Copy of `Talk Talk - Communication terms`

The wordlist doesn't exist anymore, or, the website doesn't exist anymore. On this page you can find a copy of the original information. The information may have been taken offline because it is outdated.


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


Dollfuss, Engelbert
Austrian Christian Socialist politician. He was appointed chancellor in 1932, and in 1933 suppressed parliament and ruled by decree. In February 1934 he crushed a protest by the socialist workers by force, and in May Austria was declared a `corporative` state. The Nazis attempted a coup on 25 July; the Chancellery was seized and Dollf...

dollar
Monetary unit of several countries, containing 100 cents. The US dollar, adopted in 1785, has been the leading international reserve currency since World War II. US dollars originally were issued as gold or silver coins; today both metal and paper dollars circulate, but paper predominates. Australia, Canada, and Hong Kong are among the other co...

Dogs, Isle of
District of east London, England, part of the Greater London borough of Tower Hamlets. It is bounded on three sides by the River Thames, and is part of the Docklands urban development area. The Isle of Dogs is home to the Billingsgate fish market (based since 1982 in the West India Dock) and the Canary Wharf development. The Blackwall Tunnel provid...

doge
Chief magistrate in the ancient constitutions of Venice and Genoa. The first doge of Venice was appointed in 697 with absolute power (modified in 1297), and from his accession dates Venice's prominence in history. The last Venetian doge, Lodovico Manin, retired in 1797 and the last Genoese doge in 1804

Dodoma
Official capital (replacing Dar es Salaam in 1974) of Tanzania; 1,132 m/3,713 ft above sea level; population (2002) 150,600. Dar es Salaam remains the administrative capital, pending the transfer of government functions to Dodoma, a move intended to be completed by 2005. Dodoma is a centre of communications, linked by rail with Dar es S...

dolerite
Igneous rock formed below the Earth's surface, a form of basalt, containing relatively little silica (mafic in composition). Dolerite is a medium-grained (hypabyssal) basalt and forms in shallow intrusions, such as dykes, which cut across the rock strata, and sills, which push between beds of sedimentary rock. When exposed at the surface, d...

Doulton, Henry
English ceramicist. He developed special wares for the chemical, electrical, and building industries, and established the world's first stoneware-drainpipe factory in 1846. From 1870 he created art pottery and domestic tablewares in Lambeth, South London, and Burslem, near Stoke-on-Trent. He was knighted in 1887

Doppler effect
Change in the observed frequency (or wavelength) of waves due to relative motion between the wave source and the observer. The Doppler effect is responsible for the perceived change in pitch of a siren as it approaches and then recedes, and for the red shift of light from distant galaxies. It is named after the Austrian physicist Christian Doppler

dodecaphony
Music composed according to the twelve-tone system of composition

dominant
In tonal music, the fifth note of a major or minor scale; for example, G in the C major scale. It is next in importance to the tonic and can be said to dominate because of its special relationship to the tonic (brass players will know it as the `third harmonic` – the first being the `fundamental` note produced by a leng...

Dolin, Anton
English dancer and choreographer. He was the first British male dancer to win an international reputation. As a dancer, his reputation rested on his commanding presence, theatricality, and gymnastic ability. His most famous partnership was with Alicia Markova. After studying under Nijinsky, he was a leading member of Diaghilev's company 1924...

double bass
Largest and lowest-sounding instrument of the violin family. It is 1.85 m/6 ft high and is played resting on the ground with the performer either standing or sitting on a high stool. Its sloping shoulders and flatter back link it to the viol family, where it is descended from the bass viol or...

Dominican Republic
Click images to enlargeCountry in the West Indies (eastern Caribbean), occupying the eastern two-thirds of the island of Hispaniola, with Haiti covering the western third; the Atlantic Ocean is to the east and the Caribbean Sea to the west. Government The Dominican republic has a multiparty system, with a presiden...

Dominica
Click images to enlargeIsland in the eastern Caribbean, between Guadeloupe and Martinique, the largest of the Windward Islands, with the Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Caribbean Sea to the west. Government Dominica is an independent republic within the Commonwealth and is a multiparty parliamentary democracy. The cons...

