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The Probert Encyclopaedia of Science & Technology

S STARS

S stars are a classification of star where the atmospheric carbon and oxygen abundances are nearly equal, and neither C nor O (or at least not much of either) is available to form other molecules. These stars show zirconium oxide and unusual metal lines such as barium.
Research S Stars

S-BAND

The S-band is the frequency band from 1550 to 5200 Mhz employed in radar.
Research S-band

SACCHARIC ACID

Saccharic acid is a dibasic acid, which occurs in varieties that differ in their optical activity, and is obtained by the oxidation of cane-sugar, grape-sugar, and other carbohydrates ny nitric acid. It is isomeric with mucic acid.
Research Saccharic Acid

SACCHAROSE

Saccharose is a former alternative name for sucrose.
Research Saccharose

SAFEBOOT

SafeBoot by Fischer International Systems Limited is a computer product which prevents a PC from being booted from a floppy disk, and prevents a hard disk from being read in another computer.
Research SafeBoot

SAFFLOWER OIL

Safflower oil is a drying or semi-drying oil derived from the seeds of a plant grown in India, Egypt, Asia Minor, the USA and Australia. It oxidises at a slower rate than linseed oil, but is a useful material for the modification of alkyd resins and is used in artists' colours. A yellow dye is derived from the flower of the safflower plant which resembles but is distinct from saffron.
Research Safflower Oil

SAFFRON

Picture of Saffron

Saffron is an orange-yellow dye extracted from the dried stigmas of a type of crocus (Crocus sativus) . It is used in cooking.
Research Saffron

SAFRANINES

Safranines are red dye-stuffs obtained by the oxidation of a mixture of paradiamine and a monoamine.
Research Safranines

SAL AMMONIAC

Sal ammoniac or ammounium chloride is employed as the electrolyte in batteries of the Leclanche type, as a flux in soldering, in dyeing and calico-printing, and its fumes were formerly inhaled for the relief of bronchitis.
Research Sal Ammoniac

SALICIN

Salicin is a colourless, bitter, odourless, crystalline substance obtained from the bark of several species of tree of the willow and poplar class, and used in medicine externally to check sweating and internally as a specific for rheumatism and rheumatic fever.
Research Salicin

SALICYLIC ACID

Salicylic acid (ortho-hydroxy-benzoic-acid) is the active chemical constituent of aspirin. It is an aromatic acid obtained by treating with hydrochloric acid the salt obtained by the action of carbon dioxide on sodium carbonate. It occurs in nature principally as its methyl ester in the oil of wintergreen. It was formerly used as a preservative for foods and has long been used in medicine, though the dangers of excessive doses have been known since the 19th century.
Research Salicylic Acid

SALOL

Salol, phenyl salicylate, is the pjenyl ester of salicylic acid. It forms easily fusible almost tastless crystals that are insoluble in water and have an antispetic action. Internally it decomposes into its components and was formerly used in the treatment of rheumatic fever and as an internal disinfectant.
Research Salol

SALTPETRE

Saltpetre is a popular name for potassium nitrate.
Research Saltpetre

SALTS

Salts are formed by the replacement of acidic hydrogen by a metal or radical by the reaction of an acid upon an alkali.
Research Salts

SALVARSAN

Salvarsan is a poisonous yellowish powder discovered by Ehrlich and once used in a dilute solution as a treatment for syphilis. It is an organic compound containing a small amount of arsenic.
Research Salvarsan

SAM SPADE

Sam Spade is a freeware network query tool used to discover ip addresses, who sent an email, who hosts a web site and lots of other internet information.
Research Sam Spade

SAMARIUM

Samarium is an element with the symbol Sm.
Research Samarium

SAMPLE WRENCH

Dissidents Sample Wrench is an audio sample editor for the IBM PC running the Windows operating system. It supports all Windows sound-cards and a variety of MIDI-based keyboard and rack-mount samplers. Sample Wrench enables you to edit mono or stereo sounds with 24 bit better than CD quality and fidelity. Numerous special effects and processes are provided including reverb, flange, chorus, echo, amplitude modulation, frequency modulation, rectify, arbitrary transfer functions, invert, reverse, hand-drawn amplitude envelopes, pitch shift, time stretch, amplitude compressor/limiter/ expander, bass and treble EQ, filters, parametric EQ, spectral warp, resynthesis, FFT analysis, sample rate transposition, cross multiply, integrate, differentiate, dedicated looping tools, noise gate, grunge, noise reduction, click and pop removal for digitally remastering old vinyl records, impulse (acoustical) modeling, convolution and harmony.
Research Sample Wrench
More information about Sample Wrench

SAMPLING FREQUENCY

In audio engineering, the sampling frequency is the rate at which measurements of an audio signal are taken during A/D and D/A conversion. Once in the digital domain, the data usually remains at the same sampling frequency. The measure is typically samples per second.
Research Sampling Frequency

SANDARIC RESIN

Sabdaric resin is a natural resin produced in North Africa and used in the preparation of map varnishes and paper varnishes.
Research Sandaric Resin

SANDRA

SiSoftware Sandra (System ANalyser, Diagnostic and Reporting Assistant) is a personal computer information and diagnostic utility program available for the Windows operating system. It is designed to provide most of the information an engineer may need to know about the personal computer hardware, software and other connected devices. Sandra includes benchmarking modules, and makes suggestions as to how the performance of the system under analysis may be improved.
Research SANDRA

SAPONIFICATION

Saponification is the process by which an oil or fat is decompossed by reaction with an alakli and converted into a soap.
Research Saponification

SARCOSINE

Sarcosine (methyl-glycoccoll) is a product of the decomposition of creatine, occurring in flesh, and of caffeine, occurring in tea and coffee. It may be obtained synthetically by the action of methylamine on monochloracetic acid, and forms rhombic crystals that readily dissolve in water.
Research Sarcosine

SASH SAW

A sash saw is is a light hand saw, similar to a tenon saw but smaller, used for cutting sashes.
Research Sash Saw

SATAN

SATAN (Security Analysis Tool for Auditing Networks) was a computer utility for analysing Unix networks for security vulnerabilities developed by Dan Famer of Sun Microsystems and Wietse Venema of Eindhoven University of Technology around 1993 and released into the Public Domain in 1995.
Research SATAN

SATURATED SOLUTION

In chemistry, a saturated solution is a solution that contains all the solute that it can hold at a given temperature and pressure.
Research Saturated solution

SCALENE TRIANGLE

A scalene triangle is a triangle in which the three sides are of different lengths.
Research Scalene Triangle

SCANDIUM

Scandium is a metal element with the symbol Sc.
Research Scandium

SCARF JOINT

Picture of Scarf Joint

The scarf joint is a form of electrical joint used for joining thick wires where there is no strain on the wire, and the bulkiness of the Britannia joint is an objection. The ends of each wire are filed to a flat chamfer, so that when placed together they fit exactly, and are then bound with tinned copper binding wire before being soldered.
Research Scarf Joint

