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 Talk Talk - Communication terms
Category: General technical and industrial
Date & country: 28/05/2010, UK
Words: 18630


Moab
Ancient country in Jordan, east of the southern part of the River Jordan and the Dead Sea. The inhabitants were closely akin to the Hebrews in culture, language, and religion, but were often at war with them, as recorded in the Old Testament. Moab eventually fell to Arab invaders. The Moabite Stone, discovered in 1868 at Dhiban, dates from the 9th ...

montbretia
Plant belonging to the iris family, native to South Africa, with orange or reddish flowers on long stems. They are grown as ornamental pot plants. (Tritonia crocosmiflora, family Iridaceae.)

morel
Any of a group of edible mushrooms. The common morel (M. esculenta) grows in Europe and North America. The yellowish-brown cap is pitted with holes like a sponge and is about 2.5 cm/1 in long. It is used for seasoning gravies, soups, and sauces and is second only to the truffle as the world's most sought-after mus...

morning glory
Any of a group of twining or creeping plants native to tropical America, especially I. purpurea, with dazzling blue flowers. Small quantities of substances similar to the hallucinogenic drug LSD are found in the seeds of some species. (Genus Ipomoea, family Convo...

mould
Furlike growth caused by any of a group of fungi (see fungus) living on foodstuffs and other organic matter; a few are parasitic on plants, animals, or each other. Many moulds are of medical or industrial importance; for example, the antibiotic penicillin comes from a type of mould

mountain ash
European flowering tree. It grows to 15 m/50 ft and has pinnate leaves (leaflets growing either side of the stem) and large clusters of whitish flowers, followed by scarlet berries in autumn. (Sorbus aucuparia, family Rosaceae.) In Australia, the tallest growing hardwood specie...

molybdenite
Molybdenum sulphide, MoS2, the chief ore mineral of molybdenum. It possesses a hexagonal crystal structure similar to graphite, has a blue metallic lustre, and is very soft (1–1.5 on the Mohs scale)

monazite
Mineral, (Ce,La,Th)PO4, yellow to red, valued as a source of lanthanides or rare earths, including cerium and europium; generally found in placer deposit (alluvial) sands

Montgolfier
French brothers whose hot-air balloon was used for the first successful human flight 21 November 1783. On 5 June 1783 they first sent up a balloon filled with hot air. After further experiments with wood-fuelled fabric-and-paper balloons, and one crewed ascent in a tethered balloon, they sent up two people who travelled for 20 minut...

Morse, Samuel Finley Breese
US inventor. In 1835 he produced an electric telegraph (see telegraphy), and in 1843 was granted $30,000 by Congress for an experimental line between Washington, DC, and Baltimore. With his assistant Alexander Bain (1810–1877) he invented the Morse code

moderator
In a nuclear reactor, a material such as graphite or heavy water used to reduce the speed of high-energy neutrons. Neutrons produced by nuclear fission are fast-moving and must be slowed to initiate further fission so that nuclear energy continues to be released at a controlled rate. Slow neutrons are much more likely to cause fission in a ...

moment of a force
In physics, measure of the turning effect, or torque, produced by a force acting on a body. It is equal to the product of the force and the perpendicular distance from its line of action to the point, or pivot, about which the body will turn. The turning force around the pivot is called the moment. Its unit is the newton metre. The moment of a forc...

moment of inertia
In physics, the sum of all the point masses of a rotating object multiplied by the squares of their respective distances from the axis of rotation. In linear dynamics, Newton's second law of motion states that the force F on a moving object equals the products of its mass m and acceleration a
mole
(chemistry) Unit of the amount of a substance. One mole of a substance is the mass that contains the same number of particles (atoms, molecules, ions, or electrons) as there are atoms in 12 grams of the isotope carbon-12. One mole of a substance is 6.022045 × 1023
motorboat
Small, waterborne craft for pleasure cruising or racing, powered by a petrol, diesel, or gas-turbine engine. A boat not equipped as a motorboat may be converted by a detachable outboard motor. For increased speed, such as in racing, motorboat hulls are designed to skim the water (aquaplane) and reduce frictional resistance. Plastics, steel, and...