Dodecanese
Group of islands in the Aegean Sea; area 2,663 sq km/1,028 sq mi; population (2005 est) 200,500. Once Turkish, the islands were Italian from 1912 to 1947, when they were ceded to Greece. They include Rhodes and Kos. Chief products include fruit, olives, and sponges

dormancy
(peerage) In the UK, state of a peerage or baronetcy when it is believed that heirs to the title exist, but their whereabouts are unknown. This sometimes occurs when a senior line dies out and a cadet line has long since gone abroad

dowager
The style given to the widow of a British peer or baronet. She may take the style of `Dowager Countess of Blankshire` (so as not to be confused with the wife of the current holder of the title); alternatively she may take the style of `Mary, Countess of Blankshire` (although this is the style also used by divorced wives of p...

Douglas-Hamilton
Family name of dukes of Hamilton, seated at Lennoxlove, East Lothian, Scotland

Dow Jones Industrial Average
Leading index of US stock market prices. The average is based on prices of 30 major companies covering such diverse industries as financial services, technology, retail, entertainment, and consumer goods. It has been calculated and published since 1896 by financial news publisher Dow Jones & Co

Domagk, Gerhard
German pathologist who was awarded a Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1939 for his discovery of the first antibacterial sulphonamide drug. In 1932 he found that a coal-tar dye called Prontosil red contains chemicals with powerful antibacterial properties. Sulphanilamide became the first of the sulphonamide drugs, used – before ant...

Dome of the Rock
Click images to enlargeIslamic shrine in Jerusalem dating from the 7th century AD that surrounds a great rock altar (an outcrop of rock) that was part of Solomon's Temple of Jerusalem. According to Muslim and Jewish tradition, the rock is also where Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac, and the place from which...

double entendre
Device of deliberately using an ambiguous word or phrase, that often has a coarse or indelicate connotation. An accidental double entendre is often termed a `Freudian slip`, after Sigmund Freud suggested that a person may reveal their unconscious mind by verbal `mistakes`

doppelgänger
(German `double-goer`) apparition of a living person, a person's double, or a guardian spirit. The German composer and writer E T A Hoffman wrote a short story called `Die Doppelgänger` in 1821. English novelist Charles Williams (1886–1945) used the idea to great effect in his novel Descent into Hell&l...

Doi Inthanon
Highest mountain in Thailand, rising to 2,595 m/8,513 ft southwest of Chiang Mai in northwestern Thailand

dowry
Property or money given by the bride's family to the groom or his family as part of the marriage agreement; the opposite of bridewealth (property or money given by the groom's to the bride's family). In 1961, dowries were made illegal in India; however, in 1992, the Indian government reported more than 15,000 murders or suicides...

Douala
Chief port and commercial and industrial centre of Cameroon, on the Wouri River estuary by the Gulf of Guinea; population (2001 est) 1,494,700. Industries include aluminium, chemicals, textiles, and the processing of cacao beans and timber. Known as Kamerunstadt until 1907, it was capital of German Cameroon, which became a German protectorate i...

Domenichino
Italian baroque painter and architect, active in Bologna, Naples, and Rome. He began as an assistant to the Carracci family of painters and continued the early baroque style in, for example, frescoes 1624–28 in the choir of the church of S Andrea della Valle, Rome. He is considered one of the pioneers of landscape painting in the baroque perio...

Douglas, Kirk
US film actor. Usually cast as a dynamic though ill-fated hero, as in Spartacus (1960), he was a major star of the 1950s and 1960s, appearing in such films as Ace in the Hole (1951), The Bad and the Beautiful (1953), Paths of Glory (1957), The Vikings...

domain
(magnetism) In physics, small area in a magnetic material that behaves like a tiny magnet. The magnetism of the material is due to the movement of electrons in the atoms of the domain. In an unmagnetized sample of material, the domains point in random directions, or form closed loops, so that ...

Doe, Samuel Kanyon
Liberian politician and soldier, head of state 1980–90. After seizing power in a coup, Doe made himself general and army commander-in-chief. As chair of the People's Redemption Council (PRC) he was the first Liberian ruler to come from an indigenous Liberian group, ending the political dominance of the US-Liberian elite. He lif...

Dos Santos, José Eduardo
Angolan left-wing politician, president from 1979, a member of the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA). By 1989, he had negotiated the withdrawal of South African and Cuban forces, and in 1991 a peace agreement to end the civil war. In 1992 his victory in multiparty elections was disputed by Jonas Savimbi, leader of the re...

