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


KANU
Political party founded in 1944 and led by Jomo Kenyatta from 1947, when it was the Kenya African Union (KAU); it became KANU on independence in 1964. The party formed Kenyatta's political power base in 1963 when he became prime minister; in 1964 he became the first president of Kenya. KANU was the sole political party 1982–91. It ...

Kamenev, Lev Borisovich
Russian leader of the Bolshevik movement after 1917 who, with Stalin and Zinovyev, formed a ruling triumvirate in the USSR after Lenin's death in 1924. His alignment with the Trotskyists led to his dismissal from office and from the Communist Party by Stalin in 1926. Arrested in 1934 after Kirov's assassination, Kamenev was secretly tried a...

kale
Type of cabbage

karyotype
In biology, the set of chromosomes characteristic of a given species. It is described as the number, shape, and size of the chromosomes in a single cell of an organism. In humans, for example, the karyotype consists of 46 chromosomes, in mice 40, crayfish 200, and in fruit flies 8. The diagrammatic r...

karate
One of the martial arts. Karate is a type of unarmed combat derived from kempo, a form of the Chinese Shaolin boxing. It became popular in the West in the 1930s

Kashmiri
Inhabitants of or natives to the state of Jammu and Kashmir, a disputed territory divided between India and Pakistan. There are approximately 6 million Kashmiris, 4 million of whom live on the Indian side of the ceasefire line

Kazakh
A pastoral Kyrgyz people of Kazakhstan. Kazakhs also live in China (Xinjiang, Gansu, and Qinghai), Mongolia, and Afghanistan. There are 5–7 million speakers of Kazakh, a Turkic language belonging to the Altaic family. They are predominantly Sunni Muslim, although pre-Islamic customs have survived. Kazakhs are descendants of nomadic herdspe...

Kali-Yuga
In Hinduism, the last of the four yugas (ages) that make up one cycle of creation. The Kali-Yuga, in which Hindus believe we are now living, is characterized by wickedness and disaster, and leads up to the destruction of this world in preparation for a new creation and a new cycle of yugas

Kalki
In Hinduism, the last avatar (manifestation) of Vishnu, who will appear at the end of the Kali-Yuga, or final age of the world, to destroy it in readiness for a new creation

Kampuchea
Former name (1975–89) of Cambodia

Kasparov, Gary Kimovich
Azerbaijani chess player who has represented Russia in international competition. When he beat his compatriot Anatoly Karpov to win the world title in 1985, he was the youngest ever champion at 22 years 210 days. He held this crown for 15 years until November 2000 when he was beaten by a former Russi...

Ka Ngwane
Former black homeland in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa; population (1991) 779,200

Kayseri
Capital of Kayseri province, central Turkey; population (2000) 536,400. It produces textiles, carpets, and tiles. In Roman times it was capital of the province of Cappadocia

Karloff, Boris
English-born US actor. He achieved Hollywood stardom with his role as the monster in the film Frankenstein (1931). Several sequels followed, as well as appearances in such films as The Mummy (1932), Scarface (1932), The Lost Patrol (1934), The Body Snatcher<...

Kanto
Flat, densely populated region of east Honshu island, Japan; area 32,377 sq km/12,501 sq mi; population (1995) 1,423,800. It is the largest plain and most heavily populated area in Japan. The chief city is Tokyo

kazoo
Simple wind instrument adding a buzzing quality to the singing voice on the principle of `comb and paper` music

karst
Landscape characterized by remarkable surface and underground forms, created as a result of the action of water on permeable limestone. The feature takes its name from the Karst (meaning dry) region on the Adriatic coast of Slovenia and Croatia, but the name is applied to landscapes throughout the world, the most dramatic of which is found near the...

Kansas
State in central USA, bordered to the south by Oklahoma, to the west by Colorado, to the north by Nebraska, and to the east by Missouri; area 211,900 sq km/81,815 sq mi; population (2006) 2,764,100; capital Topeka. The state's nickname comes from its national flower. Situated in t...

