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


Toulon
Port and administrative centre of Var département, southeast France, on the Mediterranean Sea, 48 km/30 mi southeast of Marseille; population (1999) 160,700, conurbation 519,600. It is the chief Mediterranean naval station of France. Industries include oil refining, marine engineering, armaments, chemicals, furniture...

Tottenham
District of the Greater London borough of Haringey

toucan
Any South and Central American forest-dwelling bird of the genus Ramphastos, family Ramphastidae, order Piciformes. Toucans have very large, brilliantly coloured beaks and often handsome plumage. They live in small flocks and eat fruits, seeds, and insects. They nest in holes i...

totemism
Click images to enlargeThe belief in individual or clan kinship with an animal, plant, or object. This totem is sacred to those concerned, and they are forbidden to eat or desecrate it; marriage within the clan is usually forbidden. Totemism occurs among Pacific Islanders and Australian Aborigines, and was formerly pr...

Tory Party
The forerunner of the British Conservative Party from about 1680 to 1830. It was the party of the squire and parson, as opposed to the Whigs (which was supported by the trading classes and Nonconformists). The name is still applied colloquially to the Conservative Party. In the USA a Tory was an oppo...

torture
Infliction of bodily pain to extort evidence or confession. In the 20th century torture is widely (though, in most countries, unofficially) used. The human-rights organization Amnesty International investigates and publicizes the use of torture on prisoners of conscience. Torture was legally abolished in England about 1640, but allowed in Scotl...

Torricelli, Evangelista
Italian physicist who established the existence of atmospheric pressure and devised the mercury barometer in 1644. In 1643 Torricelli filled a long glass tube, closed at one end, with mercury and inverted it in a dish of mercury. Atmospheric pressure supported a column of mercury about 76 cm/30 in long; the space above the mercury was a vac...

Torres Strait
Channel between the Arafura Sea and the Coral Sea, separating the island of New Guinea from Cape York on the northern tip of Queensland, Australia; width 130 km/80 mi. The strait is scattered with reefs and small islands. The strait is named after the Spanish navigator Luis Vaez de Torres, the first European to sail through it, in 1606. The...

Torquemada, Tomás de
Spanish Dominican monk, confessor to Queen Isabella I. In 1483 he revived the Inquisition on her behalf, and at least 2,000 `heretics` were burned; Torquemada also expelled the Jews from Spain 1492, with a resultant decline of the economy

torpedo
(missile) Self-propelled underwater missile, invented 1866 by English engineer Robert Whitehead. Modern torpedoes are homing missiles; some resemble mines in that they lie on the seabed until activated by the acoustic signal of a passing ship. A television camera enables them to be rem...

Torah
In Judaism, the first five books of the Tenakh, or Hebrew Bible (Christian Old Testament): Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. It contains a traditional history of the world from the Creation to the death of Moses; it also includes the Hebrew people's covenant with their...

Toronto
Click images to enlargePort and capital of Ontario, Canada, at the mouths of the Humber and Don rivers on Lake Ontario; population (1999 est) 2,529,300, metropolitan area (2001 est) 4,881,400. In 1998 the former area of Metropolitan Toronto merged with York, East York, Etebicoke, Scarborough, North York, and Toronto t...

Tony award
Annual award by the League of New York Theaters to dramatists, performers, and technicians in Broadway plays. It is named after the US actor and producer Antoinette Perry (1888–1946)

Topeka
Capital of Kansas, seat of Shawnee County, on the Kansas River, 85 km/53 mi west of Kansas City; population (2000 est) 122,400. It is an agricultural centre for eastern Kansas, trading in wheat and cattle. Manufactured products include processed foods, printed materials, and rubber and metal goods. The state government, education, and Goody...

tonsillitis
Inflammation of the tonsils

Tonkin Gulf Incident
Clash that triggered US entry into the Vietnam War in August 1964. Two US destroyers (USS C Turner Joy and USS Maddox) reported that they were fired on by North Vietnamese torpedo boats. It is unclear whether hostile shots were actually fired, but the reported attack was taken as a pretext for making air raids ...

