16-letter words containing s, i, m, u
- multidimensional — Mathematics. a property of space; extension in a given direction: A straight line has one dimension, a parallelogram has two dimensions, and a parallelepiped has three dimensions. the generalization of this property to spaces with curvilinear extension, as the surface of a sphere. the generalization of this property to vector spaces and to Hilbert space. the generalization of this property to fractals, which can have dimensions that are noninteger real numbers. extension in time: Space-time has three dimensions of space and one of time.
- multidisciplined — composed of or combining several usually separate branches of learning or fields of expertise: a multidisciplinary study of the 18th century.
- multifariousness — (uncountable) The characteristic of being multifarious.
- multinationalism — a large corporation with operations and subsidiaries in several countries.
- multiple alleles — any one of a series of three or more alternative or allelic forms of a gene, only two of which can exist in any normal, diploid individual.
- multiple factors — polygene.
- multiple fission — fission into more than two new organisms.
- multiple listing — the listing of a home for sale with a number of real-estate brokers who participate in a shared listing service.
- multiuser system — a computer system in which multiple terminals connect to a host computer that handles processing tasks.
- munching squares — A display hack dating back to the PDP-1 (ca. 1962, reportedly discovered by Jackson Wright), which employs a trivial computation (repeatedly plotting the graph Y = X XOR T for successive values of T - see HAKMEM items 146--148) to produce an impressive display of moving and growing squares that devour the screen. The initial value of T is treated as a parameter, which, when well-chosen, can produce amazing effects. Some of these, later (re)discovered on the LISP Machine, have been christened "munching triangles" (try AND for XOR and toggling points instead of plotting them), "munching w's", and "munching mazes". More generally, suppose a graphics program produces an impressive and ever-changing display of some basic form, foo, on a display terminal, and does it using a relatively simple program; then the program (or the resulting display) is likely to be referred to as "munching foos". [This is a good example of the use of the word foo as a metasyntactic variable.]
- murasaki shikibu — Lady, 978?–1031? Japanese poet and novelist.
- musical director — A musical director is the same as a music director.
- musique concrete — tape-recorded musical and natural sounds, often electronically distorted, arranged in planned combinations, sequences, and rhythmic patterns to create an artistic work.
- muskegon heights — a city in W Michigan, on Lake Michigan.
- mutation testing — (testing) A method to determine test set thoroughness by measuring the extent to which a test set can discriminate the program from slight variants of the program.
- mutatis mutandis — the necessary changes having been made.
- mutual exclusion — (parallel, operating system) (Or "mutex", plural: "mutexes") A collection of techniques for sharing resources so that different uses do not conflict and cause unwanted interactions. One of the most commonly used techniques for mutual exclusion is the semaphore.
- mutual insurance — insurance in which those insured become members of a company who reciprocally engage, by payment of certain amounts into a common fund, to indemnify one another against loss.
- mutual recursion — recursion
- myelosuppression — (medicine) A reduction of bone marrow activity that leads to a lower concentration of platelets, red blood cells and white blood cells.
- nash equilibrium — (in game theory) a stable state of a system involving the interaction of two or more players in which no player can gain by a unilateral change of strategy if the strategies of the other players remain unchanged
- national costume — traditional dress
- neptunium series — a radioactive series that starts with plutonium-241 and ends with bismuth-209. Neptunium-237 is the longest-lived member of the series. The series does not occur in nature
- neurotransmitter — any of several chemical substances, as epinephrine or acetylcholine, that transmit nerve impulses across a synapse to a postsynaptic element, as another nerve, muscle, or gland.
- nitrogen mustard — any of the class of poisonous, blistering compounds, as C 5 H 1 1 Cl 2 N, analogous in composition to mustard gas but containing nitrogen instead of sulfur: used in the treatment of cancer and similar diseases; mechlorethamine.
- non-consummation — the act of consummating; completion.
- non-instrumental — serving or acting as an instrument or means; useful; helpful.
- norodom sihanouk — Prince Norodom [nawr-uh-dom,, -duh m] /ˈnɔr əˌdɒm,, -dəm/ (Show IPA), 1922–2004, Cambodian statesman: premier 1952–60; chief of state 1960–70 and 1975–76.
- nuclear emulsion — a photographic emulsion in the form of a thick block, used to record the tracks of elementary particles.
- orthodox judaism — Judaism as observed by Orthodox Jews.
- osmium tetroxide — a crystalline or amorphous, colorless, poisonous compound, OsO 4 , soluble in water, alcohol, and ether: used for microscopic staining, in photography, and as a catalyst in organic synthesis.
- osmotic pressure — the force that a dissolved substance exerts on a semipermeable membrane, through which it cannot penetrate, when separated by it from pure solvent.
- over-consumption — the act of consuming, as by use, decay, or destruction.
- over-nourishment — something that nourishes; food, nutriment, or sustenance.
- paint-by-numbers — formulaic; showing no original thought or creativity
- pairs tournament — an event in a sport such as tennis or darts open to pairs of competitors
- palmer peninsula — former name of Antarctic Peninsula.
- papillary muscle — one of the small bundles of muscles attached to the ventricle walls and to the chordae tendineae that tighten these tendons during ventricular contraction.
- passive immunity — immunity resulting from the injection of antibodies or sensitized lymphocytes from another organism or, in infants, from the transfer of antibodies through the placenta or from colostrum.
- pentothal sodium — thiopental sodium
- people smuggling — People smuggling or people trafficking is the practice of bringing immigrants into a country illegally.
- permaculturalist — a system of cultivation intended to maintain permanent agriculture or horticulture by relying on renewable resources and a self-sustaining ecosystem.
- phase modulation — radio transmission in which the carrier wave is modulated by changing its phase to transmit the amplitude and pitch of the signal.
- photoluminescent — luminescence induced by the absorption of infrared radiation, visible light, or ultraviolet radiation.
- pick up stompies — to come late to a conversation and so misunderstand what is being discussed
- pneumonoconiosis — pneumoconiosis.
- pocono mountains — ridge of the Appalachians, in E Pa.: resort area: c. 2,000 ft (610 m) high
- political asylum — asylum provided by one nation to refugees, especially political refugees, from another nation.
- portuguese timor — former (1914-75) Portuguese territory in the Malay Archipelago
- postremogeniture — a system of inheritance under which the estate of a deceased person goes to his youngest son. Also called ultimogeniture. Compare primogeniture (def 2).