit, etc., having exceptional merit though not winning a top honor or prize.
- hydroxytryptamine — (organic compound) Any hydroxy derivative of tryptamine, but especially 5-hydroxytryptamine (serotonin).
- hyperalimentation — overfeeding.
- hyperpigmentation — coloration, especially of the skin.
- image recognition — (graphics, artificial intelligence) The identification of objects in an image. This process would probably start with image processing techniques such as noise removal, followed by (low-level) feature extraction to locate lines, regions and possibly areas with certain textures. The clever bit is to interpret collections of these shapes as single objects, e.g. cars on a road, boxes on a conveyor belt or cancerous cells on a microscope slide. One reason this is an AI problem is that an object can appear very different when viewed from different angles or under different lighting. Another problem is deciding what features belong to what object and which are background or shadows etc. The human visual system performs these tasks mostly unconsciously but a computer requires skillful programming and lots of processing power to approach human performance.
- immediate version — child version
- immigrant workers — people who work in a country they arrived to in order to settle there
- immunofluorescent — Of, pertaining to, or using immunofluorescence.
- immunosuppressant — (pharmacology) Capable of immunosuppression, immunosuppressive.
- immunotherapeutic — (immunology, medicine) Of a pharmaceutical, acting on the immune system to treat disease; used in immunotherapy.
- impersonalization — to make impersonal: The dial system impersonalized the telephone.
- impersonification — (archaic) the act of impersonating; impersonation.
- implosion therapy — a form of behavior therapy involving intensive recollection and review of anxiety-producing situations or events in a patient's life in an attempt to develop more appropriate responses to similar situations in the future.
- impressionability — easily impressed or influenced; susceptible: an impressionable youngster.
- improper fraction — a fraction having the numerator greater than the denominator.
- improper integral — Also called infinite integral. a definite integral in which one or both of the limits of integration is infinite.
- improvement grant — a sum of money provided by a government, local authority, or public fund to finance the amelioration of a building, area of land, etc
- improvisationally — In an improvisational way.
- in a/the minority — If people are in a minority or in the minority, they belong to a group of people or things that form less than half of a larger group.
- in the market for — an open place or a covered building where buyers and sellers convene for the sale of goods; a marketplace: a farmers' market.
- incomplete flower — a flower without one or more of the normal parts, as carpels, sepals, petals, pistils, or stamens.
- incompressibility — The quality of being incompressible, of not compressing under pressure.
- indicator diagram — a graphical or other representation of the cyclic variations of pressure and volume within the cylinder of a reciprocating engine obtained by using an indicator
- inertial platform — self-contained navigational devices used in inertial guidance, along with their mounting.
- innominate artery — brachiocephalic artery.
- insertion element — a section of DNA that is capable of becoming inserted into another chromosome
- insurmountability — incapable of being surmounted, passed over, or overcome; insuperable: an insurmountable obstacle.
- intercolumniation — the space between two adjacent columns, usually the clear space between the lower parts of the shafts.
- intercommunicated — Simple past tense and past participle of intercommunicate.
- intercommunicates — Third-person singular simple present indicative form of intercommunicate.
- intergovernmental — involving two or more governments or levels of government.