Dobzhansky, Theodosius
Ukrainian-born US geneticist who established evolutionary genetics as an independent discipline. He showed that genetic variability between individuals of the same species is very high and that this diversity is vital to the process of evolution. His book Genetics and the Origin of Species (1937) was the first significant syn...

dough
Mixture consisting primarily of flour, water, and yeast, which is used in the manufacture of bread. The preparation of dough involves thorough mixing (kneading) and standing in a warm place to `prove` (increase in volume) so that the enzymes in the dough can break down the starch from the flour into smaller sugar molecules, which are then...

Domino, `Fats`
US rock-and-roll pianist, singer, and songwriter. He was an exponent of the New Orleans style, and became one of the most popular performers in early rock and roll. His hits include `Ain't That a Shame` (1955), `Blueberry Hill` (1956), and `I'm Walkin'` (1957)

Donau
German name for the River Danube

Dounreay
Site of the world's first fast nuclear reactor on the north coast of Scotland, in the Highland unitary authority, 13 km/8 mi west of Thurso. The first nuclear reactor, the Dounreay Fast Reactor (DFR), was active from 1959 until 1977. A second nuclear reactor, the Prototype Fast Reactor (PFR), was active between 1974 and 1994. The site becam...

dopamine
Neurotransmitter, hydroxytyramine C8H11NO2, an intermediate in the formation of adrenaline. There are special nerve cells in the brain that use dopamine for the transmission of nervous impulses. One such area of dopamine neurons lies in the basal ganglia, a region that controls mo...

Douglass, Frederick
US antislavery campaigner and influential African-American leader. An advocate of the American Civil War 1861–65, he issued a call to African Americans to take up arms against the South and helped organize two African-American regiments. After the Civil War, he held several US government posts, including minister to Haiti 1889–91....

dorsal
In vertebrates, the surface of the animal closest to the backbone. For most vertebrates this is the upper surface, or the surface furthest from the ground. This latter criterion also allows a dorsal side to be defined in certain invertebrates, for example insects. For bipedal primates such as humans, where the dorsal surface faces backwards, then t...

dove
(politics) Person who takes a moderate, sometimes pacifist, view on political issues. The term originated in the US during the Vietnam War. Its counterpart is a hawk. In more general usage today, a dove is equated with liberal policies, and a hawk with conservative ones

doo-wop
US pop-music form of the 1950s, a style of harmony singing without instrumental accompaniment or nearly so, almost exclusively by male groups. The name derives from the practice of having the lead vocalist singing the lyrics against a backing of nonsense syllables from the other members of the group. Doo-wop had roots in the 1930s with rhyt...

Dohnányi, Ernst
(Ernö) Hungarian pianist, conductor, composer, and teacher. As a pianist his powers were prodigious, while as a composer he drew upon the classical German tradition, especially Brahms. His compositions include Variations on a Nursery Song (1913) and Second Symp...

Dorsey
US bandleaders, musicians, and composers during the swing era. They worked together in the Dorsey Brothers Orchestra 1934–35 and 1953–56, but led separate bands in the intervening period. The Jimmy Dorsey band was primarily a dance band; the Tommy Dorsey band was more jazz-oriented and featured the singer Frank Sinatra 1940–4...

dog, dangerous
Any of the breeds listed in a 1991 amendment to the UK Dangerous Dogs Act 1989, which have to be muzzled in public. These include pit-bull terriers (which must also be registered with the police) and the Japanese tosa. Earlier legislation includes the Dogs Act 1871, with regard to keeping dogs under proper control, and the Do...

document reader
In computing, an input device that reads marks or characters, usually on preprepared forms and documents. Such devices are used to capture data by optical mark recognition (OMR), optical character recognition (OCR), and mark sensing

dot matrix printer
Computer printer that produces each character individually by printing a pattern, or matrix, of very small dots. The printing head consists of a vertical line or block of either 9 or 24 printing pins. As the printing head is moved from side to side across the paper, the pins are pushed forwards selec...

dormitory town
Rural settlement that has a high proportion of commuters in its population. The original population may have been displaced by these commuters and the settlements enlarged by housing estates. Dormitory towns have increased in the UK since 1960 as a result of counter-urbanization

document
In computing, data associated with a particular application. For example, a text document might be produced by a word processor and a graphics document might be produced with a CAD package. An OMR or OCR document is a paper document containing data that can be directly input to the computer using a document reader

dodecahedron
Regular solid with 12 pentagonal faces and 12 vertices. It is one of the five regular polyhedra, or Platonic solids

dolomite
(mineralogy) In mineralogy, white mineral with a rhombohedral structure, calcium magnesium carbonate (CaMg(CO3)2). Dolomites are common in geological successions of all ages and are often formed when limestone is changed by the replacement of the m...

