17-letter words containing s, t, f, r, a, n
- foreign relations — (used with a singular verb) the field of foreign affairs: an expert in foreign relations.
- foreign secretary — foreign minister.
- forward contracts — Forward contracts are agreements to buy something in the future for a price that has been agreed today.
- foundation course — A foundation course is a course that you do at some colleges and universities in order to prepare yourself for a longer or more advanced course.
- four-star general — high-ranking military officer
- fourier transform — a mapping of a function, as a signal, that is defined in one domain, as space or time, into another domain, as wavelength or frequency, where the function is represented in terms of sines and cosines.
- 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].
- frankenstein food — any foodstuff that has been genetically modified
- fraternal society — a club or other association, usually of men, having a limited membership and devoted to professional, religious, charitable, or social activities.
- freight insurance — insurance paid on goods in transport
- freund's adjuvant — a water-in-oil emulsion injected with immunogen (Freund's incomplete adjuvant) or with immunogen and killed mycobacteria (Freund's complete adjuvant) to enhance the immune response to the immunogen.
- frostbite sailing — the sport of sailing in temperate latitudes during the winter despite cold weather.
- 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.
- fuss and feathers — an excessively elaborate or pretentious display; ostentation.
- grandstand finish — a close or exciting ending to a sports match or competition
- have it in for sb — If someone has it in for you, they dislike you and try to cause problems for you.
- heart of darkness — a short novel (1902) by Joseph Conrad.
- hydrogasification — a high-temperature, high-pressure process for producing liquid or gaseous fuels from fine particles of coal and hydrogen gas
- image intensifier — any of various devices for amplifying the intensity of an optical image, sometimes used in conjunction with an image converter
- impersonification — (archaic) the act of impersonating; impersonation.
- infantry division — a military division composed of infantry
- intensive farming — battery rearing of animals
- interconfessional — common to or occurring between churches having different confessions.
- interfenestration — a space between two windows.
- interprofessional — following an occupation as a means of livelihood or for gain: a professional builder.
- intraspecifically — Between individuals of the same species.
- it's your funeral — If someone says to you 'It's your funeral', they think your decision or your actions will have bad consequences for you, but they are unwilling to interfere.
- john of lancaster — Duke of Bedford, 1389–1435, Bedford, John of Lancaster, Duke of.
- judgment of paris — the decision by Paris to award Aphrodite the golden apple of discord competed for by Aphrodite, Athena, and Hera.
- lance of courtesy — a lance having a blunt head to prevent serious injury by a jouster to an opponent.
- language transfer — transfer (def 20).
- laplace transform — a map of a function, as a signal, defined especially for positive real values, as time greater than zero, into another domain where the function is represented as a sum of exponentials.
- last-in first-out — stack
- man's best friend — a dog, especially as a pet.
- mare fecunditatis — (Sea of Fertility) a dark plain in the fourth quadrant and extending into the first quadrant of the face of the moon: about 160,000 sq. mi. (415,000 sq. km).
- master of science — a master's degree given usually in a specific branch of the natural sciences, mathematics, or technology.
- metallofullerenes — Plural form of metallofullerene.
- methyltransferase — any of a class of enzymes that catalyze the transfer of methyl groups from one molecule to another.
- minister of state — (in the British Parliament) a minister, usually below cabinet rank, appointed to assist a senior minister with heavy responsibilities
- mode of transport — means of travel
- munitions factory — a factory where munitions are made
- negative transfer — the obstruction of or interference with new learning because of previous learning, as when a U.S. tourist in England learns to drive on the left side of the road.
- neurofibromatosis — a dominantly inherited genetic disorder characterized by flat brown patches on the skin, neurofibromas of the skin and internal organs, and in some cases skeletal deformity.
- not spare oneself — to exert oneself to the full
- odds-on favourite — a person, team, horse, etc that is regarded as the most likely to win a competition
- 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.
- orange free state — a province in central Republic of South Africa: a Boer republic 1854–1900; a British colony (Orange River Colony, ) 1900–10. 49,647 sq. mi. (128,586 sq. km). Capital: Bloemfontein.
- out of all reason — unreasonable
- pacific northwest — the region of North America lying north of the Columbia River and west of the Rockies