motor
Anything that produces or imparts motion; a machine that provides mechanical power – for example, an electric motor

Mona
Latin name for Anglesey, an island off the northeast coast of Wales

Monroe, Marilyn
US film actor. The voluptuous blonde sex symbol of the 1950s, she made adroit comedies such as Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), How to Marry a Millionaire (1953), The Seven Year Itch (1955), Bus Stop (1956), and Some...

monsoon
Wind pattern that brings seasonally heavy rain to South Asia; it blows towards the sea in winter and towards the land in summer. The monsoon may cause destructive flooding all over India and Southeast Asia from April to September, leaving thousands of people homeless each year. The monsoon cycle is believed to have started about 12 million year...

Mont Blanc
Click images to enlargeThe highest mountain in the Alps, on the border between France and Italy, and one of the highest points in Europe at 4,807 m/15,772 ft. Lying 10 km/6 mi south of Chamonix, it forms part of the Mont Blanc range. The peak was first climbed in 1786 by Jacques Balmat and Michel Paccard of Chamon...

monody
In music, declamation by an accompanied solo voice, used at the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries

motet
Sacred, polyphonic music for unaccompanied voices in a form that originated in 13th-century Europe

movement
In music, a self-contained composition of specific character, usually a constituent piece of a suite, symphony, or similar work, with its own tempo, distinct from that of the other movements

Moorcock, Michael John
English writer. Associated with the 1960s new wave in science fiction, he was editor of the magazine New Worlds (1964–69). He wrote the Jerry Cornelius novels, collected as The Cornelius Chronicles (1977), and Gloriana (1978). Among later novels are The Revenge of the Rose
mole
(government) Person working subversively within an organization. The term has come to be used broadly for someone who gives out (`leaks`) secret information in the public interest; it originally meant a person who spends several years working for a government department or a comp...

modulation
(music) In music, movement from one key to another. In classical dance music, modulation is a guide to phrasing rhythm to the step pattern. Electronic modulation of live or prerecorded instrumental sound is also used to create unusual timbres, as in Stockhausen's Mixtur ...

Monaco
Click images to enlargeSmall sovereign state forming an enclave in southern France, with the Mediterranean Sea to the south. Government Under the 1911 constitution, modified in 1917 and largely rewritten in 1962, Monaco is a hereditary principality, but an earlier concept of endowing the prince with a divine right to rule...

Mongolia
Country in east-Central Asia, bounded north by Russia and south by China. Government Mongolia is a multiparty democracy with a dual executive of president and prime minister. Under its 1992 constitution it has a 76-member parliament, the People's Great Hural (assembly), elected by a simpl...

Morocco
Click images to enlargeCountry in northwest Africa, bounded to the north and northwest by the Mediterranean Sea, to the east and southeast by Algeria, and to the south by Western Sahara. Government Under the 1992 constitution, Morocco is an Islamic state headed by an hereditary monarch. There is a 333-member chamber o...

Mozambique
Country in southeast Africa, bounded north by Zambia, Malawi, and Tanzania; east and south by the Indian Ocean; southwest by South Africa and Swaziland; and west by Zimbabwe. Government Mozambique is a multiparty democracy. The 1990 constitution provides for a president, elected by univer...

monkey puzzle
Coniferous evergreen tree, native to Chile; its branches, growing in circular arrangements (whorls) around the trunk and larger branches, are covered in prickly, leathery leaves. (Araucaria araucana, family Araucariaceae.) In May 2000 wild monkey puzzle trees in Argentina were ...

Moluccas
Another name for Maluku, a group of Indonesian islands

Mordoviya
Alternative name for Mordvinia, an autonomous republic of the Russian Federation

Moray
(regent) Another spelling of Murray, regent of Scotland 1567–70

Monroe Doctrine
Declaration by US president James Monroe in 1823 that the USA would not tolerate any European nation trying to establish a colony in the Americas, and that any attempt to do so would be regarded as a threat to US peace and security. At the time, several European countries were proposing to intervene in former Spanish and Portuguese colonies in Lati...