Douglas fir
Any of some six species of coniferous evergreen tree belonging to the pine family. The most common is Pseudotsuga menziesii, native to western North America and east Asia. It grows up to 60–90 m/200–300 ft in height, has long, flat, spirally-arranged needles and hanging cones, and produces hard, strong timber. &...

Docklands
Urban development area east of St Katherine's Dock, London, occupying the site of the former Wapping and Limehouse docks, the Isle of Dogs, and Royal Docks. It comprises 2,226 hectares/5,550 acres of former wharves, warehouses, and wasteland. Plans for its redevelopment were set in motion in ...

double negative
In grammar, a construction that uses two negatives instead of one to convey a negative meaning (for example, `I don't want no trouble`). This is not Standard English but is common in some dialects. Standard English accepts two types of double-negative construction: with an adjective that contains a negation (`it is not un...

dome
(architecture) In architecture, a roof form which is usually hemispherical and constructed over a circular, square, or octagonal space in a building. A feature of Islamic and Roman architecture, the dome was revived during the Renaissance period. The dome first appears in Assyrian architecture...

dongle
In computing, a device that ensures the legal use of an application program. It is often used by high value applications and usually attached to the printer port (between the port and the printer cable) of the computer and the program will not run in its absence

double click
In computing, to click (press and release a mouse button) twice in quick succession. Double clicking on an icon shown on a graphical user interface (GUI) is used to start an application. In most GUIs it is possible to set the maximum time interval between the two clicks

Dole, Bob
(Robert Joseph) US Republican politician, leader of his party in the Senate 1985–87 and 1995–96. He unsuccessfully stood as a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 1980 and 1988; in 1996 he captured the nomination, but lost the presidential election to Democrat ...

Douglas, Keith Castellain
English poet. During World War II he served as a tank commander in North Africa, where he wrote some of his finest poems, published after his death in Alamein to Zem Zem (1946). His Collected Poems were published in 1951. His poem `Simplify Me When I'm Dead` is a powerfully moving vision of his ow...

domain
(Internet) On the Internet, segment of an address that specifies an organization, its type, or its country of origin. All countries except the USA use a final two-letter code such as ca for Canada and uk for the UK. A us suffix exists for the USA, but is not widely used. US addresses usual...

dot pitch
In computing, distance between the dots that make up the picture on a computer monitor. The smaller the dot pitch, the better and finer-grained the picture

doctors, history of
Throughout the history of medicine, the role, status, and required qualifications of a doctor have changed. At various times doctors have been gods, priests, or scientists, or even viewed as a waste of money or the agents of death. Doctors have relied on prayer, herbal potions, observation, cleanliness, or scientific knowledge to treat or prevent i...

double circulation
In mammals, the characteristic blood circulatory system. The heart is divided into two halves, each half working as a separate pump. One side of the heart pumps blood to the lungs and back to the heart. The other side of the heart pumps blood to all other parts of the body and back to the heart. Deoxygenated blood – that is, blood with a reduc...

Dodekanisos
Greek for the Dodecanese, a group of islands in the Aegean Sea

doggerel
Poetical verse written with little regard to rhythm or rhyme. Originally the term was applied to a genre of loose, irregular verses, and it is also used to refer to poetry that is badly written

Doherty, Berlie
English novelist. She has written a wide variety of books in various genres for children and adults. Her published works include picture books, short stories, poetry, and the screenplay of her novel White Peak Farm, for which she was awarded the New York Film and TV Award. Her adult fantasy novels include Children of Win...

