0%

15-letter words containing s, t, r, o, p

  • blasting powder — a form of gunpowder made with sodium nitrate instead of saltpeter, used chiefly for blasting rock, ore, etc.
  • boustrophedonic — of or relating to lines written in opposite directions
  • brocken specter — an optical phenomenon sometimes occurring at high altitudes when the image of an observer placed between the sun and a cloud is projected on the cloud as a greatly magnified shadow.
  • brussels sprout — Brussels sprouts are vegetables that look like tiny cabbages.
  • car transporter — a vehicle for carrying automobiles
  • cardinal points — the four main points of the compass: north, south, east, and west
  • carpometacarpus — a bone in the wing of a bird that consists of the metacarpal bones and some of the carpal bones fused together
  • cast aspersions — If you cast aspersions on someone or something, you suggest that they are not very good in some way.
  • cast-iron plant — any of several plants belonging to the genus Aspidistra, of the lily family, native to eastern Asia, especially A. eliator, having large evergreen leaves often striped with white, and grown as a houseplant.
  • castanospermine — a substance obtained from the Australian chestnut or black bean tree
  • casters-up mode — [IBM, probably from slang belly up] Yet another synonym for "broken" or "down". Usually connotes a major failure. A system (hardware or software) which is "down" may be already being restarted before the failure is noticed, whereas one which is "casters up" is usually a good excuse to take the rest of the day off (as long as you're not responsible for fixing it).
  • castner process — a process for extracting sodium from sodium hydroxide, devised by Hamilton Young Castner (1858–98)
  • catastrophising — Present participle of catastrophise.
  • catastrophizing — Present participle of catastrophize.
  • cell disruption — Cell disruption is when a biological material becomes smaller to release proteins and enzymes.
  • cephalothoraxes — Plural form of cephalothorax.
  • charleston peak — a mountain in SE Nevada: highest peak in the Spring Mountains. 11,919 feet (3635 meters).
  • chemoautotrophs — Plural form of chemoautotroph.
  • chemopsychiatry — the study and application of chemical substances in psychiatry
  • chest protector — a protective pad worn over the chest by a catcher or umpire to shield the body from foul tips.
  • chief inspector — an officer of high rank in British police forces
  • circumscription — the act of circumscribing or the state of being circumscribed
  • claustrophobics — Plural form of claustrophobic.
  • cleptoparasites — Plural form of cleptoparasite.
  • committeeperson — a member of a committee.
  • communist party — (in non-Communist countries) a political party advocating Communism
  • comparativeness — of or relating to comparison.
  • comparison test — a comparison of particular qualities or traits in two or more things in order to get a measurable assessment
  • complementaries — forming a complement; completing.
  • complementizers — Plural form of complementizer.
  • complimentaries — of the nature of, conveying, or expressing a compliment, often one that is politely flattering: a complimentary remark.
  • composite print — a photograph characterized by overlapping or juxtaposed images resulting from a multiple exposure or the combining of negatives (composite print)
  • compressibility — the ability to be compressed
  • comptrollership — controller (def 1).
  • computer ethics — (philosophy)   Ethics is the field of study that is concerned with questions of value, that is, judgments about what human behaviour is "good" or "bad". Ethical judgments are no different in the area of computing from those in any other area. Computers raise problems of privacy, ownership, theft, and power, to name but a few. Computer ethics can be grounded in one of four basic world-views: Idealism, Realism, Pragmatism, or Existentialism. Idealists believe that reality is basically ideas and that ethics therefore involves conforming to ideals. Realists believe that reality is basically nature and that ethics therefore involves acting according to what is natural. Pragmatists believe that reality is not fixed but is in process and that ethics therefore is practical (that is, concerned with what will produce socially-desired results). Existentialists believe reality is self-defined and that ethics therefore is individual (that is, concerned only with one's own conscience). Idealism and Realism can be considered ABSOLUTIST worldviews because they are based on something fixed (that is, ideas or nature, respectively). Pragmatism and Existentialism can be considered RELATIVIST worldviews because they are based or something relational (that is, society or the individual, respectively). Thus ethical judgments will vary, depending on the judge's world-view. Some examples: First consider theft. Suppose a university's computer is used for sending an e-mail message to a friend or for conducting a full-blown private business (billing, payroll, inventory, etc.). The absolutist would say that both activities are unethical (while recognising a difference in the amount of wrong being done). A relativist might say that the latter activities were wrong because they tied up too much memory and slowed down the machine, but the e-mail message wasn't wrong because it had no significant effect on operations. Next consider privacy. An instructor uses her account to acquire the cumulative grade point average of a student who is in a class which she instructs. She obtained the password for this restricted information from someone in the Records Office who erroneously thought that she was the student's advisor. The absolutist would probably say that the instructor acted wrongly, since the only person who is entitled to this information is the student and his or her advisor. The relativist would probably ask why the instructor wanted the information. If she replied that she wanted it to be sure that her grading of the student was consistent with the student's overall academic performance record, the relativist might agree that such use was acceptable. Finally, consider power. At a particular university, if a professor wants a computer account, all she or he need do is request one but a student must obtain faculty sponsorship in order to receive an account. An absolutist (because of a proclivity for hierarchical thinking) might not have a problem with this divergence in procedure. A relativist, on the other hand, might question what makes the two situations essentially different (e.g. are faculty assumed to have more need for computers than students? Are students more likely to cause problems than faculty? Is this a hold-over from the days of "in loco parentis"?).
  • computer screen — the working area on the monitor of a computer
  • computer system — a computer or a set of computers that works together
  • computer vision — a robot analogue of human vision in which information about the environment is received by one or more video cameras and processed by computer: used in navigation by robots, in the control of automated production lines, etc.
  • computerisation — (chiefly, British) alternative spelling of computerization.
  • concert pianist — a person who earns a living from giving solo performances on the piano in front of audiences
  • concurrent lisp — (language)   A concurrent version of Lisp. Sugimoto et al implemented an interpreter on a "large scale computer" and were planning to implement it on multiple microprocessors.
  • conscriptionist — a person who is in favour of conscription
  • conservatorship — the legal status of a person appointed by a court to protect the interests of someone, such as a child, who is unable to manage his or her own affairs
  • contact process — a catalytic method for producing sulfuric acid from sulfur dioxide and oxygen.
  • contemporaneous — If two events or situations are contemporaneous, they happen or exist during the same period of time.
  • contrapositives — (logic) Plural form of contrapositive.
  • cooperativeness — working or acting together willingly for a common purpose or benefit.
  • copper arsenite — a yellowish-green, water-insoluble, poisonous powder, CuHAsO 3 , used chiefly as a pigment and as an insecticide.
  • copper sulphate — a copper salt found naturally as chalcanthite and made by the action of sulphuric acid on copper oxide. It usually exists as blue crystals of the pentahydrate that form a white anhydrous powder when heated: used as a mordant, in electroplating, and in plant sprays. Formula: CuSO4
  • corpora striata — corpus striatum
Was this page helpful?
Yes No
Thank you for your feedback! Tell your friends about this page
Tell us why?