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


Iban
The Dyak people of central Borneo. Approximately 250,000 Iban live in the interior uplands of Sarawak, while another 10,000 live in the border area of western Kalimantan. Traditionally the Iban live in long houses divided into separate family units, and practise shifting cultivation. Their languages belong to the Austronesian family

Ibo
Member of a West African people occupying southeastern Nigeria and numbering about 18 million. Primarily subsistence farmers, they also trade and export palm oil and kernels, and make pottery, woodcarvings, and music. They are divided into five main groups, and their languages belong to the Kwa branch of the Niger-Congo family. Traditionally la...

IBM
Multinational company, the largest manufacturer of computers in the world. The company is a descendant of the Tabulating Machine Company, formed in 1896 by US inventor Herman Hollerith to exploit his punched-card machines. It adopted its present name in 1924. By 1991 it had an annual turnover of US$64.8 billion and employed about 345,000 pe...

Ibrahim
Arabic name for the Old Testament prophet Abraham, regarded as an important figure and prophet in Islam

ice
(chemistry) Solid formed by water when it freezes. It is colourless and its crystals are hexagonal. The water molecules are held together by hydrogen bonds. The freezing point of water at 1.013 bar, used as a standard for measuring temperature, is 0° for the Celsius and Réaumur scale...

Icarus
(astronomy) In astronomy, Apollo asteroid 1.5 km/1 mi in diameter, discovered in 1949 by German-born US astronomer Walter Baade. It orbits the Sun every 409 days at a distance of 28–300 million km/18–186 million mi (0.19–2.0 astronomical units). It was the first aste...

ichneumon fly
Any of a large group of parasitic wasps. There are several thousand species in Europe, North America, and other regions. They have slender bodies, and the females have unusually long, curved ovipositors (egg-laying instruments) that can pierce several inches of wood. The eggs are laid in the eggs, larvae, or pupae of other insects, usually butt...

Icelandic language
Member of the northern Germanic branch of the Indo-European language family, spoken only in Iceland and the most conservative in form of the Scandinavian languages. Despite seven centuries of Danish rule, lasting until 1918, Icelandic has remained virtually unchanged since the 12th century. Since independence in 1918, Icelandic has experienced ...

icon
(computing) In computing, a small picture on the computer screen, or VDU, representing an object or function that the user may manipulate or otherwise use. It is a feature of graphical user interface (GUI) systems. Icons make computers easier to use by allowing the user to point to and click w...

Icarus
(mythology) In Greek mythology, the son of Daedalus, who with his father escaped from the labyrinth in Crete by making wings of feathers fastened with wax. Icarus plunged to his death when he flew too near the Sun and the wax melted

Iceni
Ancient people of eastern England, who revolted against Roman occupation under the chieftainship of Boudicca

iconoclast
Literally, a person who attacks religious images, originally in obedience to the injunction of the Second Commandment not to worship `graven images`. Under the influence of Islam and Judaism, an iconoclastic movement calling for the destruction of religious images developed in the Byzantine Empire, and was endorsed by the Emperor Leo III ...

icon
(religion) In the Greek or Eastern Orthodox Church, a religious picture of Jesus, Mary, an angel, or a saint, in painting, low relief, or mosaic; the full face must always be shown. Painted icons were traditionally made on wood. After the 17th century, and mainly in Russia, a riza...

ice age
Any period of extensive glaciation (in which icesheets and icecaps expand over the Earth) occurring in the Earth's history, but particularly that in the Pleistocene epoch (last 2 million years), immediately preceding historic times. On the North American continent, glaciers reached as far south as the Great Lakes, and an icesheet spread over no...

iceberg
Click images to enlargeFloating mass of ice, about 80% of which is submerged, rising sometimes to 100 m/300 ft above sea level. Glaciers that reach the coast become extended into a broad foot; as this enters the sea, masses break off and drift towards temperate latitudes, becoming a danger to shipping