Kansas City
City and administrative headquarters of Wyandotte County, northeast Kansas, USA, at the confluence of the Kansas and Missouri rivers; population (2000 est) 146,900. It is adjacent to Kansas City, Missouri. The city is an agricultural market with stockyards, meatpacking plants, grain elevators, and flour mills. Other industries include oil refin...

Kannada
Language spoken in southern India, the official state language of Karnataka; also spoken in Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra. There are over 20 million speakers of Kannada, which belongs to the Dravidian family. Written records in Kannada date from the 5th century AD

Kazakhstan
Country in central Asia, bounded north by Russia, west by the Caspian Sea, east by China, and south by Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan. Government The 1995 constitution provides for a strong presidential executive system, with a two-chamber parliament. Supreme executive power is held by the president, who is popularly elected to serve ...

kaolinite
White or greyish clay mineral, hydrated aluminium silicate, Al2Si2O5(OH)4, formed mainly by the decomposition of feldspar in granite. It is made up of platelike crystals, the atoms of which are bonded together in two-dimensional sheets, between which the...

Karadzic, Radovan
Montenegrin-born leader of the Bosnian Serbs' unofficial government 1992–96. He co-founded and became president of the Serbian Democratic Party of Bosnia-Herzegovina (SDS-BH) in 1990 and called for a single country that would unite all ethnic Serbs. In 1992 he launched the siege of Sarajevo, plunging the country into a prol...

kaolin
Click images to enlargeGroup of clay minerals, such as kaolinite, Al2Si2O5(OH)4, derived from the alteration of aluminium silicate minerals, such as feldspars and mica. It is used in medicine to treat digestive upsets, and in poult...

Kaddish
Ancient Jewish prayer in praise of God, normally regarded as a prayer to be said by the bereaved on behalf of a deceased parent, although there is no mention of death or mourning in it. It is in Aramaic apart from the last sentence, which is in Hebrew. A male mourner is traditionally required to chant the Kaddish at three services each day except t...

Karachay-Cherkessia
Republic in the southwestern Russian Federation, part of Stavropol territory; area 14,100 sq km/5,444 sq mi; population (1996) 436,000 (46% urban) (42% Russian, 31% Karachay). Cherkessk is the capital, and Karachayevsk is another city. The republic is located on the northern slopes of the Caucasus Mountains, with lowland ste...

katydid
One of over 4,000 insect species, most of which are tropical, related to grasshoppers. Members of this family have very long antennae and they tend to be wingless. The tympanal organs (`ears`) are on the forelegs. They may be either plant-eating or carnivorous. Some species are winged a...

Kalaallit Nunaat
Greenlandic name for Greenland

Kavanagh, Dan
Pseudonym of the English writer Julian Barnes, under which he has written detective novels

Kazan-retto
Group of Japanese islands in the Pacific; see Bonin and Volcano islands

Karskoye More
Russian name for the Kara Sea, part of the Arctic Ocean off the north coast of the Russian Federation

Karaganda
Former name of Qaraghandy, an industrial city in central-eastern Kazakhstan

Kathina
Theravada Buddhist robe-giving festival. It takes place in October/November, and celebrates the end of Vassa, the three-month retreat of ordained Buddhists. During Kathina, members of the Buddhist laity will visit the monastery, bringing food and gifts. People often gather around the path of the present-bearers, because touching the...

Kapilavastu
Childhood home of Siddartha Gautama, the Buddha, close to his birthplace at Lumbini in Nepal, India. Kapilavastu was the capital of his father's domain as chief of the Shakya clan, and the prince lived in the palace until about the age of 29, when he left his family and life of luxury to seek an answer to the unhappiness of the world

karah prashad
In Sikhism, blessed pudding made from a rich mixture of semolina, milk, sugar, and butter, cooked to make a thick, sweet paste. It is shared from a communal bowl by the congregation at the end of ordinary services, and on special occasions, such as a naming ceremony (Nam Karan), Amrit Sanskar (baptism into the Khalsa), or marriage (Anand Karaj). Du...