SCARLET CHROME

Scarlet chrome is a lead chromate pigment obtained by replacing part of the chromium radicle with molybdenum.
Research Scarlet Chrome

SCART

Picture of Scart

Scart or Peritel is an industry standard form of 21-way screened connector used for connecting audio-visual equipment, such as televisions and VCR and DVD equipment. The Scart connection allows for audio and composite video signals and a number of control signals to be sent between the equipment connected.
Research Scart

SCHEDULE-EASE

Schedule-Ease is a computer program for the PC that takes all the pertinent information and puts it together for you to create a weekly schedule, complete with days, times, shifts, departments, hours, rates of pay, weekly pay, and so on. With Schedule-Ease, you can improve control of your payroll, and track and manipulate employee work times to increase your company's productivity. You will be able to tell exactly where you need to add or cut employee hours, and which employees can benefit your 'bottom line' the most.
Research Schedule-Ease

SCHEDULESOFT

ScheduleSoft is a point-and-click, rules-based personnel schedule generator and management computer program for the PC. You can roster employees using seniority, minimum-shift demand, post and job codes, preferences, and unlimited work patterns. Extensive online help and a comprehensive setup interview offer a quick start and painless automation of your personnel planning activities.
Research ScheduleSoft

SCHEELIUM

Scheelium is a former alternative name for tungsten.
Research Scheelium

SCHLIPPE'S SALT

Schlippe's salt is a popular name for sodium thioantimonate.
Research Schlippe's Salt

SCINTILLATION

Scintillation is a luminous effect produced when high-speed charged particles (alpha and beta particles and protons) pass through matter.
Research Scintillation

SCMS

SCMS is an abbreviation for Serial Copy Management System, and is a method used for regulating the copying of digital recordings in the consumer market. When digital to digital copies are made, the
SCMS information is also copied, and the equipment can decide whether or not to allow a copy to be made based upon the SCMS information. Recording from analogue sources does not transfer the SCMS information and enables SCMS copy protection to be bypassed.
Research SCMS

SCRAPER SITE

A scraper site is a web site that does not contain its own content, but rather presents a copy of some content from another, usually very popular, web site usually with the intention of misdirecting search engine traffic to the scraper site. Strictly speaking, search engines are themselves 'scraper sites' since they don't present their own content, but rather small sections of content from other web sites, but the term is generally restricted to web sites which extract a small amount of content which triggers a good search engine response for a popular search term. To this content is added advertising so as to generate advertising revenue from the traffic which is directed to the scraper site - rather than the originating site - by search engines when individuals search for a specific search term.
Research Scraper Site

SEARCH ENGINE

In computer terms, a search engine is a service provided on the world wide web which allows a user to search for web pages related to a word, or phrase. Search engines are large databases which index the content of millions of web pages. They often do this with a program known as a 'spider' or 'web crawler' which acesses a web page, indexes it, and then follows the links on the page to other pages. Search engines are usually a free service to users, receiving their revenue from the sale of advertising space.
Research Search Engine

SEARCHLIGHT

A searchlight is an instrument for directing a powerful beam of light. They are constructed from an electric lamp and a concave mirror arranged so as to give a cylindrical beam of light.
Research Searchlight

SECOND

The second is the basic SI unit of time, one-sixtieth of a minute. It is defined as the duration of 9,192,631, 770 cycles of regulation (periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between two hyperfine levels of the ground state) of the caesium-133 isotope.

In mathematics, the second is a unit of angular measurement, equalling one-sixtieth of a minute, which in turn is one-sixtieth of a degree.
Research Second

SECONDARY COLOUR

A secondary colour is a colour produced by the combination of two primary colours. For example green produced by mixing blue and yellow is a secondary colour.
Research Secondary Colour

SEISMOLOGY

Seismology is the scientific study of earthquakes.
Research Seismology

SELECTIVITY

In radio terms, selectivity is the ability of a radio to reject signals on frequencies adjacent to the desired station. It is usually expressed as a bandwidth measured at 6 dB rejection points ('6 dB down' or '-6 dB'). For example, a selectivity specification of '6 kHz at -6 dB' means any signal outside the 6 kHz bandwidth will be reduced in strength by at least 6 dB (in other words, the interfering signal is only one-fourth as strong as it would be otherwise). Typical good selectivity measurements at 6 dB points are 6 kHz for AM, 2.5 kHz for SSB, and 0.5 kHz for CW.
Research Selectivity

SELENIUM

Selenium is a rare metal element with the symbol Se. It was discovered in 1817 by Berzelius in the refuse of a sulphuric acid manufactory in Sweden.
Research Selenium

SEMI-CONDUCTOR

A semi-conductor is a material having electrical properties intermediate between those of good electrical conductors and those of good electrical insulators, that is most substances are semi- conductors.
Research Semi-conductor

SEMIPERMEABLE MEMBRANE

In chemistry, a semipermeable membrane is a membrane that allows water and crystalloids to pass through but holds back colloids.
Research Semipermeable membrane

SEPIA

Sepia is a dark brown pigment obtained from cuttlefish and used for monochrome sketching.
Research Sepia

SGH-E900

Picture of SGH-E900

The Samsung SGH-E900 is a slide-open, tri-band mobile telephone featuring touch sensitive controls. The Samsung SGH-E900 features a two megapixel digital camera which can also record movies, integrated 80 mb memory and external memory option and a 262,000 colour display. Being a tri-band telephone the Samsung SGH-E900 can be used in Europe, America and Canada.

The Samsung SGH-E900 has a built in music player, and full connectivity to a Windows PC allowing music and video to be transferred to and from the phone. The Samsung SGH-E900 supports the Bluetooth transfer technology, and has an offline mode to allow its non-wireless functions to be used on an aeroplane without interfering with the aircraft navigation systems.

