19-letter words containing ac
- paschen-back effect — a splitting of spectral lines observed when the source of a radiation is subjected to a strong magnetic field, caused when the vectors associated with the spin and orbital angular momentum exhibit individual rather than common precession.
- peroxysulfuric acid — persulfuric acid (def 1).
- phacoemulsification — the removal of a cataract by first liquefying the affected lens with ultrasonic vibrations and then extracting it by suction.
- piece of the action — the process or state of acting or of being active: The machine is not in action now.
- piggyback investing — Piggyback investing is a situation in which a broker repeats a trade on his own behalf immediately after trading for an investor, because he thinks the investor may have inside information.
- pilgrimage of grace — a rebellion in 1536 in N England against the Reformation and Henry VIII's government
- pistachio ice cream — ice cream flavoured with pistachios
- polycarboxylic acid — a type of carboxylic acid containing two or more carboxyl groups
- polyphosphoric acid — any one of a series of oxyacids of phosphorus with the general formula Hn+2PnO3n+1. The first member is pyrophosphoric acid (n = 2) and the series includes the highly polymeric metaphosphoric acid. The higher acids exist in an equilibrium mixture
- port jackson willow — an Australian acacia tree, Acacia cyanophylla, introduced in the 19th century into South Africa, where it is now regarded as a pest
- postage and packing — the cost of packing and mailing an item bought by post
- preach to the choir — to express an opinion to someone who is already in agreement with it
- presumption of fact — a presumption based on experience or knowledge of the relationship between a known fact and a fact inferred from it.
- pretty good privacy — (tool, cryptography) (PGP) A high security RSA public-key encryption application for MS-DOS, Unix, VAX/VMS, and other computers. It was written by Philip R. Zimmermann <[email protected]> of Phil's Pretty Good(tm) Software and later augmented by a cast of thousands, especially including Hal Finney, Branko Lankester, and Peter Gutmann. PGP was distributed as "guerrilla freeware". The authors don't mind if it is distributed widely, just don't ask Philip Zimmermann to send you a copy. PGP uses a public-key encryption algorithm claimed by US patent #4,405,829. The exclusive rights to this patent are held by a California company called Public Key Partners, and you may be infringing this patent if you use PGP in the USA. This is explained in the PGP User's Guide, Volume II. PGP allows people to exchange files or messages with privacy and authentication. Privacy and authentication are provided without managing the keys associated with conventional cryptographic software. No secure channels are needed to exchange keys between users, which makes PGP much easier to use. This is because PGP is based on public-key cryptography. PGP encrypts data using the International Data Encryption Algorithm with a random session key, and uses the RSA algorithm to encrypt the session key. In December 1994 Philip Zimmermann faced prosecution for "exporting" PGP out of the United States but in January 1996 the US Goverment dropped the case. A US law prohibits the export of encryption software out of the country. Zimmermann did not do this, but the US government hoped to establish the proposition that posting an encryption program on a BBS or on the Internet constitutes exporting it - in effect, stretching export control into domestic censorship. If the government had won it would have had a chilling effect on the free flow of information on the global network, as well as on everyone's privacy from government snooping.
- put one's back into — to devote all one's strength to (a task)
- put sth into action — If you put an idea or policy into action, you begin to use it or cause it to operate.
- pyrophosphoric acid — a crystalline, water-soluble powder, H 4 P 2 O 7 , formed by the union of one molecule of phosphorus pentoxide with two molecules of water.
- radioactive fallout — the settling to the ground of airborne particles ejected into the atmosphere from the earth by explosions, eruptions, forest fires, etc., especially such settling from nuclear explosions (radioactive fallout) Compare rainout.
- radiopharmaceutical — any of a number of radioactive drugs used diagnostically or therapeutically.
- raise one's hackles — one of the long, slender feathers on the neck or saddle of certain birds, as the domestic rooster, much used in making artificial flies for anglers.
- reactive depression — depression occurring in response to some situational stress, as loss of one's job.
- reactor temperature — The reactor temperature is the temperature at various stages in a reactor in an FCC unit.
- republique malgache — French name of Malagasy Republic.
- reticulated tracery — tracery consisting in large part of a netlike arrangement of repeated geometrical figures.
- reversible reaction — a reaction that, depending on ambient conditions, can proceed in either of two directions: the production of the reaction products from the reactants, or the production of the original reactants from the formed reaction products. Compare equilibrium (def 4).
- rhodesian ridgeback — a large short-haired breed of dog characterized by a ridge of hair growing along the back in the opposite direction to the rest of the coat. It was originally a hunting dog from South Africa
- saccharofarinaceous — pertaining to or consisting of sugar and meal.
- saccharolactic acid — mucic acid.
- sackcloth and ashes — a public display of extreme grief, remorse, or repentance
- sacramento sturgeon — white sturgeon.
- sacrifice operative — a euphemistic term for a suicide bomber
- sale and lease back — leaseback.
- scratch the surface — examine superficially
- screen actors guild — a labor union for motion-picture performers, founded in 1933. Abbreviation: SAG.
- seleucia tracheotis — an ancient city in SE Asia Minor, on the River Calycadnus (modern Goksu Nehri): captured by the Turks in the 13th century; site of present-day Silifke (Turkey)
- semidetached binary — a pair of stars that are so close together that mass transfer occurs from one to the other
- shopping facilities — shops or other retail services
- single edge contact — (hardware) (SEC) The type of cartridge in which a Pentium II is packaged.
- smokestack industry — A smokestack industry is a traditional industry such as heavy engineering or manufacturing, rather than a modern industry such as electronics.
- social security act — a law passed in 1935 providing old-age retirement insurance, a federal-state program of unemployment compensation, and federal grants for state welfare programs.
- south pacific ocean — the part of the Pacific Ocean extending S from the Equator to the Antarctic continent.
- specific characters — the persistent features that distinguish one species from all others
- steamroller tactics — repressive tactics
- subtractive process — a process of color photography in which the colors are formed by combination of cyan, yellow, and magenta lights.
- surface effect ship — a large, ship-size air cushion vehicle operated over water.
- sweetheart contract — a contract made through collusion between management and labor representatives containing terms beneficial to management and detrimental to union workers.
- sympathetic contact — behavior toward an individual based on the individual's personal makeup rather than on his or her group membership.
- synchronous machine — an alternating-current machine in which the average speed of normal operation is exactly proportional to the frequency of the system to which it is connected.
- take evasive action — If you take evasive action, you deliberately move away from someone or something in order to avoid meeting them or being hit by them.
- teacher-pupil ratio — the number of teachers relative to the number of pupils in a particular school