ton
(mass) Imperial unit of mass. The long ton, used in the UK, is 1,016 kg/2,240 lb; the short ton, used in the USA, is 907 kg/2,000 lb. The metric ton or tonne is 1,000 kg/2,205 lb

Tone,
(Theobald) Irish nationalist, prominent in the revolutionary society of the United Irishmen. In 1798 he accompanied the French invasion of Ireland and was captured and condemned to death, but slit his own throat in prison. Tone aimed to overthrow English rule in Ireland. He formed the society ...

tomography
Technique of using X-rays or ultrasound waves to procure images of structures deep within the body for diagnostic purposes. In modern medical imaging there are several techniques, such as the CAT scan (computerized axial tomography)

toluene
Colourless, inflammable liquid, insoluble in water, derived from petroleum. It is used as a solvent, in aircraft fuels, in preparing phenol (carbolic acid, used in making resins for adhesives, pharmaceuticals, and as a disinfectant), and the powerful high explosive TNT

Toltec
Click images to enlargeMember of an ancient American Indian people who ruled much of Mexico and Central America in the 10th–12th centuries, with their capital and religious centre at Tula or Tollán, northeast of Mexico City. They also occupied and extended the ancient Maya city of Chichen Itzá in Yucatá...

Tolstoy, Leo Nikolaievich
Russian novelist. He wrote War and Peace (1863–69) and Anna Karenina (1873–77). He was offended by the materialism of Western Europe and in the 1860s and 1870s he became a pioneer of `free education`. From 1880 he underwent a profound spiritual crisis and took up various moral positions, inc...

Tolpuddle Martyrs
Six farm labourers of Tolpuddle, a village in Dorset, England, who were transported to Australia in 1834. The labourers had formed a union on the advice of the Grand National Consolidated Trades Union (GNCTU) to try to prevent their wages being reduced. Entry into their `union` involved a p...

Tolkien, J(ohn) R(onald) R(euel)
English writer and scholar. To express his theological and philosophical beliefs, and as a vehicle for his linguistic scholarship, he created a complete mythological world of `Middle Earth`, on which he drew for his children's fantasy The Hobbit (1937), and the trilogy The Lord of the Rings (1954&...

Toledo
(city, Spain) Capital of Toledo province in Castilla-La Mancha autonomous community, central Spain, built on a granite hill above the River Tagus; population (2001 est) 69,500. It was the capital of the Visigoth kingdom 534...

Toledo
(USA) Inland port in Ohio, USA, at the mouth of the Maumee River on Lake Erie, 153 km/96 mi west of Cleveland; population (2000 est) 313,600. It is an oil- and gas-pipeline terminus, and a shipping centre for coal, iron-ore, vehicle parts, and grain. Industries include oil&...

Tokyo
Click images to enlargeCapital of Japan, on Honshu island; population (2000 est) 8,130,000. It is Japan's main cultural, commercial, financial and industrial centre (engineering, chemicals, textiles, electrical goods). Founded in the 16th century as Yedo (or Edo), it was renamed when the emperor moved his court he...

Togliatti, Palmiro
Italian politician who was a founding member of the Italian Communist Party in 1921 and effectively its leader for almost 40 years from 1926 until his death. In exile 1926–44, he returned after the fall of the Fascist dictator Mussolini to become a member of Badoglio's government and held office until 1946. Togliatti trained as a lawyer, s...

tog
Unit of measure of thermal insulation used in the textile trade; a light summer suit provides 1.0 tog. The tog value of an object is equal to ten times the temperature difference (in °C) between its two surfaces when the flow of heat is equal to one watt per square metre; one tog equals 0.645 clo

Tobago
Island in the West Indies; part of the republic of Trinidad and Tobago

Tombouctou
Town in Mali, near the most northerly point on the Niger River; population (1998) 32,000; region 496,300. It was a Tuareg camel caravan centre on the fringe of the Sahara from the 11th century. Since 1960 the area surrounding the town has become increasingly arid, and the former canal link with the River Niger is dry. Products include salt

touraco
Any fruit-eating African bird of the family Musophagidae, order Cuculiformes. They have a small high bill, notched and serrated mandibles, a long tail, erectile crest, and short, rounded wings. The largest are 70 cm/28 in long. Many of them are brilliantly coloured with glossy blue, red, violet and green plumage. There are about 18 species ...