The Samsung SGH-E900 utilises Java for allowing games to be played on the phone, incorporates a web browser for accessing the world wide web and can send and receive emails with full multimedia attachments supported.
Research SGH-E900

SHADE

Properly, shade, when describing colour, describes a colour darkened by the addition of black. The term is often misued in place of 'colour' or 'tint'.
Research Shade

SHAKE REDUCTION

Shake reduction is a popular name for an image stabilisation system found in electronic cameras, whereby often a gyroscopic sensor within the body of the camera detects the very fine movement of the camera - refered to as camera shake - and aims to compensates for it by very quickly moving the camera's sensor with the camera holder's shaking motion, resulting in less blurred photographs being taken. Shake reduction is not required when the camera is mounted on a stable platform, such as a tripod, and can be a hinderance when the photographer is deliberately moving the camera, such as for example when panning the camera with a moving subject.
Research Shake Reduction

SHAREWARE

Shareware is concept of marketing computer software that is freely available to try. If you like and use the software, you should send in the fee requested by the author, whose name and address will be found in a file distributed with the software.
Research Shareware

SHAVEHOOK

A shavehook is a decorator's tool used in burning off, especially designed for removing paint from mouldings. The shavehook is used with a pulling motion and as such is less liable to damage the contours of the moulding. Typically a shavehook has a triangular-shaped head, but pear-shaped and combination headed shavehooks are also made.
Research Shavehook

SHEAR STEEL

Shear steel is a variety of steel in which the metal has been forged into bars, these bars cut into pieces and arranged cross-wise before being reforged into the final steel. This process produces a very hard form of steel with a web-like texture in the metal, and is used where a hard, sharp edge is required such as for shears.
Research Shear Steel

SHELLAC

Shellac is a resin used to make varnish. It is derived from the lac insect.
Research Shellac

SHELVING

In audio engineering shelving describes an equalizer circuit that is used to cut and boost a signal above or below a specified frequency High and low band equalizers are usually
shelving type.
Research Shelving

SHERARDIZING

Sherardizing is a method of treating iron and steel in order to obtain a rust-proof surface. Sherardizing consists of heating the iron or steel in the presence of zinc dust in such a way that an amalgamation of the two metals takes place, an iron-zinc alloy being formed.
Research Sherardizing

SHERLOCK

Sherlock by Gulf Sierra is a text comparison utility that allows you to compares two ASCII files line by line. It displays five lines from each file in separate windows. You may scroll either or both files passed the mismatch to put them in sync and continue. Either file can be automatically scanned to locate a line matching the line selected in the other file. Sherlock contains features for searching, ignoring case, spaces, tabs, jumping around the files and copying lines to a printer. This is a useful tool for programmers and writers.
Research Sherlock

SHOW YOUR SITE

Show Your Site is a free banner exchange program for web sites on the World Wide Web offering members a 9 for 10 banner impression ratio and comprehensive statistics as to banner effectivenes as well as control over the classification of sites upon which a member's advertising banners will be displayed.
Research Show Your Site
More information about Show Your Site

SICKLE

Picture of Sickle

A Sickle is a hook-shaped steel bladed instrument used for cutting grass and grain.
Research Sickle

SIDE-CHAIN THEORY

Side-chain theory is a theory proposed by Ehrlich as a chemical explanation of immunity phenomena. In brief outline it is as follows: Animal cells and bacteria are complex aggregations of molecules, which are themselves complex. Complex molecules react with one another through certain of their side chains, but only when these side chains have a definite correspondence in structure (this account for the specific action of antitoxins).
Research Side-chain Theory

SIDEKICK

SideKick by Borland International, was a popular and simple RAM-resident desktop organiser for computers running the DOS operating system, and consisted of five windows for a Notepad, Calculator, Calendar, Dialer, and ASCII table.
SideKick's Notepad was an ASCII text editor that resembled WordStar. Although it was not a fully-fledged word processor, it was remarkably complete. The ASCII table was a handy reference for programmers. The Phone Dialer dialed a phone number found anywhere on the screen - it didn't need to be in SideKick.
The ASCII table, binary, and hexadecimal support in the Calculator and the familiar WordStar interface in the Notepad, made SideKick popular with programmers.
Research SideKick

SIEBEL SALES

Siebel Sales is a sales-effectiveness computer program for the PC, designed for individual sales professionals. Its features include account management, opportunity management, graphical organizational charting, and sales reporting. It is also a personal productivity tool, featuring contact management, calendar management, activity tracking, and expense reporting.
Research Siebel Sales

SIGNAL TO NOISE RATIO

In audio engineering, a signal to noise ratio is the difference between the nominal signal level and the residual noise floor, usually expressed in decibels.
Research Signal to Noise ratio

SILICATE

A silicate (sillic acid) is a compound formed by the combining of silica (SiO2) and water in various proportions.
Research Silicate

SILICON

Silicon is a non-metallic element with the symbol Si.
Research Silicon

SILVER-STEEL

Silver-steel is an alloy of one part silver and 500 parts Silver-steels first made around 1822 and was adopted by the cutlers of Sheffield for making fine razors, surgical instruments etc.
Research Silver-steel

SINAPINE

Sinapine is an organic base, existing as sulphocyanate in the seed of Sinapis alba (white mustard), and first extracted by Henry and Garot in 1825.
Research Sinapine

SINTERING

Sintering is the process of heating strongly a quantity of more or less amorphous material, so causing it to coalesce into a single solid mass.
Research Sintering

SIPHON

A siphon is a bent tube with one limb longer than the other, by means of which a liquid can be drawn off to a lower level.
Research Siphon

SIX'S MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM THERMOMETER

Picture of Six's Maximum and Minimum Thermometer

Six's maximum and minimum thermometer is a popular thermometer among gardeners for use in greenhouses. Its purpose is to record the maximum and minimum temperatures reached since the thermometer was last read. Generally speaking a minimum temperature occurs during the night and a maximum during the day. It was invented by James Six towards the end of the eighteenth century, and consists of a fairly large cylindrical bulb full of alcohol, or oil of creosote, connected by a U- shaped stem to a second bulb nearly full of alcohol or oil of creosote. The bend of the U contains a thread of mercury. Two scales are provided, one against each limb of the tube so that the temperature may be read against either of the mercury levels. Resting on each of the mercury surfaces are small steel indexes provided with light springs to hold them in position in the stem. Expansion or contraction of the fluid in the larger bulb causes a movement of the mercury thread. Consequently, one or other index is pushed forward by the mercury and left in the extreme position reached. Thus, the lower end of the index on the left indicates the minimum and that on the right the maximum temperature attained. It is interesting to note that Six's maximum and minimum thermometers were still being used in 2000 of exactly the same design and construction as ones produced over 100 years ago.
Research Six's Maximum and Minimum Thermometer

SKIAGRAPH

A skiagraph is a photograph taken by means of X-rays.
Research Skiagraph

SKIATRON

A skiatron is a form of cathode-ray tube sometimes employed in radar. Its screen is composed of pottasium chloride and is white in colour, but exhibits a magenta trace of long persistence.
Research Skiatron

SKIN EFFECT

In electronics, skin effect is the AC resistance of a conductor due to the tendency for high- frequency currents to travel along the surface of the wire.
Research Skin Effect