Molotov, Vyacheslav Mikhailovich
Soviet communist politician. He was chair of the Council of People's Commissars (prime minister) 1930–41 and foreign minister 1939–49 and 1953–56. He negotiated the 1939 non-aggression treaty with Germany (the Ribbentrop–Molotov pact), and, after the German invasion in 194...

Model Parliament
English parliament set up in 1295 by Edward I; it was the first to include representatives from outside the clergy and aristocracy, and was established because Edward needed the support of the whole country against his opponents: Wales, France, and Scotland. His sole aim was to raise money for military purposes, and the parliament did not p...

More,
(St) English politician and author. From 1509 he was favoured by Henry VIII and employed on foreign embassies. He was a member of the privy council from 1518 and Lord Chancellor from 1529 but resigned over Henry's break with the pope. For refusing to accept the king as head of the church, ...

MOD
Abbreviation for Ministry of Defence

money market
The market for short-term loans of various kinds. Long-term transactions are dealt with on the capital market. There is no physical marketplace, and most deals are made by telephone or electronic means

Monopolies and Mergers Commission
Former UK body responsible for investigating noncompetitive practices. It was replaced by the Competition Commission in 1999. It was re-established in 1973 under the Fair Trading Act and, from 1980, embraced the Competition Act. Its role was to investigate and report when there was a risk of creating a monopoly by a company merger or takeover, ...

motorcycle racing
Speed contests on motorcycles. It has many different forms: road racing over open roads; circuit racing over purpose-built tracks; speedway over oval-shaped dirt tracks; motocross over natural terrain, incorporating hill climbs; and trials, also over natural terrain, but with the addition of artificial hazards. For finel...

motor racing
Competitive racing of motor vehicles. It has forms as diverse as hill-climbing, stock-car racing, rallying, sports-car racing, and Formula 1 Grand Prix racing. The first organized race was from Paris to Rouen, France, in 1894. Outside of Formula 1, other events include the Le Mans Grand Prix d'Endurance, first held in 1923, and the ...

Moroccan Crises
Two periods of international tension in 1905 and 1911 following German objections to French expansion in Morocco. Their wider purpose was to break up the Anglo-French entente of 1904, but both crises served to reinforce the entente and isolate Germany. The first was resolved at the Algeciras Conference. The second brought Europe to the brink of...

Mongol Empire
Empire established by Genghis Khan, a loosely constructed federation of tribal groups extending from Russia to northern China; see Mongol., History:. Genghis became khan of the Mongol tribes in 1206. Divided by his sons at his death in 1227, Ogotai overcame the Jin and Sun dynasties of China ...

monoclonal antibody
Click images to enlargeAntibody produced by fusing an antibody-producing lymphocyte (white blood cell) with a cancerous myeloma (bone-marrow) cell. The resulting fused cell, called a hybridoma, is immortal and can be used to produce large quantities of a single, specific antibody. By choosing antibodies that are d...

molecular mass
Mass of a molecule, calculated relative to one-twelfth the mass of an atom of carbon-12. It is found by adding the relative atomic masses of the atoms that make up the molecule

motoring law
Legislation affecting the use of vehicles on public roads. It covers the licensing of vehicles and drivers, and the criminal offences that can be committed by the owners and drivers of vehicles. In Britain, all vehicles are subject to road tax and (when over a certain age) to an annual safety check (MOT test). Anyone driving on a public road must h...

Morgan, J(ohn) P(ierpont)
US financier and investment banker whose company (sometimes criticized as `the money trust`) became the most influential private banking house after the Civil War, being instrumental in the formation of many trusts which stifled competition. He set up the US Steel Corporation in 1901 and International Harvester in 1902

monk
Man belonging to a religious order under the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, and living under a particular rule; see monasticism

moksha
In Hinduism, liberation from the cycle of reincarnation and from the illusion of maya; in Buddhism, liberation from samsara, the cycle of rebirth

Morrison, Toni
US novelist. Her fiction records African-American life in the South. Beloved, based on a true story of infanticide in Kentucky, won the 1988 Pulitzer Prize and was filmed in 1998. Her other novels include Song of Solomon (1978), Tar Baby (1981), Jazz (1992), Pa...