tortoise
Reptile of the order Chelonia, family Testudinidae, with the body enclosed in a hard shell. Tortoises are related to the terrapins and turtles, and range in length from 10 cm/4 in to 150 cm/5 ft. The shell consists of a curved upper carapace and flattened lower plastron joined at the sides...

torpedo
(fish) Any species of the order Torpediniformes of mainly tropical rays (cartilaginous fishes), whose electric organs between the pectoral fin and the head can give a powerful shock. They can grow to 180 cm/6 ft in length. The electric ray Torpedo nobiliana is found on b...

tope
(shark) Slender shark Galeorhinus galeus ranging through temperate and tropical seas. Dark grey above and white beneath, it reaches 2 m/6 ft in length. The young are born well-formed, sometimes 40 at a time

toad
Any of the more terrestrial warty-skinned members of the tailless amphibians (order Anura). The name commonly refers to members of the genus Bufo, family Bufonidae, which are found worldwide, except for Australia (where the marine or cane toad B. marinus has ...

tongue
In tetrapod vertebrates, a muscular organ usually attached to the floor of the mouth. It has a thick root attached to a U-shaped bone (hyoid), and is covered with a mucous membrane containing nerves and taste buds. It is the main organ of taste. The tongue directs food to the teeth and into the t...

tooth
In vertebrates, one of a set of hard, bonelike structures in the mouth, used for biting and chewing food, and in defence and aggression. In humans, the first set (20 milk teeth) appear from age six months to two and a half years. The permanent dentition replaces these from the sixth year onwards, the...

tort
In law, a wrongful act for which someone can be sued for damages in a civil court. It includes such acts as libel, trespass, injury done to someone (whether intentionally or by negligence), and inducement to break a contract (although breach of contract itself is not a tort). In general a tort is distinguished from a crime in that it affects the in...

tonsils
In higher vertebrates, masses of lymphoid tissue situated at the back of the mouth and throat (palatine tonsils), and on the rear surface of the tongue (lingual tonsils). The tonsils contain many lymphocytes and are part of the body's defence system against infection. The adenoids are sometimes called pharyngeal tonsils

touch screen
In computing, an input device that allows the user to communicate with the computer by touching a display screen. In this way, the user can point to a required menu option or item of data. Touch screens are used increasingly in many applications, such as dispensing tickets for public transport and checking in for flights. A common application is in...

topaz
Mineral, aluminium fluorosilicate, Al2(F2SiO4). It is usually yellow, but pink if it has been heated, and is used as a gemstone when transparent. It ranks 8 on the Mohs scale of hardness

topology
(maths) Click images to enlargeBranch of geometry that deals with those properties of a figure that remain unchanged even when the figure is transformed (bent, stretched) – for example, when a square painted on a rubber sheet is deformed b...

tornado
Extremely violent revolving storm with swirling, funnel-shaped clouds, caused by a rising column of warm air propelled by strong wind. A series of tornadoes killed 47 people, destroyed 2,000 homes, and caused $500 million worth of damage in Oklahoma, Nebraska, Kansas, and Texas in May 1999

tourmaline
Hard, brittle mineral, a complex silicate of various metals, but mainly sodium aluminium borosilicate. Small tourmalines are found in granites and gneisses. The common varieties range from black (schorl) to pink, and the transparent gemstones may be colourless (achromatic), rose pink (rubellite), green (Brazilian emerald), blue (indicolite, verdeli...

totalitarianism
Government control of all activities within a country, openly political or otherwise, as in fascist or communist dictatorships. Examples of totalitarian regimes are Italy under Benito Mussolini 1922–45; Germany under Adolf Hitler 1933–45; the USSR under Joseph Stalin from the 1930s ...

torsion
(physics) In physics, the state of strain set up in a twisted material; for example, when a thread, wire, or rod is twisted, the torsion set up in the material tends to return the material to its original state. The torsion balance, a sensitive device for measuring small gravitational or m...