kapel
Traditional skullcap worn by Orthodox Jewish males and Reform Jews of both sexes during worship. Some Jews, particularly the Orthodox sects, wear a kapel all the time. Jews consider covering the head to be a sign of respect to God

kashrut
In Judaism, the food laws of the Torah, as laid down in Deuteronomy. The kashrut specifies whether food is kosher (permitted) or trefah (forbidden)

Kabol
Dari name for Kabul, capital of Afghanistan

kayaking
See canoeing

KBE
Abbreviation for Knight (Commander of the Order) of the British Empire

kcal
Symbol for kilocalorie (see calorie)

Kesselring, Albert
German field marshal in World War II, commander of the Luftwaffe (air force) 1939–40, during the invasions of Poland and the Low Countries and the early stages of the Battle of Britain. He later served under Field Marshal Rommel in North Africa, took command in Italy in 1943, and was commander-in-chief on the western front March in 194...

Kerry
Click images to enlargeCounty of the Republic of Ireland, west of Cork, in the province of Munster; county town Tralee; area 4,700 sq km/1,814 sq mi; population (2002) 132,500. Industries include engineering, woollens, fishing, and farming (dairy farming in the north, cattle grazing in the south). Tourism ...

Kerguelen Islands
Volcanic archipelago in the Indian Ocean, part of the French Southern and Antarctic Territories; area 7,215 km/2,787 sq mi. They were discovered in 1772 by the Breton navigator Yves de Kerguelen and annexed by France in 1949. Uninhabited except for scientists (centre for joint study of geomagnetism with Russia), the islands support a unique...

Kerensky, Alexandr Feodorovich
Russian revolutionary politician, prime minister of the second provisional government before its collapse in November 1917, during the Russian Revolution. He was overthrown by the Bolshevik revolution and fled to France in 1918 and to the USA in 1940

Kerala
State of southwest India; area 38,864 sq km/15,006 sq mi; population (2001 est) 31,838,600. The capital is Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode and Kochi are other towns. The state extends along the southwest coast from Karnataka almost to the southern tip of India and is bounded on the east by the highlands of the Western Ghats. Industries...

Kent, William
English architect, landscape gardener, and interior designer. Working closely with Richard Burlington, he was foremost in introducing the Palladian style to Britain from Italy, excelling in richly carved, sumptuous interiors and furnishings, as at Holkham Hall, Norfolk, begun in 1734. Immensely versatile, he also worked in a neo-Gothic style, a...

Kennedy, Edward Moore
(`Ted`) US Democratic politician. He aided his brothers John and Robert Kennedy in their presidential campaigns of 1960 and 1968, respectively, and entered politics as a senator for Massachusetts in 1962. He failed to gain the Democratic Party presidential nomination in 1980, largely...

Kempis, Thomas à
Medieval German monk and religious writer; see Thomas à Kempis

Kemble,
(John) English actor and theatre manager. He excelled in tragedy, including the Shakespearean roles of Hamlet and Coriolanus. As manager of Drury Lane 1788–1803 and Covent Garden 1803–17 in London, he introduced many innovations in theatrical management, costume, and scenery

Kelvin scale
Temperature scale used by scientists. It begins at absolute zero (-273.15°C) and increases in kelvins, the same degree intervals as the Celsius scale; that is, 0°C is the same as 273.15 K and 100°C is 373.15 K. It is named after the Irish physicist William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin

Kelantan
State in northeastern Peninsular Malaysia; capital Kota Bharu; area 14,900 sq km/5,751 sq mi; population (2000 est) 1,289,200. Most of the state lies in the Kalentan river basin, which has a navigable channel leading 130 km/80 mi inland from the port of Tumpat on the South China Sea. The delta of the Kalentan River and the coast...

Kedah
State in northwestern Peninsular Malaysia; capital Alor Setar; area 9,400 sq km/3,628 sq mi; population (2000 est) 1,572,100. Products include rice, rubber, tapioca, tin, and tungsten. Kedah was transferred by Siam (Thailand) to Britain in 1909, and was one of the Unfederated Malay States until 1948

Keats, John
English poet. He produced work of the highest quality and promise, belonging to the artistic school of Romanticism, before dying at the age of 25. Poems (1817), Endymion (1818), the great odes (particularly `Ode to a Nightingale` and `Ode on a Grec...