SKYLAB

Skylab was an American space station launched in 1973.
Research Skylab

SLAG

Slag is the chemical compound resulting during the smelting of metallic ores. It results because of the action of the flux on impurities in the ore. Slag generally consists of silicates, formed by the combination of silica with alumina, lime, magnesia, oxides of iron or other metals. By the formation of slag, the impurities in the ore are removed, and if the metallic contents of the slag are of no value the slag is regarded as smelters' refuse. Some slags, however, consisting mainly of metallic oxides produced during the refining processes, are resmelted and such slags are termed cinder or scoria. As slag has to be separated from the valuable metallic material, its fluidity, at the smelting temperature, is an important factor, and some substances such as an oxide of zinc are apt to make slags pasty.
Slags vary in chemical composition, but those which crystallise are regarded as definite chemical compounds. The colour of slags affords n indication of the composition, for example green denotes the presence of iron and copper oxide produces a red slag. Slags are used for various purposes, as ballast for railways, macadamising roads, making into bricks and others. Some slags may be burnt with lime, thus making an efficient hydraulic cement, and slag from the basic Bessemer process forms a fertiliser containing phosphorus.
Research Slag

SLAKED LIME

Slaked Lime is a popular name for calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2. Which is obtained by slaking (adding water) to calcium oxide. It is an important constituent of mortar and cement.
Research Slaked Lime

SLAKING

Slaking is a chemical term for mixing a substance with water, as in the process of slaking lime to create slaked lime.
Research Slaking

SLIDE RULE

Picture of Slide Rule

A slide rule (calculating rule) is a mathematical instrument used for mechanically performing rapid calculations including multiplication, division, and the extraction of square-roots by the logarithmic methods. In the use of logarithms the multiplication of two quantities is effected by adding their logarithms, the division by subtracting them. This principle is employed in the slide rule, which in effect adds or subtracts logarithms by use of the slide that is part of its construction. The principle of the rule is due to Gunter in 1620 with the slide being added by Wingate in 1626 and the cursor by Mannheim in 1851. The cursor is a sliding glass or plastic device on the rule, enabling results to be read more quickly and accurately. Suller's slide rule is cylindrical, Stanley's watch-shaped, and most later 20th century slide rules were rectangular. Many special slide rules were invented for particular sets of calculations. The slide rule is now almost extinct since the invention of the electronic calculator.
Research Slide Rule

SLIPPER

In engineering, a slipper is an iron slide or brake-shoe adjusted under the wheel of a vehicle to act as a drag when descending an incline.
Research Slipper

SLOT MACHINE

A Slot machine is a machine operated by coins, or in some cases by tokens similar to coins, and used for selling commodities or services automatically. Slot Machines originated with the Greeks and Romans for selling wine and are still used today.
Research Slot Machine

SLOW-MATCH

Slow-match was a 19th century term for a fuse used to light mines or blasts.
Research Slow-match

SLS

Sodium Laureth Sulfate
Research SLS

SMALT

Smalt is a type of glass in which protoxide of cobalt has been mixed with common glass to produce a glass with a deep blue tinge to it. Smalt was discovered by a Bohemian glass blower in the 16th century. The blue glass so produced may also be ground to a fine powder to produce a blue pigment, also called smalt, which was once used to tint starch and paper.
Research Smalt

SMART TECHNOLOGY

Smart Technology are an English PC assembler and supplier based in Birmingham. They were established in 1994 at the University of Birmingham Research Park and supply a range of budget priced desktop and laptop computers.
Research Smart Technology

SMARTCOM II

Smartcom II by Hayes Microcomputer Products is a menu-driven communications package which provides the ability to communicate with mainframe computers as well as other PCs. The package was made to accompany the Hayes Smartmodem 1200 and 2100, so there are advantages in having the two together. When Smartcom II is run, it checks the Smartmodem to see if the switches are set correctly - if not it will tell you so. This is a unique feature for communications packages, the others do not tell you that your modem switches are set incorrectly until you are trying to communicate. Smartcom II has auto-dial and auto-answer features as well as a directory service. The user has the capability to create a macro command for each name listed in the directory so that you do not have to key in simple log-in information. A limited number of other computers and their numbers can be kept on the directory. For those users who send messages, Smartcom II has a simple text editor which allows the user to write messages from within the package instead of exiting to a DOS editor. Smartcom II gives the user the ability to capture downloaded data to disk as it is sent, but only as it comes across the screen.
Smartcom II emulates the DEC VT100, VT102 and VT52 terminals. Smartcom II makes communications easy by ' holding your hand' as the user specifies the commands. The menu system is good for the novice user (but the advanced user may find it slow).
Research Smartcom II

SMARTCOM III

Smartcom III was a major upgrade of the popular Smartcom II product. New features included a powerful script programming language and the capability to handle two online sessions more or less simultaneously. Smartcom III's script language - SCOPE (Simple Communications Programming Environment) lets you create simple log-in or file retrieval scripts that can handle entire sessions, including reading and writing files. The dial session capability allows the user to switch from one link to another with a single keystroke. Smartcom III has a built-in editor to help you create and modify scripts. For fast execution, it also includes a compiler to convert the finished script to machine code. The compiler also checks for syntax errors and if it finds any it will return the script to the editor with appended error messages A Peruse buffer allows access to information captured while the rest of it is still being uploaded. File-compression and file- scrambling options provide data security when communicating with another
Smartcom III user.
Smartcom III emulates TTY, the DEC VT100, VT102 and VT52 and viewdata terminals.
Research Smartcom III

SMARTDRAW

SmartDraw is a computer program for the PC that allows you to draw flowcharts, organizational charts, technical drawings, forms, and business presentations. This program's ease of use makes it particularly suitable for users who need to create professional-quality drawings quickly and easily. Features include automatic formatting, rotation, customisable toolbars, professional colour styles, and a library of more than 1, 500 ready-made symbols and templates. The Professional Edition also includes a real-time spelling checker, search and replace, advanced import and export filters (for AutoCAD, DXF, Visio, EPS, and other popular formats), and more. Version 4.30 added a conversion wizard that made it even easier for users of Visio, FlowCharter, and other similar programs to switch to SmartDraw with just a few clicks of the mouse. SmartDraw also supports Windows 2000.
Research SmartDraw

SMARTERM 240

SmarTerm 240 by Persoft emulates DEC VT340, 240, 220, 125, 100, and 52 terminals on a PC. In addition to the features of the other SmarTerm communications programs providing text terminal emulation, SmarTerm 240 can emulate all features of DEC's ReGIS graphics language, and does Tektronix 4010 and 4014 emulation. The program supports a hotkey so you can toggle between the emulation session and DOS.
Research SmarTerm 240

SMARTERM 400

SmarTerm 400 by Persoft emulates the Data General Dasher 100, 200, 400, 410 or 411 terminals on a PC. The primary function of this program is ASCII or binary file transfer between a PC and a host computer system.
SmarTerm 400 makes use of all the features of these terminals, including multiple display windows, 132-column support through horizontal scrolling or on-screen with supported display adapters, full- character display attributes (underline, blink, dim, reverse video), and local printer support including pass through mode, which lets you send data directly to the printer rather than from the display. SmarTerm 400 allows you to set customised softkey commands so that repetitive functions can be mapped into a single keystroke.
Research SmarTerm 400