Toynbee, Arnold
English economic historian who coined the term `industrial revolution` in his `Lectures on the Industrial Revolution`, published in 1884

toccata
In music, a composition for keyboard instruments, such as the organ, in which the performer's finger technique is emphasized. This is often done by including passages using features such as arpeggios and elaborate fast runs

tonality
In music, refers to the major-minor key system. It is also used as the opposite of atonality

tone poem
In music, an alternative name for symphonic poem, or a similar piece for smaller forces

tonic
In music, the key note of a scale (for example, the note C in the scale of C major), or the `home key` in a composition (for example, the chord of C major in a composition in the same key)

torr
Unit of pressure equal to 1/760 of an atmosphere, used mainly in high-vacuum technology. One torr is equivalent to 133.322 pascals, and for practical purposes is the same as the millimetre of mercury. It is named after the Italian physicist Evangelista Torricelli

Togo
Click images to enlargeCountry in West Africa, on the Atlantic Ocean, bounded north by Burkina Faso, east by Benin, and west by Ghana. Government Togo has a presidential political system dominated by the ruling party, the Rally of the Togolese People. Other parties are allowed, but have little prospect of gaining power. T...

Tonga
Country in the southwest Pacific Ocean, in Polynesia. Government Tonga is an independent hereditary monarchy within the Commonwealth. Its constitution dates from 1875 and provides for a monarch who is both head of state and government. The monarch exercises executive power by presiding over an appoin...

Tokay
Sweet white wine made near the Hungarian town of Tokaj; also the grape from which it is made

Tour de France
French road race for professional cyclists held annually over approximately 4,800 km/3,000 mi of primarily French roads. The race takes about three weeks to complete and the route varies each year, often taking in adjoining countries, but always ending in Paris. A separate stage is held every day...

topsoil
Upper, cultivated layer of soil, which may vary in depth from 8 to 45 cm/3 to 18 in. It contains organic matter – the decayed remains of vegetation, which plants need for active growth – along with a variety of soil organisms, including earthworms

Tojo, Hideki
Japanese general and premier 1941–44 during World War II. Promoted to chief of staff of Japan's Guangdong army in Manchuria in 1937, he served as minister for war 1940–41 where he was responsible for negotiating the tripartite Axis alliance with Germany and Italy in 1940. He was held responsible for defeats in the Pacific in 1944 and ...

Tokugawa
Military family which controlled Japan as shoguns from 1603 to 1868. Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542–1616) was the Japanese general and politician who established the Tokugawa shogunate; see Japan: shogunate and restoration 1192–1869. The Tokugawa were feudal lords who ruled about one-quarter of Japan. Undermined by increasing foreign i...

Tonton Macoute
Member of a private army of death squads on Haiti. The Tontons Macoutes were initially organized by François Duvalier, president of Haiti 1957–71, and continued to terrorize the population under his successor J C Duvalier. It is alleged that the organization continued to operate after Duvalier's exile to France

tonne
Unit of mass. One tonne equals 1,000 kg/2,204.6 lb; equivalent to 0.9842 of an imperial ton

touch
(feeling) Sensation produced by specialized nerve endings in the skin. Some respond to light pressure, others to heavy pressure. Temperature detection may also contribute to the overall sensation of touch. Many animals, such as nocturnal ones, rely on touch more than humans do. Some have speci...

torque
(physics) Turning effect of force on an object. A turbine produces a torque that turns an electricity generator in a power station. Torque is measured by multiplying the force by its perpendicular distance from the turning point

total internal reflection
Complete reflection of a beam of light that occurs from the surface of an optically `less dense` material. For example, a beam from an underwater light source can be reflected from the surface of the water, rather than escaping through the surface. Total internal reflection can only happen ...

ton
(volume) In shipping, unit of volume equal to 2.83 cubic metres/100 cubic feet. Gross tonnage is the total internal volume of a ship in tons; net register tonnage is the volume used for carrying cargo or passengers. Displacement tonnage is the weight of the vessel, in terms of the numb...

toxin
Any poison produced by another living organism (usually a bacterium) that can damage the living body. In vertebrates, toxins are broken down by enzyme action, mainly in the liver

tofu
Pressed soybean curd derived from soymilk. It is a good source of protein and naturally low in fat. Tofu comes in three varieties: smooth and firm, in small white blocks, used for stir-frying or steaming; as a junketlike solid used in making dips, salad dressings, or ice cream; and hard, fermented, and/or seasoned cakes, which m...