Iceland
Click images to enlargeIsland country in the North Atlantic Ocean, situated south of the Arctic Circle, between Greenland and Norway. Government Iceland is a multiparty parliamentary democracy. The 1944 constitution provides for a president, as a ceremonial head of state, and a legislature, the 63-member Althing, both...

ice hockey
Click images to enlargeGame played on ice between two teams of six, developed in Canada from field hockey or bandy. Players, who wear skates and protective clothing, use a curved stick to advance the puck (a rubber disc) and shoot it at the opponents' goal, a netted cage, guarded by the goaltender, or goalie. The othe...

iconography
In art history, a way to classify works of art with reference to its subject matter, themes, and symbolism, rather than style. Iconographic study can also be used when analysing the style of a work. Attaching significance to symbols can help to identify subject matter (for example, a saint holding keys usually represents St Peter) and makes it poss...

ice
(medicine) Form of methamphetamine that is smoked for its stimulating effect; its use has been illegal in the USA since 1989. Its use may be followed by a period of depression and psychosis

ice-skating
See skating

IC
Abbreviation for integrated circuit

iceman
Nickname given to the preserved body of a prehistoric man discovered in a glacier on the Austrian–Italian border in 1991. On the basis of the clothing and associated artefacts, the body was at first believed to be 4,000 years old, from the Bronze Age. Carbon dating established its age at about 5,300 years. The discovery led to a reappraisal of...

iconostasis
In Byzantine architecture and the Orthodox Church, a screen separating the sanctuary (containing the altar) from the congregation in the nave of the church. It is pierced by three doors, and, since the 14th–15th centuries, serves as a stand for icons, large religious pictures of Jesus, Mary, and the apostles and saints. A row of smaller icons ...

Ides
In the Roman calendar, the 15th day of March, May, July, and October, and the 13th day of all other months (the word originally indicated the full moon); Julius Caesar was assassinated on the Ides of March 44 BC

idealism
In philosophy, the theory that states that the external world is fundamentally immaterial and a dimension of the mind. Objects in the world exist but, according to this theory, they lack substance

identikit
A set of drawings of different parts of the face used to compose a likeness of a person for identification. It was evolved by Hugh C McDonald in the USA. It has largely been replaced by photofit, based on photographs, which produces a more realistic likeness

id
In Freudian psychology, the mass of motivational and instinctual elements of the human mind, whose activity is largely governed by the arousal of specific needs. It is regarded as the unconscious element of the human psyche, and is said to be in conflict with the ego and the superego

id.
Abbreviation for idem (Latin `the same`), used in reference citation

Idaho
State of northwestern USA, bordered to the east by Montana and Wyoming, to the south by Utah and Nevada, to the west by Oregon and Washington, and to the north by British Columbia, Canada; area 214,314 sq km/82,747 sq mi; population (2006) 1,466,500; capital Boise. It is largely mount...

idiom
Group of words with a meaning of its own that is different from the meanings of each individual word in the group (for example, `It's raining cats and dogs` means `It's raining heavily` and kick the bucket means `to die`); also a style of expression in writing, speech, or music that is ty...

idyll
Genre of short pastoral poetry or prose, often an artistic or picturesque narrative or description of rustic life. The term `idyllic` refers to the supposed perfection of the countryside, often in sharp contrast to the lives of the writer and the reader. In the 16th and 17th centuries pastoral poetry, praising a shepherd's life, was w...

IDE
Interface for mass-storage devices where the controller is integrated into the disk drive (either a hard disk, a high-capacity removable disk drive, or a CD-ROM drive). It is the most popular interface used in modern hard disks and is most commonly used to refer to the advanced technology attachment (ATA) specification. IDE is known by ...