SMARTFORECASTS II

SmartForecasts II by Smart Software is a business forecasting computer program that is easy to use without a knowledge of statistics. It quickly makes accurate projections of sales, expenditures, market share, inventory levels, and other items whose values are recorded periodically over time. As a business forecasting product, SmartForecasts II provides more realistic information than you would receive by adding 5% to the most recent figures in a spreadsheet. Most business forecasting is done by managers and analysts who may not be familiar with the statistical and mathematical reasoning behind forecasting but do know a great deal about products, competition, and markets. SmartForecasts II is designed to fully utilise the special knowledge and business judgment of the user. Its exceptional ease of use makes it appropriate for novices, while the variety of methods available appeal to the experienced analyst. One of the strongest features of SmartForecasts II is Automatic Forecasting, which runs an internal check among the available forecasting techniques to determine which one best forecasts your data series. Using a process that is transparent to the user, Automatic Forecasting displays results in a graph showing historical data, smoothed historical data, forecasts, and upper/lower margins of error based on the winning method. It also produces tabular results.
Forecasting can be done simultaneously on a single business variable or a group of up to 60 related variables (up to 150 data points or observations per variable), such as the sales of items in the same product line.
SmartForecasts II's unique Eyeball Forecasting lets you adjust any forecast, including automatic forecasts, to reflect business judgment or new market information. It lets you use interactive graphics to quickly draw and adjust forecasts on-screen. SmartForecasts II consists of four menu- driven modes; an edit mode for creating, editing, and transferring data; an explore mode for statistical analysis and graphing of data; a forecast mode; and an on-line help mode.
Research SmartForecasts II

SMARTFORM ASSISTANT

SmartForm Assistant by Claris Corporation is a companion program to SmartForm Designer and provides help messages and automatic calculations. Using the Assistant, you can access built-in help messages, choice lists, and automatic calculated fields that were created with the Designer. The Assistant lets you fill in forms more quickly and accurately than manually.
Research SmartForm Assistant

SMARTFORM DESIGNER

SmartForm Designer by Claris Corporation is an advanced computer tool designed to create professional-quality forms quickly. It creates simple or complex forms such as mailing labels, tickets, expense reports, and invoices. The Designer can create forms with calculated fields, built- in choice fields, and data-entry validation rules. Forms that are created with this product can be printed for manual completion or distributed electronically for on-line completion with SmartForm Assistant.
Research SmartForm Designer

SMARTNOTES

SmartNotes by Personics Corporation is the electronic version of those little yellow sticky notes attached to many paper documents. SmartNotes attaches a note to a phrase in any document, cell in any spreadsheet, or field in any database and can be used to clarify a figure, comment on the wording of a phrase, or remind yourself to check an address in a data file. When pressing a key, a blank note pops up and attaches itself to a selected cell, field, or phrase. You can display all notes associated with a given screen, or scroll through the document to display all notes. The core of SmartNotes is a very fast pattern-matching technique. Because notes are kept in a separate file, there is no alteration or corruption of original data file.
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SMARTWARE II

SmartWare II, by Informix Software, is the updated version of the Smart Software System. It consists of four modules: database, spreadsheet with graphics, word processor, and communications. Each of the modules is powerful enough to be compared to a standalone product in its category. SmartWare II offers a complete selection of powerful features to facilitate the building of complex custom applications and programs. It has been used extensively in companies that develop internal turnkey systems. The package provides Project Processing and a built-in application language with all four modules. Project Processing gives you access to all the SmartWare II commands, as well as over 75 programming commands, and supports programming structures such as IF-ELSE, FOR, and WHILE. You can also define your own functions with Project Processing. The SmartWare II database more closely resembles a standalone database than any of the other integrated programs. The size of the database is determined by the amount of disk space because SmartWare II writes data to
disk as RAM becomes limited. There is a report generator which allows combination of data from up to 100 files in one report and you can design custom data screens that display information from as many as 127 files on one screen. The Query-by-Example feature helps to quickly find specific data simply by selecting a sample of the type of data to extract.
Research SmartWare II

SMOCK-MILL

Picture of Smock-Mill

A smock-mill is a form of windmill in which a cap rotates on a vertical axis to present the sails towards the wind. The name is used in contradistinction to a postmill in which the whole mill rotates for the same purpose.
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SMOKE-BOX

In a steam locomotive, the smoke-box is a hollow space or box at the front end of a locomotive boiler. It is divided from the boiler by the end boiler plate known as the smoke-box tube plate, into which the forward ends of the boiler tubes are fitted. On top of the smoke-box the chimney is fixed, and centrally below the chimney is the breeches-pipe (the exhaust pipes from the cylinder, which converge into one pointing vertically upwards). As the steam exhausts up the chimney, it creates a forced draught in the smoke-box, thereby drawing the heat from the firebox through the boiler tubes. The steam-pipe from the boiler and superheater passes down the smoke-box, branching into two, one to each cylinder. At the front end the smoke-box is fitted with a circular door to allow cleaning.
Research Smoke-Box

SMTP

SMTP or simple mail transfer protocol is the method used by most internet hosts to handle the transfer of email across the internet. It is a simple system in which all commands and text are transferred as text, so
SMTP is easy to debug, and hack.
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SNIFFING

In computer terms, sniffing is listening (with software) to the raw network device for packets that interest you. When your software sees a packet that fits certain criteria, it logs it to a file.
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SNOBOL

Snobol is a high-level text-handling computer programming language.
Research Snobol

SNOW

Picture of Snow

Snow is the crystalline form of frozen water vapour.
Research Snow

SOCIOLOGICAL SOCIETY

The Sociological Society was a British learned society founded in 1905 to promote the investigation and advance education in social science.
Research Sociological Society

SOCIOLOGY

Sociology is the comprehensive study of the fundamental laws of social phenomena, or if you like, the science of man in society. The term sociology was first introduced by Comte in 1839.
Research Sociology

SODA

Soda or washing soda, also known as soda ash, is a common name for sodium carbonate (Na2CO3).
Research Soda

SODA WATER

Soda water is aerated water charged with carbonic acid gas. The gas is forced into the water under pressure, and the liquid mechanically bottled and corked. Soda water was first manufactured commercially in Geneva at the end of the 18th century and was introduced into Britain by Schweppe.
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SODAGRAIN

Sodagrain is a trade name for caustic soda.
Research Sodagrain

SODIUM

Sodium is a metal element with the symbol Na.
Research Sodium

SODIUM AMIDE

Sodium amide is a white, crystalline, water-soluble flammable powder used in the manufacture of sodium cyanide and in organic synthesis.
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SODIUM ARSENITE