Kenneth II
King of Scotland from 971, son of Malcolm I. He invaded Northumbria several times, and his chiefs were in constant conflict with Sigurd the Norwegian over the area of Scotland north of the River Spey. He is believed to have been murdered by his subjects

ketone
Member of the group of organic compounds containing the carbonyl group (CO) bonded to two atoms of carbon (instead of one carbon and one hydrogen as in aldehydes). Ketones are liquids or low-melting-point solids, slightly soluble in water. An example is propanone (acetone, CH3COCH3), used as a s...

kerosene
Thin oil obtained from the fractional distillation of crude oil (unrefined petroleum; a highly refined form is used in jet aircraft fuel. Kerosene is a mixture of hydrocarbons of the alkane series, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons with 11 or 12 carbon atoms. Boiling points range from 160°C/320°F to 250°C/480°F. Crud...

Kenyatta, Jomo
Kenyan nationalist politician, prime minister from 1963, as well as the first president of Kenya from 1964 until his death. He led the Kenya African Union from 1947 (KANU from 1963) and was active in liberating Kenya from British rule. A member of the Kikuyu ethnic group, Kenyatta was born near Fort Hall, son of a farmer. Brought up at a Church of ...

Kentigern, St
First bishop of Glasgow, born at Culross, Scotland. Anti-Christian factions forced him to flee to Wales, where he founded the monastery of St Asaph. In 573 he returned to Glasgow and founded the cathedral there. Feast day 14 January

Kean, Edmund
English tragic actor. He was noted for his portrayal of villainy in the Shakespearean roles of Shylock, Richard III, and Iago. He died on stage, playing Othello opposite his son as Iago

Keaton, Buster
(Joseph Francis) US comedian, actor, and film director. After being a star in vaudeville, he became one of the great comedians of the silent film era, with an inimitable deadpan expression masking a sophisticated acting ability. At his height he rivalled fellow comic actor Charlie Chaplin in p...

kestrel
Small hawk that breeds in Europe, Asia, and Africa. About 30 cm/1 ft long, the male has a bluish-grey head and tail and is light chestnut brown back with black spots on the back and pale with black spots underneath. The female is slightly larger and reddish brown above, with bars; she doe...

kea
Hawklike greenish parrot found in New Zealand. It eats insects, fruits, and discarded sheep offal. The Maori name imitates its cry. (Species Nestor notabilis, family Psittacidae, order Psittaciformes.) In 2000 there were only about 2,000 keas remaining

Kew Gardens
Popular name for the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Surrey, England. They were founded in 1759 by Augusta of Saxe-Coburg (1719–1772), the mother of King George III, as a small garden and were passed to the nation by Queen Victoria in 1840. By then they had expanded to almost their present size of 149 hectares/368 acres and since 1841 have...

kernel
The inner, softer part of a nut, or of a seed within a hard shell

keyboard
(computing) In computing, an input device resembling a typewriter keyboard, used to enter instructions and data. There are many variations on the layout and labelling of keys. Extra numeric keys may be added, as may special-purpos...

Keynes, John Maynard
English economist celebrated for General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money (1936), which initiated the so-called Keynesian Revolution. He is also noted for his other writings, especially A Treatise on Money (1930), as well as his central role in the Bretton Woods Conference of 1944 which created the ...

Kent
Click images to enlargeCounty of southeast England, known as the `garden of England` (since April 1998 Medway Towns has been a separate unitary authority). Area 3,730 sq km/1,440 sq mi Towns and cities Maidstone (administrative headquarters), Ashford, Canterbury, Deal, Dover (ferry terminus), Gravesend, Hyth...

Kennedy, John F(itzgerald)
(itzgerald) 35th president of the USA 1961–63, a Democrat; the first Roman Catholic and the youngest person to be elected president. In foreign policy he carried through the unsuccessful Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba, and secured the withdrawal of Soviet missiles from the island in 196...