Ifugao
An indigenous people of northern Luzon in the Philippines, numbering approximately 70,000. In addition to practising shifting cultivation on highland slopes, they build elaborate terraced rice fields. Their language belongs to the Austronesian family. The Ifugao live in scattered hamlets and traditionally recognize a class of nobles, kadan...

igneous rock
Click images to enlargeRock formed from the cooling and solidification of molten rock called magma. The acidic nature of this rock type means that areas with underlying igneous rock are particularly susceptible to the effects of acid rain. Igneous rocks that crystallize slowly from magma below the Earth's surface have...

iguanodon
Plant-eating dinosaur whose remains are found in deposits of the Lower Cretaceous age, together with the remains of other dinosaurs of the same order (ornithiscians) such as stegosaurus and triceratops. It was 5–10 m/16–32 ft long and, when standing upright, 4 m/13 ft tall. It walked on its hind legs, using its long tail to ba...

Ignatius of Antioch, St
Christian martyr. Traditionally a disciple of St John, he was bishop of Antioch, and was thrown to the wild beasts in Rome. He wrote seven epistles, important documents of the early Christian church. Feast day 1 February

iguana
Any of about 700 species of lizard, chiefly found in the Americas. The common iguana (I. iguana) of Central and South America is a vegetarian and may reach 2 m/6 ft in length. (Especially genus Iguana, family Iguanidae.)

ignition coil
Transformer that is an essential part of a petrol engine's ignition system. It consists of two wire coils wound around an iron core. The primary coil, which is connected to the car battery, has only a few turns. The secondary coil, connected via the distributor to the spark plugs, has many turns. The coil takes in a low voltage (usually 12 volt...

ignis fatuus
Another name for will-o'-the-wisp

Iguaçu Falls
Waterfall in South America, on the border between Brazil and Argentina. The falls have a width of 4 km/2.5 mi, and lie 19 km/12 mi above the junction of the River Iguaçu with the Paraná. The falls are divided by forested rocky islands and form a spectacular tourist attraction. The w...

ignition temperature
Minimum temperature to which a substance must be heated before it will spontaneously burn independently of the source of heat; for example, ethanol has an ignition temperature of 425°C/798°F and a flash point of 12°C/54°F

igloo
Temporary Inuit dwelling constructed of blocks of ice piled high in a dome. The entranceway is long and narrow

IJsselmeer
Lake in the Netherlands, area 1,217 sq km/470 sq mi. It was formed in 1932 after the Zuider Zee was cut off from the North Sea by a dike 32 km/20 mi long (the Afsluitdijk); it has been freshwater since 1944. The rivers Vecht, IJssel, and Zwatewater flow into the lake. Four polders (reclaimed flatlands) have been recov...

Ikhnaton
Another name for Akhenaton, pharaoh of Egypt

Ile de la Tortue
Island off the north coast of Haiti; area 180 sq km/69 sq mi. It was a pirate lair during the 17th century

Illyria
Ancient name for the eastern coastal region of the Adriatic, north of the Gulf of Corinth. Its three constituent districts were Dalmatia, Iapydia, and Liburnia. It later formed the Roman province of Illyricum. The Albanians are the survivors of its ancient peoples. Greek colonies were established along the Illyrian coast in the 7th or early 6th cen...

illegitimacy
In law, the status of a child born to a mother who is not legally married; a child may be legitimized by subsequent marriage of the parents. The nationality of the child is usually that of the mother

Ile-de-France
Region of northern France; area 12,012 sq km/4,638 sq mi; population (1999 est) 10,952,000. It includes the French capital, Paris, and the towns of Versailles, Sèvres, and St-Cloud, and comprises the départements of Essonne, Val-de-Marne, Val-d'Oise, Ville de Paris, Seine-et-Marne...