DPhil
Abbreviation for Doctor of Philosophy

DPP
Abbreviation for Director of Public Prosecutions

dpi
Abbreviation for dots per inch, measure of the resolution of images produced by computer screens and printers. The dot pitch limits the maximum number of dots per inch (the density of illuminated points). This is usually greater than the screen resolution, which is given in terms of pixels (picture elements) such as 800 x 600. The number of dots pe...

drag
Resistance to motion a body experiences when passing through a fluid – gas or liquid. The aerodynamic drag aircraft experience when travelling through the air represents a great waste of power, so they must be carefully shaped, or streamlined, to reduce drag to a minimum. Cars benefit from streamlining, and aerodynamic drag is used to slow dow...

dry point
In printmaking, a technique of engraving on copper, using a hard, sharp tool. The resulting lines tend to be fine and angular, with a strong furry edge created by the metal shavings. Dürer, Rembrandt, and Max Beckmann were outstanding exponents

Dryden, John
English poet and dramatist. He is noted for his satirical verse and for his use of the heroic couplet. His poetry includes the verse satire Absalom and Achitophel (1681), Annus Mirabilis (1667), and `A Song for St Cecilia's Day` (1687). Plays include the heroic drama The Conquest of Grana...

dryad
In Greek mythology, a forest nymph or tree spirit, especially of the oak. Each tree had a hamadryad who lived and died with it, from the Greek hama meaning `together`

drum
Any of a class of percussion instruments consisting of a frame or hollow vessel of wood, metal, or earthenware with a membrane of hide or plastic stretched across one or both ends. Drums are usually sounded by striking the membrane with the hands, a stick, or pair of sticks. They are among the oldest instruments known and exist in a wide variety of...

drug misuse
Illegal use of drugs for nontherapeutic purposes. Under the 1971 UK Misuse of Drugs regulations, illegal drugs include: Class A substances, such as heroin, LSD (acid), cocaine, ecstasy, heroin, magic mushrooms prepared for use, and amphetamines (speed) prepared for injection; Class B substances, such as amphetamines (speed) not prepared for...

Druidism
Religion of the Celtic peoples of the pre-Christian British Isles and Gaul. The word is derived from the Greek drus (`oak`), a tree regarded by the Druids as sacred. One of the Druids' chief rites was the cutting of mistletoe from the oak with a golden sickle. They taught the immortality of the soul and a reinca...

dream
Series of events or images perceived through the mind during sleep. Their function is unknown, but Sigmund Freud saw them as wish fulfilment (nightmares being failed dreams prompted by fears of `repressed` impulses). Dreams occur in periods of rapid eye movement (REM) by the sleeper, when the cortex of the brain is approximately as active...

Dreyfus, Alfred
French army officer, victim of miscarriage of justice, anti-Semitism, and cover-up. Employed in the War Ministry, in 1894 he was accused of betraying military secrets to Germany, court-martialled, and sent to the penal colony on Devil's Island, French Guiana. When his innocence was discovered in 1896 the military establishment tried...

Dresden
Capital of the Land (administrative region) of Saxony, Germany, lying in a wide basin in the upper Elbe Valley; population (2003 est) 473,300. An industrial and cultural centre, and a large inland port, Dresden was a district capital within the former state of East Germany, the German Democratic Republic, and became a state c...

draughts
Board game with elements of a simplified form of chess. Each of the two players has 12 disc-shaped pieces, and attempts either to capture all the opponent's pieces or to block their movements

Dravidian
Member of a group of non-Indo-European peoples of the Deccan region of India and northern Sri Lanka. The Dravidian language family is large, with about 20 languages spoken in southern India; the main ones are Tamil,which has a literary tradition 2,000 years old; Kanarese; Telugu; Malayalam; and Tulu

dry rot
Infection of timber in damp conditions by fungi (see fungus), such as Merulius lacrymans, that form a threadlike surface. Whitish at first, the fungus later reddens as reproductive spores are formed. Tentacles from the fungus also work their way into the timber, making it dry-looking and brittle. Dry rot spreads rapidly throu...