Kepler, Johannes
Click images to enlargeGerman mathematician and astronomer. He formulated what are now called Kepler's laws of planetary motion. Kepler's laws are the basis of our understanding of the Solar System, and such scientists as Isaac Newton built on his ideas. Kepler was one of the first advocates of Sun-centred cos...

Kelvin, William Thomson
Irish physicist who introduced the kelvin scale, the absolute scale of temperature. His work on the conservation of energy in 1851 led to the second law of thermodynamics. He was knighted in 1866, and made a baron in 1892. Kelvin's knowledge of electrical theory was largely responsible for the first successful transatlantic telegraph cable. In ...

kelp
Collective name for a group of large brown seaweeds. Kelp is also a term for the powdery ash of burned seaweeds, a source of iodine. (Typical families Fucaceae and Laminariaceae.) The brown kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera), abundant in Antarctic and sub-Antarctic waters, is one of the fastest-growing living things, reaching le...

Kemal Atatürk, Mustafa
Turkish politician; see Atatürk

Kennelly-Heaviside layer
Former term for the E-layer of the ionosphere

Keitel, Wilhelm
German field marshal in World War II, chief of the supreme command from 1938 and Hitler's chief military adviser. He dictated the terms of the French armistice in 1940 and was a member of the court that sentenced many officers to death for their part in the July Plot 1944. He signed Germany's unconditional surrender in Berlin on 8 May 1945....

Kells, Book of
8th-century illuminated manuscript of the Gospels produced at the monastery of Kells in County Meath, Ireland. It is now in Trinity College Library, Dublin

Kerouac, Jack
(Jean Louis) US novelist. He named and epitomized the Beat Generation of the 1950s. The first of his autobiographical, myth-making books, The Town and the City (1950), was followed by the rhapsodic On t...

key
(music) In music, describes any piece where the melodies and harmonies are based on the notes of a major or minor scale. For example, a piece in the key of C major uses mainly the notes of the C major scale, and the harmonies are made up of the notes of that scale. The first note of a scale is...

Kempe, Margerie
English Christian mystic. She converted to religious life after a period of mental derangement, and travelled widely as a pilgrim. Her Boke of Margery Kempe (about 1420) describes her life and experiences, both religious and worldly. It has been called the first autobiography in English

Kellogg–Briand Pact
Agreement negotiated in 1928 between the USA and France to renounce war and seek settlement of disputes by peaceful means. It took its name from the US secretary of state Frank B Kellogg (1856–1937) and the French foreign minister Aristide Briand. Most other nations subsequently signed. Some successes were achieved in settling South American d...

Kenya
Click images to enlargeCountry in east Africa, bounded to the north by Sudan and Ethiopia, to the east by Somalia, to the southeast by the Indian Ocean, to the southwest by Tanzania, and to the west by Uganda. Government The 1963 constitution, amended in 1964, 1969, 1982, and 1992, provides for a president, elected by uni...

Keynesian economics
The economic theory of English economist John Maynard Keynes, which argues that a fall in national income, lack of demand for goods, and rising unemployment should be countered by increased government expenditure to stimulate the economy. It is opposed by monetarists (see monetarism)

Kennedy, Robert Francis
US Democratic politician and lawyer. He was presidential campaign manager for his brother John F Kennedy in 1960, and as attorney general 1961–64 pursued a racket-busting policy and worked to enforce federal law in support of civil rights. He was assassinated during his campaign for the 1968 Democratic presidential nomination. He was also ...