ILS
Abbreviation for instrument landing system, an automatic system for assisting aircraft landing at airports

Illimani
Highest peak in the Bolivian Andes, rising to 6,402 m/21,004 ft east of the city of La Paz

Ilium
In classical mythology, an alternative name for the city of Troy, taken from its founder Ilus

Illinois
Midwestern state of the USA, bordered to the east by Indiana, to the southeast by Kentucky, with the Ohio River serving as a boundary, to the west by Missouri and Iowa, with the Mississippi River as a boundary, and to the north by Wisconsin; area 143,962 sq km/55,584 sq mi; population (20...

ileum
Part of the small intestine of the digestive system, between the duodenum and the colon, that absorbs digested food. Its wall is muscular so that waves of contraction (peristalsis) can mix the food and push it forward. Numerous fingerlike projections, or villi, point inwards from the wall, increasing...

illusionism
In art, the two-dimensional representation of a subject in such a way that it seems to exist as a real object in three dimensions. Techniques include the careful use of perspective and shading. A form of illusionism is the trompe l'oeil picture; another is in baroque art where pictorial space was made an extension of real space. Baroque...

implantation
In mammals, the process by which the developing embryo attaches itself to the wall of the mother's uterus and stimulates the development of the placenta. In humans it occurs 6–8 days after ovulation. In some species, such as seals and bats, implantation is delayed for several months, during ...

imprinting
In ethology, the process whereby a young animal learns to recognize both specific individuals (for example, its mother) and its own species. Imprinting is characteristically an automatic response to specific stimuli at a time when the animal is especially sensitive to those stimuli (the sensitive period). Thus, goslings learn to recognize their mot...

impala
African antelope found from Kenya to South Africa in savannahs and open woodland. The body is sandy brown. Males have lyre-shaped horns up to 75 cm/2.5 ft long. Impala grow up to 1.5 m/5 ft long and 90 cm/3 ft tall. They live in herds and spring high in the air when alarmed. (Species ...

imaginary number
Term often used to describe the non-real element of a complex number. For the complex number (a + ib), ib is the imaginary number where i = √(-1), and b any real number

immunity
Click images to enlargeProtection that organisms have against foreign micro-organisms, such as bacteria and viruses, and against cancerous cells (see cancer). The cells that provide this protection are called white blood cells, or leucocytes, and make up the immune system. They include neutrophils and macrophages, whi...

immunosuppressive
Any drug that suppresses the body's normal immune responses to infection or foreign tissue. It is used in the treatment of autoimmune disease (see autoimmunity); as part of chemotherapy for leukaemias, lymphomas, and other cancers; and to help prevent rejection following organ transplantation. Immunosuppressed patients are at greatly in...

imports
Products or services that one country purchases from another for domestic consumption, or for processing and re-exporting (Hong Kong, for example, is heavily dependent on imports for its export business). Imports may be visible (goods) or invisible (services). If an importing country does not have a counterbalancing value of exports, it may exp...

imperialism
Click images to enlargePolicy of extending the power and rule of a government beyond its own boundaries. A country may attempt to dominate others by direct rule and settlement – the establishment of a colony – or by less obvious means such as control of markets for goods or raw materials. These less obvious mean...

impeachment
Judicial procedure by which government officials are accused of wrongdoing and brought to trial before a legislative body. In the USA the House of Representatives may impeach offenders to be tried before the Senate, as in the case of President Andrew Johnson in 1868. Richard Nixon resigned the US presidency in 1974 when threatened by impeachment. P...

Imhotep
Egyptian physician, architect, and vizier (chief adviser) of King Zoser (3rd dynasty). He is thought to have designed the step pyramid at Sakkara, the first pyramid ever constructed. Reputedly King Zoser's doctor, Imhotep was raised to the status of god of healing after his death and his tomb (believed to be in the north Sakkara cemetery) becam...

Impressionism
Movement in painting that originated in France in the 1860s and had enormous influence in European and North American painting in the late 19th century. The Impressionists wanted to depict real life, to paint straight from nature, and to capture the changing effects of light. The term was first used abusively to describe Claude Monet's painting...