Draco
(constellation) Large but faint constellation represented as a dragon coiled around the north celestial pole. Due to precession (Earth's axial wobble), the star Alpha Draconis (Thuban) was the pole star 4,700 years ago. This star seems to have faded, for it is no longer the brightest star ...

dromedary
Click images to enlargeVariety of Arabian camel. The dromedary or one-humped camel has been domesticated since 400 BC. During a long period without water, it can lose up to one-quarter of its body weight without ill effects. The dromedary's long domestication means that its original range is not known. It is u...

dragonfly
Click images to enlargeAny of numerous insects of the order Odonata, including the damselfly. They all have long narrow bodies, two pairs of almost equal-sized, glassy wings with a network of veins; short, bristlelike antennae; powerful, `toothed` mouthparts; and very large compound eyes which ma...

dragon
(zoology) Name popularly given to various sorts of lizard. These include the flying dragon Draco volans of southeast Asia; the komodo dragon Varanus komodoensis of Indonesia, at over 3 m/10 ft the largest living lizard; and some Australian liza...

draft
(military) Compulsory military service; also known as conscription

drupe
Fleshy fruit containing one or more seeds which are surrounded by a hard, protective layer – for example cherry, almond, and plum. The wall of the fruit (pericarp) is differentiated into the outer skin (exocarp), the fleshy layer of tissues (mesocarp), and the hard layer surrounding the seed (endocarp). The coconut is a drupe, but here the per...

Druze
Religious sect in the Middle East of some 300,000 people. It began as a branch of Shiite Islam, based on a belief in the divinity of the Fatimid caliph al-Hakim (996–1021) and that he will return at the end of time. Their particular doctrines are kept secret, even from the majority of members. They refer to themselves as the Mowahhidoon, m...

Drake, Francis
English buccaneer and explorer. After enriching himself as a pirate against Spanish interests in the Caribbean between 1567 and 1572, as well as in the slave trade, he was sponsored by Elizabeth I for an expedition to the Pacific, sailing round the world from 1577 to 1580 in the Golden Hind, robbing Spanish ships as he went. This...

dragoon
Mounted soldier who carried an infantry weapon such as a `dragon`, or short musket, as used by the French army in the 16th century. The name was retained by some later regiments after the original meaning became obsolete

Dracula
In the novel Dracula (1897) by Bram Stoker, the caped count who, as a vampire, drinks the blood of beautiful women. The original of Dracula is thought to have been Vlad Tepes, or Vlad the Impaler, ruler of medieval Wallachia, who used to impale his victims and then mock them

Drabble, Margaret
English writer. Her novels portray contemporary life with toughness and sensitivity, often through the eyes of intelligent modern women. They include The Millstone (1965), The Ice Age (1977), The Middle Ground (1980), the trilogy The Radiant Way (1987), A Natural C...

Draco
(politician) Athenian politician, the first to codify the laws of the Athenian city-state. These were notorious for their severity; hence draconian, meaning particularly harsh

drilling
Common woodworking and metal machinery process that involves boring holes with a drill bit. The commonest kind of drill bit is the fluted drill, which has spiral grooves around it to allow the cut material to escape. In the oil industry, rotary drilling is used to bore oil wells. The drill bit usually consists of a number of toothed cutting wheels,...

drama
Literary genre of scripted work. A theatrical drama is intended to be performed by actors for an audience. Verse and prose drama can both be performed (often in the same work), although dramas are also sometimes written to be read and not performed. The term is used collectively to group plays into historical or stylistic periods – for example...

drug and alcohol dependence
Physical or psychological craving for addictive drugs such as alcohol, nicotine, narcotics, tranquillizers, or stimulants (for example, amphetamines). Such substances can alter mood or behaviour. When dependence is established, sudden withdrawal from the drug can cause unpleasant physical and/or psychological reactions, which may be dangerous. ...

drag racing
Motor sport popular in the USA. High-powered single-seater cars with large rear and small front wheels are timed over a 402.2 m/440 yd strip. Speeds of up to 530 kph/330 mph have been attained by the fastest type of drag-racing cars, `top fuel` dragsters – the other categories of professional drag-racing vehic...

dramatis personae
(Latin) the characters in a play

dressage
Method of training a horse to carry out a predetermined routine of specified movements. Points are awarded for discipline and style

Drenthe
Low-lying northern province of the Netherlands, south of Groningen and Friesland; area 2,660 sq km/1,027 sq mi; population (2003 est) 483,500. The main cities are Assen (capital), Emmen (the chief industrial centre), and Hoogeveen. The terrain is fenland and moors, with well-drained clay and peat soils. The chief industry is pet...