toilet
Place where waste products from the body are excreted. Simple latrines, with sewers to carry away waste, have been found in the Indus Valley and ancient Babylon; the medieval garderobe is essentially the same, even though flushing lavatories had been known to Roman civilizations

toxoplasmosis
Disease transmitted to humans by animals, often in pigeon or cat excrement, or in undercooked meat. It causes flulike symptoms and damages the central nervous system, eyes, and visceral organs. It is caused by a protozoan, Toxoplasma gondii. Congenital toxoplasmosis, transmitted from an infected mother to her unborn child, can le...

toxic shock syndrome
Rare condition marked by rapid onset of fever, vomiting, and low blood pressure, sometimes leading to death. It is caused by a toxin of the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus, normally harmlessly present in the body. It is seen most often in young women using tampons during menstruation

toxic waste
Hazardous waste, especially when it has been dumped

topography
Surface shape and composition of the landscape, comprising both natural and artificial features, and its study. Topographical features include the relief and contours of the land; the distribution of mountains, valleys, and human settlements; and the patterns of rivers, roads, and railways

topology
(computing) In computing, the arrangement of devices in a network. The most common is the bus topology, where all the computers are interconnected using a single, open-ended cable. Most modern network solutions use either a ring or bus layout, but with physical characteristics that resembl...

tourism
Click images to enlargeTravel and visiting places for pleasure, often involving sightseeing and staying in overnight accommodation. Regarded as an industry, tourism can increase the wealth and job opportunities in an area, although the work is often seasonal and low paid. Among the negative effects of tourism are traffic ...

Torremolinos
Tourist resort on the Costa del Sol between Málaga and Algeciras in Andalusia, southern Spain; population (1991) 31,700. There is a wine museum and a modern congress and exhibition centre

Tordesillas, Treaty of
Agreement reached in 1494 when Castile and Portugal divided the uncharted world between themselves. An imaginary line was drawn 370 leagues west of the Azores and the Cape Verde Islands, with Castile receiving all lands discovered to the west, and Portugal those to the east. The treaty was negotiated because Portugal was unhappy with Spanish pope A...

Toyotomi, Hideyoshi
Japanese warlord, one of the three military leaders who unified Japan in the 16th century (Momoyama period). Successful military campaigns and alliances gave him control of central and southwestern Japan by 1587 and eastern Japan by 1590. His invasion of Korea 1592–98 was, however, defeated. Skilled in siege strategy, Hideyoshi rose in the ser...

Tokyo trials
War-crimes trials 1946–48 of Japan's wartime leaders, held during the Allied occupation after World War II. Former prime minister Tojo was among the seven sentenced to death by an international tribunal, while 16 were given life imprisonment. Political considerations allowed Emperor Hirohito (Showa) to escape trial

tocopherol
Fat-soluble chemical found in vegetable oils. Deficiency of tocopherol leads to multiple adverse effects on health. In rats, vitamin E deficiency has been shown to cause sterility

toadstool
Common name for many umbrella-shaped fruiting bodies of fungi (see fungus). The term is normally applied to those that are inedible or poisonous

tone
(literature) In literature, the manner in which written words might be said (for example, sarcastic, mild, witty, angry). Tone is hard to separate from mood, but in general the tone of a work can gradually shift (perhaps from sarcastic to ironic or from angry to remorseful), while mood describ...

tone
(art) In art, the quality and depth of a colour, particularly the gradations from light to dark. A colour may be `toned down` to make it less vivid, or `toned up` to make it more solid or brighter. Tonality refers to the general effect of the tones of a painting, and tonal ...

toolbar
In computing, area usually at the top or side of a screen with push-buttons and other features to perform frequently used tasks. For example, the toolbar of a paint program might offer quick access to different brushes, spray cans, erasers, and other useful tools. `Floating` and `smart` toolbars have become more common, wher...

Torfaen
Unitary authority in south Wales, created in 1996 from part of the former county of Gwent. Area 98 sq km/38 sq mi Towns Pontypool (administrative headquarters), Cwmbran (the first new town in Wales) Physical Cefn Coch (571 m/1,873 ft), River Afon Llwyd Features Big Pit colliery museum at Blae...