Sodium arsenite is a white or greyish-white, water-soluble, poisonous powder used as a weed-killer and as an insecticide.
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SODIUM BENZOATE

Sodium benzoate (benzoate of soda) is a white crystalline soluble compound used as an anti-bacterial and anti-fungal agent in preserving food, as an antiseptic, and in making dyes and pharmaceuticals. It has the formula Na(C6H5COO). Sodium benzoate often causes allergic reactions and skin disorders in people. Sodium benzoate is frequently used as a preservative in milk and meat products.
Research Sodium Benzoate

SODIUM BICARBONATE

Sodium bicarbonate (also known as bicarbonate of soda and baking soda) is a white, water-soluble solid with the formula NaHCO3, used in effervescent drinks, antacid indigestion relief, soda-acid fire extinguishers and baking powder. Tarnished silver placed on aluminium foil in a container and covered with a hot solution of sodium bicarbonate will be cleaned as the sodium bicarbonate solution generates an electro-chemical reaction transferring the sulphur (the black sulphide of the tarnish) from the silver to the aluminium, leaving the original silver in place. Sodium bicarbonate can also be used as a de-odoriser in solution form, and dry, shaken onto fabrics and after a while vacuumed off.
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SODIUM BISULPHITE

Sodium Bisulphite is a salt of Sulphurous Acid.
Research Sodium Bisulphite

SODIUM CARBONATE

Sodium carbonate (soda or soda ash) is an anhydrous, greyish-white, odourless, water-soluble powder. It is used in the manufacture of glass, ceramics, soap, paper, petroleum products. It occurs naturally in alkaline lakes but is derived mainly from sea water by way of electrolysis.
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SODIUM CHLORATE

Sodium chlorate is a colourless crystalline soluble compound used as a bleaching agent, weak antiseptic, and weedkiller. It has the formula NaClO3.
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SODIUM CHLORIDE

Sodium chloride (commonly known as salt) is a colourless crystalline compound with the formulae NaCl. It occurs naturally as the mineral halite and in sea water.
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SODIUM CYANIDE

Sodium cyanide is a white, crystalline, deliquescent powder. It is soluble in water and very poisonous. It is prepared by heating sodium amide with charcoal and is used in casehardening alloys and electroplating.
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SODIUM DICHROMATE

Sodium dichromate is a soluble crystalline solid compound, usually obtained as red or orange crystals and used as an oxidising agent, corrosion inhibitor, and mordant. It has the formula Na2Cr2O7.
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SODIUM FLUORACETATE

Sodium fluoroacetate is a white crystalline odourless poisonous compound, used as a rodenticide.
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SODIUM FLUORIDE

Sodium fluoride is a colourless, crystalline, water-soluble poisonous substance used as an insecticide, rodenticide and also as a source of fluoride in toothpaste and added to water in many developed countries.
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SODIUM HYDROXIDE

Sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) is a brittle, white deliquescent solid with a soapy feel. It dissolves in water to give a strongly alkaline solution and is widely used in the manufacture of soaps, cellulose and rayon.
Research Sodium Hydroxide

SODIUM HYPOCHLORITE

Sodium hypochlorite is an unstable oxidising compound of sodium, oxygen and chlorine with the formulae NaOCl, produced by the electrolysis of sodium chloride and only known to exist in aqueous solution. Sodium hypochlorite is extensively used in household bleach, in industrial bleach for bleaching paper pulp and textiles, for the chlorination of water and in medicine as an antiseptic and fungicide.
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SODIUM IODIDE

Sodium iodide is a salt found in kemp. It forms anhydrous cube crystals which are very soluble in water and alcohol.
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SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE

Sodium Laureth Sulfate (Sodium dodecyl sulfate, Sodium lauryl sulfate, SLS) is an inexpensive detergent commonly used in cosmetic cleansers, hair shampoos, bath and shower gels, bubble baths, engine degreasers, toothpaste, and car washes. It is very corrosive and readily attacks greasy surfaces. It is used throughout the world for clinical testing as a primary skin irritant. Laboratories use it to irritate skin on test animals and humans so that they may then test healing agents to see how effective they are on the irritated skin. A study in the late 1990s at the University of Georgia Medical College, indicated that it penetrated into the eyes as well as brain, heart, liver, and other organs and showed long-term retention in the tissues. The study also indicated that it prevented young children's eyes from developing properly and caused cataracts to develop in adults. It may also cause hair loss by attacking the follicle. In the USA it is classified as a drug in bubble baths because it eats away the skin protection and causes rashes and infection to occur. It is potentially harmful to both the skin and hair because it cleans by corrosion. It dries the skin by stripping away the protective lipids from the surface so it can't effectively regulate moisture. It is also a lung and eye irritant and is considered a reproductive hazard. Another extremely serious problem is the connection of SLS with nitrate contamination. SLS reacts with many types of ingredients used in skin products and forms nitrosomines (nitrates). Nitrates are potential cancer-causing carcinogenics.
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SODIUM NITRATE

Sodium Nitrate is the deliquescent salt (NaNO3) occurring naturally as caliche, or made by the reaction of nitric acid and soda ash. It is used as a fertiliser and in the manufacture of explosives and as a preservative in foods.
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SODIUM PALM KERNELATE

Sodium palm kernelate is a synthetic detergent produced from palm kernel oil, and commonly added to cleansing products.
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SODIUM PERBORATE

Sodium perborate is a white odourless crystalline compound used as an antiseptic and deodorant.
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SODIUM PEROXIDE

Sodium peroxide is a yellowish-white odourless soluble powder formed when sodium reacts with an excess of oxygen. It is used as an oxidising agent in chemical preparations, a bleaching agent, an antiseptic, and in removing carbon dioxide from air in submarines.
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SODIUM STEARATE

Sodium stearate is used as the basis of soap and detergents and is used in the manufacture of toothpaste.
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SODIUM SULPHITE

Sodium Sulphite is a salt of Sulphurous Acid. It has the formulae Na2SO37H2O.
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SODIUM TALLOWATE

Sodium tallowate is a generic name for fatty acid salts obtained by mixing animal tallow with sodium hydroxide to form soap.
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SODIUM THIOANTIMONATE

Sodium thioantimonate is a yellowish crystalline substance previously suggested for use in toning photographic images.
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SODIUM THIOSULPHATE

Sodium thiosulphate (hypo) is a white, crystalline, water-soluble substance used in photography as a fixing agent.
Research Sodium thiosulphate

SOFT KARAOKE

Soft karaoke is a collection of computer Karaoke players in ten different International languages. Features include a search Engine that allows you to search by artist name, group name or song title quickly and easily, a fade-out facility for a smoother transition between songs, automatic microphone set-up for trouble-free use of the sound mixer.
Research Soft Karaoke