mountain
Click images to enlargeNatural upward projection of the Earth's surface, higher and steeper than a hill. Mountains are at least 330 m/1,000 ft above the surrounding topography. The existing rock below a high mountain may be subjected to high temperatures and pressures, causing metamorphism. Plutonic activity also ...

motor car
Another term for car

Moche
Pre-Inca civilization on the coast of Peru AD 100–800. Remains include cities, massive platform tombs (adobe), and pottery that details daily and ceremonial life. In 1988 the burial of one of their warrior-priest rulers was discovered. He was nicknamed the `Great Lord of Sipán` after the village near t...

Mongol
Member of any of the various Mongol (or Mongolian) ethnic groups of central Asia. Mongols live in Mongolia, Russia, Inner Mongolia (China), Tibet, and Nepal. The Mongol language belongs to the Altaic family, although some groups of Mongol descent speak languages in the Sino-Tibetan family. The Mongols are primarily pastoral nomads, herding shee...

Morgan le Fay
In the romance and legend of the English king Arthur, an enchantress and healer, ruler of Avalon and sister of the king, whom she tended after his final battle. In Le Morte d'Arthur (completed in 1470) she revealed the intrigue between Guinevere and Lancelot to her brother

Morrigan
In Celtic mythology, a goddess of war and death who could take the shape of a crow

morphogen
In medicine, one of a class of substances believed to be present in the growing embryo, controlling its growth pattern. It is thought that variations in the concentration of morphogens in different parts of the embryo cause them to grow at different rates

monosaccharide
Carbohydrate that cannot be hydrolysed (split) into smaller carbohydrate units. A monosaccharide with six carbon atoms, such as glucose or fructose, both of which have the molecular formula C6H12O6, is also called a hexose. Those with five and seven carbons are pentoses and heptos...

monohybrid inheritance
Pattern of inheritance seen in simple genetics experiments, where the two animals (or two plants) being crossed are genetically identical except for one gene, which is heterozygous. In other words, inheritance is the passing of characteristics from parents to offspring, while monohybrid inheritance i...

montage
In cinema, the juxtaposition of several images or shots to produce an independent meaning. The term is also used more generally to describe the whole process of editing or a rapidly edited series of shots. It was coined by the Russian director Sergei Eisenstein

Montand, Yves
Italian-born French actor and singer. Popular in France from the 1950s, he also appeared in such US films as Let's Make Love in 1960 (with Marilyn Monroe). Later films include Z (1968), L'Aveu/The Confession (1970), Le Sauvage/The Savage (1976), ...

Moreau, Jeanne
French actor. She appeared in French New Wave films, often in passionate, intelligent roles. Her work includes Les Amants/The Lovers (1958), François Truffaut's Jules et Jim/Jules and Jim (1961), Campanadas a Medianoche/Chimes at Midnight (1966), and Querelle<...

Morley, Robert
English actor and dramatist. He was active in both the UK and the USA. His film work consisted mainly of character roles, in such movies as Marie Antoinette (1938), The African Queen (1952), and Oscar Wilde (1960). His best known play was Edward, My Son (1947). He attended ...

molar volume
Volume occupied by one mole (the molecular mass in grams) of any gas at standard temperature and pressure, equal to 2.24136 × 10-2 m3

motor neuron disease
Chronic disease in which there is progressive degeneration of the nerve cells which instigate movement. It leads to weakness, wasting, and loss of muscle function and usually proves fatal within two to three years of onset. Motor neuron disease occurs in both familial and sporadic forms but its causes remain unclear. A gene believed to be implicate...