Tower of London
(fortification) Click images to enlargeFortress on the bank of the River Thames to the east of the City of London, England. William (I) the Conqueror established a camp here immediately after his coronation in 1066, and in 1078 Gundulf of Bec, Bishop...

town, medieval
During the Middle Ages, towns in England developed as centres of trade, and as administrative centres. In 1066 there were only about six English towns with more than 4,000 inhabitants; even London's population only numbered about 20,000. Many towns grew up as market towns, selling the produce of the local countryside. Others developed as po...

township
In South Africa, an urban settlement designated for non-white residents by the apartheid government 1948–94. Townships such as Soweto (South Western Township), Johannesburg, a pre-existing shanty town, were created on the edges of major towns and cities. Their purpose was to control and preserve a local black workforce while ensuring s...

Torino Scale
Scale on which astronomers rate the threat to the Earth posed by a near-Earth object (NEO). The scale runs from 0 to 9 in whole numbers and depends on how likely the object is to collide with the Earth and the damage it would do in such a collision. The position of an object on the scale varies as knowledge of its orbit and nature develop. Most...

Topolánek, Mirek
Czech right-of-centre politician, prime minister from 2006. He became active in the pro-democracy movement in 1989 and joined the pro-free-market, right-of-centre Civic Democratic Party in 1994, becoming its chairman in 2002. He was a member of the Czech Parliament's Senate 1996–2004, serving as its deputy chair...

Truro
Market town in Cornwall, England, and administrative headquarters of the county, on the River Truro, a branch of the Fal, 14 km/9 mi north of Falmouth; population (2001) 20,900. It is a business centre. Truro was the traditional meeting place of the Stannary (local parliament; see Cornwal...

trumpet
Brass instrument with a long history. It exists worldwide in a variety of forms and materials. It has a shallow, cup-shaped mouthpiece and a generally cylindrical bore that expands into a moderately flared bell. The sound can be brilliant, penetrating, and of stable pitch, making it useful for si...

Truman Doctrine
US president Harry Truman's 1947 dictum that the USA would `support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures`. It was used to justify sending a counter-insurgency military mission to Greece after World War II, and evolved into the policy of containment of Soviet expansion. Se...

Trujillo
City in northwestern Peru, with its port at Salaverry, capital of the department of La Libertad; population (2005) 644,500. Industries include engineering, copper, sugar milling, vehicle assembly and trade in agricultural produce

truffle
Any of a group of underground fungi (see fungus), certain of which are highly valued as edible delicacies; in particular, the species Tuber melanosporum, generally found growing under oak trees. It is native to the Périgord region of France but is cultivated in other areas as well. It is rounded, blackish-brown, exte...

Truffaut, François
French New Wave film director and actor. A romantic and intensely humane film-maker, he wrote and directed a series of semi-autobiographical films starring Jean-Pierre Léaud, beginning with Les Quatre Cent Coups/The 400 Blows (1959). His other films include Jules et Jim (1961), Fah...

Trudeau, Pierre Elliott
Canadian Liberal politician. He was prime minister 1968–79 and 1980–84. In 1980, he was re-elected by a landslide on a platform opposing Québec separatism, and the Québec independence movement was later defeated in a referendum. He repatriated the constitution from the UK in19...

Troyes
Administrative centre of the département of Aube in the Champagne-Ardenne region of northeast France, situated on the River Seine 150 km/93 mi southeast of Paris; population (1999) 60,900, conurbation 128,900. The town has an agricultural market, but is also an industrial city manufacturing textiles, machinery an...

Troy
Ancient city in Asia Minor (modern Hissarlik in Turkey), just south of the Dardanelles. It has a long and complex history dating from about 3000 BC to AD 1200. In 1820 the city was identified as Troy, the site of the legendary ten-year Trojan War described in Homer's epic Iliad, but its actual name is unknown. Nine cities...

troubadour
Poet-musician of Provence and southern France in the 12th–13th centuries. The troubadours originated a type of lyric poetry devoted to themes of courtly love and the idealization of women and to glorifying the chivalric ideals of the period. Little is known of their music, which was passed down orally. Among the troubadours were Bertran de...