Imphal
Capital of Manipur state on the Manipur River, India; population (2001) 217,300. It is a communications and trade centre (tobacco, sugar, fruit). Imphal was besieged between March and June 1944, when Japan invaded Assam, but held out with the help of supplies dropped by air (see Imphal, Battle of)

immigration and emigration
Movement of people from one country to another. Immigration is movement to a country; emigration is movement from a country. Immigration or emigration on a large scale is often for economic reasons or because of religious, political, or social persecution (which may create refugees), and often results in restrictive legislation by individual co...

Immaculate Conception
In the Roman Catholic Church, the belief that the Virgin Mary was, by a special act of grace, preserved free from original sin from the moment she was conceived. This article of the Catholic faith was for centuries the subject of heated controversy, opposed by St Thomas Aquinas and other theologians, but generally accepted from about the 16th centu...

imago
Sexually mature stage of an insect

imam
In a mosque, the leader of congregational prayer, but generally any notable Islamic leader. Shiite Muslims accept the imam as empowered to intervene between God and humans, whereas Sunni Muslims believe that the relationship between God and human is direct

impedance
Total opposition of a circuit to the passage of alternating electric current. It includes the resistance R and the reactance X (caused by capacitance or inductance); the impedance can then be found using the equation Z2 = R2
impromptu
In music, a 19th-century character piece in the style of an improvisation. Composers of piano impromptus include Schubert and Chopin

imperial system
Traditional system of units developed in the UK, based largely on the foot, pound, and second (f.p.s.) system

IMF
Abbreviation for International Monetary Fund

immunization
Process of conferring immunity to infectious disease by artificial methods, in other words making someone not liable to catch a disease. The most widely used technique is vaccination (see vaccine). Immunization is an important public health measure. If most of the population has been immunized against a particular disease, it is impossible for an e...

immunoglobulin
Human globulin protein that can be separated from blood and administered to confer immediate immunity on the recipient. It participates in the immune reaction as the antibody for a specific antigen (disease-causing agent). Normal immunoglobulin (gamma globulin) is the fraction of the blood serum that, in general, contains the most antibodies, a...

Imagism
Movement in Anglo-American poetry that flourished from 1912 to 1914 and affected much US and British poetry and critical thinking thereafter. A central figure was Ezra Pound, who asserted the principles of free verse, complex imagery, and poetic impersonality. Pound encouraged Hilda Doolittle to sign her verse H D Imagiste and in 1914 edited th...

image
(physics) Picture or appearance of a real object, formed by light that passes through a lens or is reflected from a mirror. If rays of light actually pass through an image, it is called a real image. Real images, such as those produced by a camera or projector lens, can be projected onto a scr...

immunodeficient
Lacking one or more elements of a working immune system. Immune deficiency is the term generally used for patients who are born with such a defect, while those who acquire such a deficiency later in life are referred to as immunocompromised or immunosuppressed. A serious impairment of the immune system is sometimes known as SCID, or severe combined...

immunocompromised
Lacking a fully effective immune system. The term is most often used in connection with infections such as AIDS where the virus interferes with the immune response (see immunity). Other factors that can impair the immune response are pregnancy, diabetes, old age, malnutrition, and extreme stress, making someone susceptible to infections by micro...

immiscible
Describing liquids that will not mix with each other, such as oil and water. When two immiscible liquids are shaken together, an emulsion is produced. This normally forms separate layers on being left to stand. Immiscible liquids may be separated using a separating funnel

immediate access memory
In computing, memory provided in the central processing unit to store the programs and data in current use

impact printer
Computer printer that creates characters by striking an inked ribbon against the paper beneath. Examples of impact printers are dot-matrix printers, daisywheel printers, and most types of line printer. Impact printers are noisier and slower than nonimpact printers, such as ink-jet and laser printers, but can be used to produce carbon copies

import file
In computing, a file that can be read by a program even though it was produced as an export file by a different program or make of computer

imperium
In ancient Rome, the legal and military power granted to certain magistrates, for example, consul, praetor, or dictator. The term also extends to command over a province (proconsul). Repeated grants of imperium, with the additional powers of a tribune, became the basis of the principate of Augustus and subsequent emperors. The term was also used fo...