SOFT WATER

Soft water is water that contains very few dissolved metal ions such as calcium (Ca2+) or magnesium (Mg2+). It lathers easily with soap, and no scale is formed inside kettles or boilers. However, it has been found that the incidence of heart disease is higher in soft-water areas.
Research Soft Water

SOFTERM PC

Softerm PC is a powerful communications manager and terminal emulation program. It emulates more than 40 popular terminals and communicates to a variety of host computers and information services. In terminal-emulation mode, Softerm PC provides all keyboard and display functions. It can capture data to disk or print in transparent mode, which captures all data received, or line mode, which captures each line on the screen after it is displayed. Send-file function transmits data from disk as if it were typed on the keyboard.
Softerm PC offers various remote file transfer modes, including a character protocol which provides maximum flexibility for text file transfers. Streaming and block-modes are supported. Transmit options include fixed or variable block size, end-of-block terminator, acknowledgment of character strings, end-of-block delay and character echo wait. Softerm PC supports the concurrent operation of up to four communications ports and three printer ports through background processing queues. Speeds of up to 115K bps are supported, with PCs connected locally or remotely through standard manual or autodial modems. Softerm PC is written in assembly language for fast response and efficient operation.
Softerm PC includes disk and file utilities to display, print, or copy any file. The product supports automatic dialling in terminal and file transfer modes. A built-in phone book allows numbers to be accessed by user-defined names. Keyboard macros can be defined to send frequently used sequences of characters. You can toggle between Softerm PC and another application, such as Lotus 1-2-3.
Research Softerm PC

SOLAR ECLIPSE

A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Earth and Sun and the Moon's shadow crosses the Earth Solar eclipses can be total, partial, or annular. A total eclipse is when the Moon obscures the Sun entirely. A partial eclipse is when the Moon only covers a portion of the Sun. Because the Moon's orbit about the Earth is not perfectly circular, sometimes it is slightly farther away from the Earth. If a solar eclipse occurs when the Moon is at the far point in its orbit, the Moon will not cover the Sun entirely. A thin ring, or annulus, of sunlight will be visible around the Moon. This kind of eclipse is called an annular eclipse.
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SOLAR RADIATION

Solar radiation is radiation emanating from the Sun and consisting mainly of visible light, ultraviolet radiation, and infrared radiation, although the whole spectrum of electromagnetic waves is present, from radio waves to X-rays. High-energy charged particles such as electrons are also emitted, especially from solar flares. When these reach the Earth, they cause magnetic storms (disruptions of the Earth's magnetic field), which interfere with radio communications.
Research Solar Radiation

SOLAR WIND

Solar wind is a stream of atomic particles, mostly protons and electrons, from the Sun's corona, flowing outwards at speeds of between 300 kps and 1,000 kps. The fastest streams come from 'holes' in the Sun's corona that lie over areas where no surface activity occurs. The
solar wind pushes the gas of comets' tails away from the Sun, and 'gusts' in the solar wind cause geomagnetic disturbances and aurorae on Earth.
Research Solar Wind

SOLENOID

A solenoid is a helical coil of insulated wire, through which an electric current is passed. If a bar of iron is inserted within the coil, it is magnetised by the current.
Research Solenoid

SOLID

A solid is a substance in which the molecules do not have free movement.
Research Solid

SOLUTE

In chemistry, a solute is a substance dissolved in a solvent.
Research Solute

SOLUTION

A solution is a homogeneous mixture of substances that cannot be separated by mechanical means.
The commonest forms of solutions are liquid. Gases dissolve in liquids according to Henry's Law, which states that the mass of any gas absorbed by a liquid is proportional to the pressure of the gas, and decreases as the temperature increases. The law only applies to gases which have a low solubility. With high solubility the probability is that a chemical action takes place which apparently invalidates the law. The decrease of solubility with pressure is seen in the familiar example of opening a bottle of fizzy drink, the dissolved gases immediately beginning to bubble out from the liquid.
Liquids mix according to no well-defined law, but the mixing is important, as upon it depend the fractional distillation processes.
As a general rule, solids dissolve in liquids at a rate depending upon the temperature, but the rule has a number of notable exceptions, e.g.: solubility actually decreases with increase of temperature. Salt dissolves very little more in hot water than cold, while potassium nitrate dissolves nearly twenty times more in boiling water than in water at freezing point. When a liquid has dissolved as much of the solid as possible it is said to be saturated. A solid dissolves out from a saturated solution on cooling, as a rule, and generally in the form of crystals.
Solid solutions are of two kinds, the solution of gases in solids and the solution of solids in solids. The occlusion of hydrogen in palladium is a well-known example of the former, and amorphous mixtures of gases, of the latter.
Research Solution

SOLUTRIAN

The solutrian was the middle period of the upper palaeolithic age in Europe. The climate was cold, supporting horses, reindeer and mammoth, and human remains indicate an eastern race, apparently dominating for a time the Aurignacian. The solutrian age was named from a rock-shelter at Solutre in Saone-et-Loire.
Research Solutrian

SOLVENT

In chemistry, a solvent is a substance in which a solute is dissolved.
Research Solvent

SOMATOTROPHIN

Somatotrophin is a growth hormone secreted by the mammalian pituitary gland. It stimulates protein synthesis and the growth of the long bones in the legs and arms. Production of
somatotrophin is greatest during early life. In man, overproduction results in gigantism and underproduction in dwarfism. Bovine somatotrophin is used to increase milk and meat production in cattle.
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SONAR

Sonar is a method of locating underwater objects by the reflection of ultrasonic waves.
Research Sonar

SONY ERICSSON W810I

Picture of Sony Ericsson W810i

The Sony Ericsson W810i is a mobile phone featuring a 2.0 Megapixel Digital Camera with video recording and playbacj facilities, Bluetooth, WAP, USB and infrafed connectivity, a digital MP3 music player and FM radio. The Sony Ericsson W810i has a 256,000 colour TFT display and built in clock, calendar and alarm as well as providing support for downloadable games through Java. The Sony Ericsson W810i has a built in 20 mb data capacity and can also accommodate an external 512 mb memory stick.

The Sony Ericsson W810i has a built in NetFront web browser for browsing the world-wide-web and supports sending and receiving emails and multimedia text messages.