Moses, Ed(win) Corley
US track athlete and 400-metre hurdler. Between 1977 and 1987 he ran 122 races without defeat. Career highlights Olympic Games gold 400-metre hurdles 1976, 1984 World Championships gold 400-metre hurdles 1983, 1987 He first broke the world record in 1976, and set a time of 47.02 seconds in 1983. He was twice Olympic champion and twice w...

motorway
Main road for fast motor traffic, with two or more lanes in each direction, and with special access points (junctions) fed by slip roads. The first motorway (85 km/53 mi) ran from Milan to Varese, Italy, and was completed in 1924; by 1939 some 500 km/300 mi of motorway (autostrada) had been built, although these did n...

molarity
Concentration of a solution expressed as the number of moles of solute per cubic decimetre of solution

Moirai
In Greek mythology, the title of the three Fates; the name refers to the `portions` of life they allotted to each human being, a destiny represented by a thread, although they sometimes appeared as goddesses of inevitability. Lachesis assigned the length of a life from her distaff, Clotho spun its existence, and Atropos broke the thre...

Mordred
In Arthurian legend, nephew and final opponent of King Arthur. What may be an early version of his name (Medraut) appears with Arthur in annals from the 10th century, listed under the year AD 537

Moldavia
Former principality in southeastern Europe, situated on the River Danube, and occupying an area divided today between the states of Moldova and Romania. Moldavia was independent between the 14th and 16th centuries, when it became part of the Ottoman Empire. In 1861, it was united with its neighbouring principality Wallachia to form the kingdom of R...

Mosquito Coast
Caribbean coast of Honduras and Nicaragua, characterized by swamp, lagoons, and tropical rainforest. The territory is inhabited by Miskito Indians, Garifunas, and Zambos, many of whom speak English. Between 1823 and 1860 Britain maintained a protectorate over the Mosquito Coast which was ruled by a succession of `Mosquito Kings`. The area...

Mounties
Popular name for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police

Moundbuilder
Member of any of the various American Indian peoples of the Midwest and the South who built earth mounds, from about 1000 BC to AD 1560. They include the Adena, Hopewell, Mississippian, and Natchez. Moundbuilder culture began in northeast Louisiana and spread inland along the Mississippi–Missouri–Ohio river system. Some mounds were linear...

modulus
In mathematics, a number that divides exactly into the difference between two given numbers. Also, the multiplication factor used to convert a logarithm of one base to a logarithm of another base. Also, another name for absolute value

mode
(mathematics) In mathematics, the element that appears most frequently in a given set of data. For example, the mode for the data 0, 0, 9, 9, 9, 12, 87, 87 is 9. The mode together with the median and arithmetic mean make up the average of a set of data. In addition it is useful to know the ran...

mountain biking
Recreational sport that enjoyed increasing popularity in the 1990s. Mountain bikes were developed from the rugged `clunkers` ridden by a small group of off-road riders on the steep, rocky hillsides of Marin County, California, in the mid-70s. The fashion spread and the first mass-produced model appeared in the USA in 1981, and...

Mother's Day
Day set apart in the USA, UK, and many European countries for honouring mothers. It is thought to have originated in Grafton, West Virginia, USA, in 1908 when Anna Jarvis observed the anniversary of her mother's death

Montana
State in northwestern USA, the most northerly Rocky Mountain state and the fourth largest state in the USA, bordered to the north by the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan; to the east by North Dakota and South Dakota; to the south by Wyoming; and to the sou...

mobile ion
In chemistry, an ion that is free to move; such ions are only found in the aqueous solutions or melts (molten masses) of an electrolyte. The mobility of the ions in an electrolyte is what allows it to conduct electricity

molecular formula
In chemistry, formula indicating the actual number of atoms of each element present in a single molecule of a chemical compound. For example, the molecular formula of carbon dioxide is CO2, indicating that one molecule of carbon dioxide is made up of one atom of carbon and two atoms of oxygen. This is determined by two pieces...

molecular solid
In chemistry, solid composed of molecules that are held together by relatively weak intermolecular forces. Such solids are low-melting and tend to dissolve in organic solvents. Examples of molecular solids are sulphur, ice, sucrose, and solid carbon dioxide

monomer
Chemical compound composed of simple molecules from which polymers can be made. Under certain conditions the simple molecules (of the monomer) join together (polymerize) to form a very long chain molecule (macromolecule) called a polymer. For example, the polymerization of ethene (ethylene) monomers ...

momentum
Product of the mass of a body and its velocity. If the mass of a body is m kilograms and its velocity is v m s-1, then its momentum is given by: momentum = mv. Its unit is the kilogram metre-per-second (kg m s-1) or the new...