imperative
In grammar, the mood of the verb in a sentence in which a command or request is given (`Take a seat`; `Speak up!`). An imperative sentence gives an instruction to be obeyed, and is often followed by an exclamation mark, as in `Stand! Now turn to the right.` The subject word is not usually used in commands, ...

imagery
Use of metaphor, simile, and other figures of speech to create a visual picture to stimulate the imagination and the senses, often helping the reader to experience a situation more vividly; this includes the use of symbols and picture-words, and descriptive language, such as the use of adjectives and adverbs. The aim is to clarify or explai...

improvisation
(arts) Creating a play, a poem, or any other imaginative work, without preparation. The term is used in GCSE English for the unprepared piece of drama most students undertake as part of their assessment in the Speaking and Listening section of their examination. The word has already been twist...

impasto
In painting, surface texture achieved by a combination of thickly applied paint (usually oil) and bold work with a brush or palette knife. Van Gogh was a master of impasto

improvisation
(music) Creating music `on the spot` as it is being performed. It is a principal means of artistic expression among oral cultures, including popular music and jazz in the West. It is based on standard models, including song form (ABA), modes, raga, or scales of specific significance,...

Imphal, Battle of
In World War II, Allied operation in 1944 to hold Japanese forces back from an important road junction in the Manipur district of northeast India, 600 km/375 mi northwest of Kolkata (formerly Calcutta); the turning point in the Burma campaign

imperialism, US
From 1945, alleged policy of the USA to dominate countries outside US territory. Since the end of World War II the USA has often been accused of engaging in a policy similar to the colonialism of the European nations in the 18th and 19th centuries. According to this allegation, the USA has sought to dominate as much of the world as possible for its...

imperialism, Soviet
From 1945, policy of the USSR to control and influence countries outside Soviet territory during the Cold War 1945–89, allegedly to promote the spread of communist ideology throughout the world. Following World War II, former independent countries in Eastern Europe came under Soviet control and other parts of the world were drawn into the USSR...

imperialism, 19th-century European
The empires of Europe, including those of the UK, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Portugal, Spain, and Russia, reached their greatest extent in the 19th century. Although partly a continuation of the expansionist policies of previous centuries, these nations increased their efforts to extend their power and influence across the gl...

Invergordon Mutiny
Incident in the British Atlantic Fleet, Cromarty Firth, Scotland, on 15 September 1931. Ratings refused to prepare the ships for sea following the government's cuts in their pay; the cuts were consequently modified

International, the
Coordinating body established by labour and socialist organizations, including: First International or International Working Men's Association (1864–72), formed in London under Karl Marx; Second International (1889–1940), founded in Paris; Third (Socialist) International or Comintern (1919–43), formed in Moscow by the...

Interpol
Agency founded following the Second International Judicial Police Conference (1923) with its headquarters in Vienna, and reconstituted after World War II with its headquarters in Paris. It has an international criminal register, fingerprint file, and methods index. There are 158 countries contributing to Interpol's annual budget of around £...

international law
Body of rules generally accepted as governing the relations between countries, pioneered by Hugo Grotius, especially in matters of human rights, territory, and war. Neither the League of Nations nor the United Nations proved able to enforce international law, successes being achieved only when the law coincided with the aims of a predominant major ...

Inverness
Main town in, and the administrative centre of, Highland unitary authority, Scotland, at the head of the Moray Firth, lying in a sheltered site at the mouth of the River Ness; population (2001) 44,100. It is a tourist centre with tanning, oil-related engineering, distilling, and electronics industries. Culloden Moor, scene of the massacre o...

International Brigade
International volunteer force on the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War (1936–39)