20-letter words containing y, t, r, o, i, a
- priority inheritance — (parallel) A technique for avoiding priority inversion by temporarily raising the prioriry of all processes that want to access a shared resource to the highest priority level of any of them. Priority inversion occurs where a low priority process, L is holding a resource required by a high priority process, H, but L is not running because a medium priority process, M is running. Under priority inheritance, L temporarily inherits H's priority, allowing L to run and release the resource H is waiting for. For example, an ambulance (H) is stuck behind a lorry (L) waiting at a junction (the shared resource) for a gap in a line of cars (M) using the junction. Applying priority inheritance, the cars give way to the lorry as they would to the ambulance, thus allowing the lorry and then the ambulance to use the junction.
- probability function — the function the values of which are probabilities of the distinct outcomes of a discrete random variable
- property speculation — the buying or selling of property in the hope of deriving capital gains
- proprietary medicine — a drug or agent manufactured and distributed under a trade name
- prosecuting attorney — the public officer in a county, district, or other jurisdiction charged with carrying on the prosecution in criminal proceedings.
- psychiatric hospital — institution treating mental disorders
- quantum field theory — any theory in which fields are treated by the methods of quantum mechanics; each field can then be regarded as consisting of particles of a particular kind, which may be created and annihilated.
- recreational therapy — therapy by means of recreational activities engaged in by the patient
- relative probability — a measure or estimate of the degree of confidence one may have in the occurrence of an event, defined as the limit of the proportion observed in a sample as the sample size tends to infinity
- respiratory quotient — the ratio of the amount of carbon dioxide released by the lungs to the amount of oxygen taken in during a given period.
- reversionary annuity — an annuity payable to a beneficiary during the period of time he or she survives the insured.
- rocky mountain basic — (language) The BASIC language used by Hewlett Packard on their 680x0-based computers. Rocky Mountain Basic is good for interfaces to IEEE 488 controls and contains many mathematical and matrix functions. It has about 600 commands. Typical applications include automatic test stations.
- rocky mountain sheep — bighorn.
- rotary-wing aircraft — an aircraft, esp a helicopter, that is lifted or propelled by rotating airfoils
- royal air force list — an official list of all serving commissioned officers of the RAF and reserve officers liable for recall
- royal british legion — an organization founded in 1921 to provide services and assistance for former members of the armed forces
- royal leamington spa — a city in Warwickshire, central England: health resort.
- saint anthony's fire — any of certain skin conditions that are of an inflammatory or gangrenous nature, as erysipelas, hospital gangrene, or ergotism.
- schizoid personality — sb with identity disorder
- security association — (networking) The relationship between two or more entities (typically, a computer, but could be a user on a computer, or software component) which describes how the entities will use security services, such as encryption, to communicate. See RFC 1825.
- shareholders' equity — Shareholders' equity is the total amount of ownership investment in a company.
- silicon tetrahydride — silane (def 1).
- small craft advisory — a U.S. National Weather Service advisory of sustained winds, over coastal and inland waters, with speeds of 20–33 knots (23–38 mph, 10–17 m/sec). Regional NWS offices have discretion over the choice of the lower limit.
- social security card — a card that contains details of a person's social security number
- solitary confinement — the confinement of a prisoner in a cell or other place in which he or she is completely isolated from others.
- south orkney islands — an uninhabited group of islands in the S Atlantic, southeast of Cape Horn: formerly a dependency of the Falkland Islands; part of the British Antarctic Territory since 1962 (claims are suspended under the Antarctic Treaty). Area: 621 sq km (240 sq miles)
- spanish oyster plant — a composite plant, Scolymus hispanicus, of southern Europe, having spiny, thistlelike leaf margins, small yellow flowers, and an edible root.
- spectroscopic binary — a binary star having components that are not sufficiently separated to be resolved by a telescope, known to be a binary only bythe variations in wavelength of emitted light that are detected by a spectroscope.
- squatter sovereignty — (used contemptuously by its opponents) popular sovereignty (def 2).
- state highway patrol — a state's road traffic police
- subscription library — a commercial lending library
- summary jurisdiction — the right a court has to adjudicate immediately upon some matter arising during its proceedings
- surveillance society — a society where surveillance technology is widely used to monitor people's everyday activities
- synchronized skating — the art or sport of teams of up to twenty skaters holding onto each other and moving in patterns in time to music
- synchronous rotation — rotation of a satellite in which the period of rotation is equal to the period of orbit around its primary, leaving the same face always pointing toward the primary: The moon is in synchronous rotation about the earth.
- system international — Système International d'Unités
- systemic circulation — the circulatory system in general.
- teletype corporation — (company) The company which made Teletype teletypewriters. Address: Skokie, Illinois, USA.
- tetrahydrocannabinol — a compound, C 21 H 30 O 2 , that is the physiologically active component in cannabis preparations (marijuana, hashish, etc.) derived from the Indian hemp plant or produced synthetically. Abbreviation: THC.
- tetrahydrogestrinone — a synthetic anabolic steroid. Formula: C21H28O2
- the whole nine yards — everything that is required; the whole thing
- theory of relativity — relativity (def 2).
- thermal conductivity — the amount of heat per unit time per unit area that can be conducted through a plate of unit thickness of a given material, the faces of the plate differing by one unit of temperature.
- thermodynamic system — a system whose states of equilibrium can be specified by a few macroscopic properties.
- third-party software — software created by programmers or publishers independent of the manufacturer of the hardware for which it is intended.
- three-dimensionality — having, or seeming to have, the dimension of depth as well as width and height.
- to get your bearings — to find out where one is or to find out what one should do next
- to keep your hand in — If you do something to keep your hand in, you practise a skill or hobby occasionally in order to remain fairly good at it.
- to make up your mind — If you make up your mind or make your mind up, you decide which of a number of possible things you will have or do.
- to spread your wings — If you spread your wings, you do something new and rather difficult or move to a new place, because you feel more confident in your abilities than you used to and you want to gain wider experience.