Kennedy, Joseph
(Patrick) US industrialist and diplomat. As ambassador to the UK 1937–40, he was a strong advocate of appeasement of Nazi Germany. He groomed each of his sons – Joseph Patrick Kennedy, Jr (1915–1944), John F Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, and Edward Kennedy – for a career in poli...

keratin
Fibrous protein found in the skin of vertebrates and also in hair, nails, claws, hooves, feathers, and the outer coating of horns. If pressure is put on some parts of the skin, more keratin is produced, forming thick calluses that protect the layers of skin beneath

keloid
In medicine, an overgrowth of fibrous tissue, usually produced at the site of a scar. Surgical removal is often unsuccessful, because the keloid returns

Kermanshah
Capital of Kermanshahan province, northwest Iran, a major city of Iranian Kurdistan; population (2001 est) 757,900. The province (area 23,700 sq km/9,148 sq mi; population (2001 est) 1,945,400) is on the Iraqi border. Industries include oil refining, carpets, and textiles. Founded in the 4th century, its prosperity derived from its fert...

Kelly, Gene
US film actor, dancer, choreographer, and director. He was a major star of the 1940s and 1950s in a series of MGM musicals, including On the Town (1949), Singin' in the Rain (1952) (both of which he codirected), and An American in Paris (1951). He also directed Hello Dolly
Kerekou, Mathieu Ahmed
Benin socialist politician and soldier, president 1980–91 and 1996–2005. In 1972, while deputy head of the army, he led a coup to oust the ruling president and establish his own military government. He embarked on a programme of `scientific socialism`, changing the country's name to Benin to mark the change of direction. In ...

Kentucky
Click images to enlargeState in south-central USA, bounded to the north by the Ohio River, across which are the states of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois; to the east, by the Tug Fork and Big Sandy rivers, which separate it from West Virginia; to the southeast by Virginia, with the Cumberland Gap at the extreme so...

kelim
Oriental carpet or rug that is flat, pileless, and reversible. Kelims are made by a tapestry-weave technique. Weft thread of one colour is worked to and fro in one area of the pattern; the next colour continues the pattern from the adjacent warp thread, so that no weft thread runs across the full width of the carpet

Keita, Salif
Malian singer and songwriter. His combination of traditional rhythms and vocals with electronic instruments made him popular in the West in the 1980s; in Mali he worked 1973–83 with the band Les Ambassadeurs and became a star throughout West Africa, moving to France in 1984. His albums include Soro (1987) and Am...

kerb crawling
Accosting women in the street from a motor vehicle for the purposes of prostitution. In the UK, this is an offence under the Sexual Offences Act 1985

key field
In computing, a selected field, or portion, of a record that is used to uniquely identify that record; in a file of records it is the field used as the basis for sorting the file. For example, in a file containing details of a bank's customers, the customer account number would probably be used as the key field since no two customers have t...

Keating, Paul John
Australian politician, Labor Party (ALP) leader, and prime minister 1991–96. As prime minister he introduced labour market and training reforms and historic indigenous legislation, which recognized the land rights of Australia's Aboriginal people, and focused Australia's foreign policy towards the Asian region. Viewed as the father of ...

keyboard
(music) In music, a horizontal set of black and white levers, called keys, found on keyboard instruments. They are arranged in order of the pitch of the notes they control, and allow performers to play many more strings or reeds than they could have done otherwise, and jump between them very r...

Kelly, Petra
German politician and activist. She was a vigorous campaigner against nuclear power and other environmental issues and founded the German Green Party in 1972. She was a member of the Bundestag (parliament) 1983–90, but then fell out with her party. Born in Germany, Kelly was brought up in the USA and was influenced by the civil-rights move...

key stage
In Britain, the National Curriculum term for the stages of a pupil's progress through school. There are four key stages, each ending with a national standard attainment test (SAT). The key stages are the years 5–7, 7–11, 11–14, and 14–17. Key Stage 1 covers the years 5–7. GCSE is the test for pupils at the end of Key St...

Kelman, James
Scottish novelist and short-story writer. His works are angry, compassionate, and ironic, and make effective use of the trenchant speech patterns of his native Glasgow. These include the novels The Busconductor Hines (1984), A Disaffection (1989), and How Late It Was, How Late (1994; ...

key signature
In music, sharps or flats printed at the beginning of every line (or stave) of music after the clef. It tells a player what key the music is in. A key signature without any sharps or flats means the piece is in C major or A minor, or that the music is nontonal. As shown above, each key signature is shared by two keys: a major key and its relati...