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17-letter words containing n, a, b, t

  • branch prediction — (processor, algorithm)   A technique used in some processors with instruction prefetch to guess whether a conditional branch will be taken or not and prefetch code from the appropriate location. When a branch instruction is executed, its address and that of the next instruction executed (the chosen destination of the branch) are stored in the Branch Target Buffer. This information is used to predict which way the instruction will branch the next time it is executed so that instruction prefetch can continue. When the prediction is correct (and it is over 90% of the time), executing a branch does not cause a pipeline break. Some later CPUs simply prefetch both paths instead of trying to predict which way the branch will go. An extension of the idea of branch prediction is speculative execution.
  • brazilian peridot — a light yellowish-green tourmaline used as a gem: not a true peridot.
  • brazilian rhatany — See under rhatany (def 1).
  • break one's heart — to grieve or cause to grieve very deeply, esp through love
  • breakdown voltage — the minimum applied voltage that would cause a given insulator or electrode to break down.
  • breathe life into — revive, rejuvenate
  • bricks and mortar — You can use bricks and mortar to refer to houses and other buildings, especially when they are considered as an investment.
  • brightening agent — a compound applied to a textile to increase its brightness by the conversion of ultraviolet radiation to visible (blue) light, used in detergents
  • brighton and hove — a city and unitary authority in S England, in East Sussex. Pop: 251 500 (2003 est). Area: 72 sq km (28 sq miles)
  • bring up the rear — to be at the back in a procession, race, etc
  • british cameroons — a former British trust territory of West Africa
  • british columbian — of or relating to British Columbia or its inhabitants
  • british-cameroons — German Kamerun. a region in W Africa: a German protectorate 1884–1919; divided in 1919 into British and French mandates.
  • brocot escapement — a type of anchor escapement.
  • brokerage account — A brokerage account is an account with a broker where an investor can buy and sell and hold securities.
  • brompton cocktail — an analgesic mixture, usually containing morphine and cocaine and sometimes other narcotic substances in an alcohol solution, administered primarily to advanced cancer patients.
  • bronze star medal — a U.S. military decoration awarded for heroic or meritorious achievement or service in combat not involving aerial flight
  • brownian movement — random movement of microscopic particles suspended in a fluid, caused by bombardment of the particles by molecules of the fluid. First observed in 1827, it provided strong evidence in support of the kinetic theory of molecules
  • budgetary control — a system of managing a business by applying a financial value to each forecast activity. Actual performance is subsequently compared with the estimates
  • buncher resonator — See under Klystron.
  • bureaucratization — to divide an administrative agency or office into bureaus.
  • bushman's singlet — a sleeveless heavy black woollen singlet, used as working clothing by timber fellers
  • butacaine sulfate — a colorless, crystalline substance, (C18H30N2O2)2·H2SO4, used as a local anesthetic, esp. on mucous membranes
  • butterfly bandage — a butterfly-shaped strip of adhesive medical tape used, when stitches are not required, to keep a deep cut or incision tightly closed while it heals
  • buyers' inflation — inflation in which rising demand results in a rise in prices.
  • by the same token — You use by the same token to introduce a statement that you think is true for the same reasons that were given for a previous statement.
  • cafeteria benefit — a fringe benefit chosen by an employee from a range of benefits offered under a cafeteria plan.
  • calcium carbonate — a white crystalline salt occurring in limestone, chalk, marble, calcite, coral, and pearl: used in the production of lime and cement. Formula: CaCO3
  • can't be bothered — If you say that you can't be bothered to do something, you mean that you are not going to do it because you think it is unnecessary or because you are too lazy.
  • canadian football — a game resembling American football, played on a grass pitch between two teams of 12 players
  • cannot choose but — to be obliged to
  • cantilever bridge — a bridge having spans that are constructed as cantilevers and often a suspended span or spans, each end of which rests on one end of a cantilever span
  • captain's biscuit — a type of hard fancy biscuit
  • carbon offsetting — a program in which a company, country, etc., reduces or offsets its carbon emissions through the funding of activities and projects that improve the environment: Carbon offsetting does not always have a quantifiable impact on the planet.
  • caribbean current — an ocean current flowing westward through the Caribbean Sea.
  • cariboo mountains — a mountain range in SW Canada, in SE British Columbia. Highest peak: Mount Sir Wilfrid Laurier, 3520 m (11 549 ft)
  • centrifugal brake — a safety mechanism on a hoist, crane, etc, that consists of revolving brake shoes that are driven outwards by centrifugal force into contact with a fixed brake drum when the rope drum revolves at excessive speed
  • cerebral accident — a disturbance of the blood supply to parts of the brain because of blockage or hemorrhage, causing unconsciousness, paralysis, etc.; stroke
  • cistern barometer — a mercury barometer in which the lower mercury surface has a greater area than the upper.
  • civil libertarian — a person who actively supports or works for the protection or expansion of civil liberties.
  • clear box testing — white box testing
  • climbing accident — an accident occurring during climbing
  • collaborativeness — Quality of being collaborative.
  • combinatory logic — (logic)   A system for reducing the operational notation of logic, mathematics or a functional language to a sequence of modifications to the input data structure. First introduced in the 1920's by Schoenfinkel. Re-introduced independently by Haskell Curry in the late 1920's (who quickly learned of Schoenfinkel's work after he had the idea). Curry is really responsible for most of the development, at least up until work with Feys in 1958. See combinator.
  • combine harvester — A combine harvester is a large machine which is used on farms to cut, sort, and clean grain.
  • common of turbary — (in England) the legal right to cut peat for fuel on a common
  • compilation album — a musical recording consisting of works chosen for a particular purpose or theme
  • confirmation-bias — the tendency to process and analyze information in such a way that it supports one’s preexisting ideas and convictions: Confirmation bias is a major issue when we get all our news from social media sites. Unfortunately, their experimental method was proven invalid due to confirmation bias.
  • consubstantiation — the doctrine that after the consecration of the Eucharist the substance of the body and blood of Christ coexists within the substance of the consecrated bread and wine
  • contingency table — an array having the frequency of occurrence of certain events in each of a number of samples
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