Mount Wilson
Site near Los Angeles, California, of the 2.5-m/100-in Hooker telescope, opened in 1917, with which US astronomer Edwin Hubble discovered the expansion of the universe. Two solar telescopes in towers 18.3 m/60 ft and 45.7 m/150 ft tall, and a 1.5-m/60-in reflector opened in 1908, also operate there

moquette
Textile woven in the same manner as velvet (with cut or uncut pile) from coarse wool and linen yarns, usually for upholstery or carpeting. By introducing rods during weaving, the thread is raised in loops. Moquette was made from the Middle Ages onwards in many parts of Europe, notably the Low Countries. The term is now used to include Brussels and ...

Morrison, Van
Northern Irish singer, songwriter, and saxophonist. His jazz-inflected Celtic soul style was already in evidence on Astral Weeks (1968) and has been highly influential. Among other albums are Tupelo Honey (1971), Veedon Fleece (1974), and Avalon Sunset (1989). He contin...

Montenegrin
Slavic inhabitants of Montenegro, whose culture has much in common with the Serbs

Mordvin
Member of a Finnish people inhabiting the middle Volga Valley in western Asia. They are agriculturalists, known to have lived in the region since the 1st century AD. Although nominally Christian, their faith also includes non-Christian divinities. There are 1 million speakers of Mordvin scattered throughout western Russia, about one-third o...

Montréal Protocol
International agreement, signed in 1987, to stop the production of chemicals that are ozone depleters by the year 2000. Originally the agreement was to reduce the production of ozone depleters by 35% by 1999. The green movement criticized the agreement as inadequate, arguing that an 85% reduction in ozone depleters would be necessary just t...

mortar
Method of projecting a bomb via a high trajectory at a target up to 6–7 km/3–4 mi away. A mortar bomb is stabilized in flight by means of tail fins. The high trajectory results in a high angle of attack and makes mortars more suitable than artillery for use in built-up areas or mountains; mortars are not as accurate, however. ...

Moldavian
Member of the majority ethnic group living in Moldova, comprising almost two-thirds of the population; also, inhabitant of the Romanian province of Moldavia. The Moldavian language is a dialect of Romanian, and belongs to the Romance group of the Indo-European family. They are mostly Orthodox Christians. They are probably descended from...

modern dance
20th-century dance idiom that evolved in opposition to traditional ballet by those seeking a freer and more immediate means of dance expression. Leading exponents include Martha Graham and Merce Cunningham in the USA, Isadora Duncan and Mary Wigman in Europe. Modern dance was pioneered by US women seeking individual freedom but it is from Ruth ...

Morricone, Ennio
Italian composer of film music. His atmospheric scores for `spaghetti westerns`, notably the Sergio Leone movies Per un pugno di dollari/A Fistful of Dollars (1964) and Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo/The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1966), were widely imitated. His highly ritualized, incantat...

mole rat, naked
Small underground mammal, almost hairless, with a disproportionately large head. The mole rat is of importance to zoologists as one of the very few mammals that are eusocial, that is, living in colonies with sterile workers and one fertile female. (Species Heterocephalus glaber.) Its underground colonies comprise one breeding fem...

Monopoly
The world's biggest-selling copyrighted game, a board game of buying properties, building houses on them, and charging rent. It was devised in the USA in 1934 by Charles B Darrow (1889–1967), with street names from Atlantic City, New Jersey, where he spent his holidays; he sold the game in 1935 to Parker Brothers, US game manufactu...

motherboard
Click images to enlargePrinted circuit board that contains the main components of a microcomputer. The power, memory capacity, and capability of the microcomputer may be enhanced by adding expansion boards to the motherboard, now more commonly called a mainboard

monoculture
Farming system where only one crop is grown. In developing world countries this is often a cash crop, grown on plantations, for example sugar and coffee. Cereal crops in the industrialized world are also frequently grown on a monoculture basis, for example wheat in the Canadian prairies. Monoculture allows the farmer to tailor production methods to...