The Sony Ericsson W810i has a battery life of up to 350 hours standby and up to 8 hours talk time.
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SONY ICF-2001

The Sony ICF-2001 was a Japanese made portable general coverage receiver made between 1980 and 1983 and providing coverage from 150 kHz to 29.9 Mhz in AM, SSB and CW modes.
Research Sony ICF-2001

SONY ICF-7600DA

Picture of Sony ICF-7600DA

The Sony ICF-7600DA was a portable radio introduced in 1987 aimed at broadcast listeners. The Sony ICF-7600DA had 15 memory channels and covered 150 kHz to 285 kHz, 531 kHz to 1602 kHz, 3.050 Mhz to 3.565 Mhz, 3.7 Mhz to 4.215 Mhz, 4.65 Mhz to 5.165 Mhz, 5.8 Mhz to 6.315 Mhz, 6.95 Mhz to 7.465 Mhz, 9,375 Mhz 12.16 Mhz, 13.375 Mhz to 14.01 Mhz, 14.975 Mhz to 15.61 Mhz, 21.325 Mhz to 21.96 Mhz, 25.475 Mhz to 26.1 Mhz in AM mode and 87.5 Mhz to 108 Mhz in FM wide mode.
Research Sony ICF-7600DA

SOOT

Soot is a black carbonaceous solid deposited as a result of the imperfect combustion of bituminous coal, wood, oil or other substances. It is primarily carbon, but also contains some hydrocarbons and may contain ammonium sulphate if derived from coal.
Research Soot

SORBIC ACID

Sorbic acid is found in the fruit of the rowan tree and used in food preservation. It is now chiefly manufactured synthetically from ketene.
Research Sorbic acid

SOUND

Sound is the changes in air pressure (a series of particle compressions followed by rarefactions) detectable by the ear. Sound can travel through gasses, liquids and solids but not through a vacuum - there are no particles in a vacuum to be compressed by the sound wave.
Research Sound

SOYUZ

Soyuz was the Soviet manned space programme that started in the 1960's. Soyuz 1 was launched in April 1967 carrying colonel Vladimir Komarov with the object of checking the craft's systems and elements in conditions of spaceflight and to conduct related experiments. During re-entry the parachute cords became entangled resulting in the parachute failing and the cosmonaut being killed in the impact when the spacecraft hit the earth.
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SPACECRAFT

A spacecraft is a vehicle used to travel through space, from one planet to another or to a moon, asteroid or other planetoid.
Research Spacecraft

SPACEWAR

Spacewar is a space-combat simulation game, inspired by E. E. 'Doc' Smith's 'Lensman' books, in which two spaceships duel around a central sun, shooting torpedoes at each other and jumping through hyperspace. The game was first implemented on the PDP-1 at MIT in 1960.
SPACEWAR aficionados formed the core of the early hacker culture at MIT. Nine years later, a descendant of the game motivated Ken Thompson to build, in his spare time on a scavenged PDP-7, the operating system that became UNIX. Less than nine years after that, SPACEWAR was commercialise as one of the first video games.
Research Spacewar

SPARK PLUG

Picture of Spark Plug

A spark plug or sparking plug is an electrical device for igniting the explosive charge in an internal combustion engine. Spark plugs are usually hexagonally shaped externally so as to fit a spanner, and fitted internally with a tube of porcelain or other suitable insulating material, which is screened by a nut and contains and insulates a small metal conducting rod, which passes down the centre. At its upper end, this rod is screwed and fitted with a nut; at the lower end it is bent to a right angle to within a few millimetres from the inner wall of the metal plug. A wire from a magnetic or induction coil distributor is attached to the top end of the rod.
The distributor is so timed that when the piston has compressed the combustible charge to the top of its stroke, an electric current passes down the insulated rod, and, leaping across the gap, causes a spark, which ignites the charge.
Research Spark Plug

SPARTEINE

Sparteine is an alkaloid obtained by extracting broom-tops (Cytisus scoparius) with acidulated water and distilling the extract with caustic alkali. Sparteine is a colourless, oily liquid with a bitter taste. Its salts were formerly used in medicine for the treatment of heat disease.
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SPEAKING TRUMPET

A speaking trumpet (ear-trumpet) was an instrument formerly used prior to the invention of the electronic hearing-aid for concentrating and magnifying the sound waves of the human voice. The speaking trumpet was probably invented by Sir Samuel Morland during the 17th century. At one time speaking trumpets were widely used on board ships, but by the early 20th century was replaced on ships by other means of communication.
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SPECIFIC GRAVITY

In chemistry, specific gravity (or relative density) is the ratio of the weight of a given volume of a substance to the weight of an equal volume of water (or another substance chosen as a standard). For gases the standard chosen is hydrogen or air.
Research Specific Gravity

SPECIFIC HEAT

The specific heat of a material is defined as the amount of heat that is required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of the material by 1 degree of the centigrade scale. As the specific heat varies with the temperature of the substance it is usual to specify the temperatures between which it has been measured, although for temperatures met with in nature the variation of specific heat is negligible. Specific heats are all measured in relation to that of water, and by definition the
specific heat of water is unity.
Research Specific Heat

SPECTACLES

Spectacles are devices for aiding sight, and consist of lenses of glass, rock crystal, or plastic, mechanically supported before the eyes. The term is more generally used for those glasses which are fixed in frames and fitted with supports for the ears. Spectacles without ear supports, which grip the nose are called pince-nez. The lenses may be surrounded by a rim for further support, or be rimless for the sake of appearance.
The invention of spectacles is probably due to the Chinese, and there are references by Latin writers to an eyeglass of beryl worn by Nero. Alessandro de Spina and Roger Bacon are both credited with the invention of spectacles in Europe, while Benjamin Franklin is credited with the invention of bifocals.
Eyeglass lenses are made from optical glass, rock crystal and plastic. The lenses are divided into two main classes, spherical and cylindrical, each sub-divided into concave and convex and their combinations. Concave lenses are used for the correction of myopia, convex lenses for hypermetropia. Cylindrical lenses are used to correct astigmatism. The surface of such lenses are sections of cylinders. Combinations of lenses are used where the sight of one eye is differently affected from the other. Prismatic glasses are used in cases of double vision, caused by weakness of the muscles of the eye-ball.
In compound spectacles the same pair of glasses may be used for long sight and for reading purposes. The bifocal lenses consist of a weak upper half and a stronger lower one, the latter for reading, the former for ordinary vision. In the torric lens one part of the glass is a spherical curve and the other cylindrical, and acts in a similar way to the bifocal.
Research Spectacles

SPECTROHELIOGRAPH

The spectroheliograph is an instrument devised in 1889 by Hale at Chicago for the purpose of photographing solar prominences. It is essentially a spectroscope with a double slit (as suggested by Janssen in 1869), the second slit serving to exclude from the sensitive plate immediately behind it all light except that of one selected quality, usually the K-line of calcium. By giving properly adjusted movements to the several parts of the apparatus, a picture of the object in mono-chromatic light can thus be built up in sections as its image drifts across the collimator slit.
Research Spectroheliograph

SPECTROSCOPE

Picture of Spectroscope

A spectroscope is a mechanical device for analysing light. The Spectroscope resolves light into vibrations of different frequencies, so that its properties can be defined. Spectroscopes are used for such things as measuring the velocity of stars, looking at the rotation of the sun and the detection of chemical elements.

Mechanical spectroscopes generally included a slit and a collimator to admit the light in a parallel beam, and a viewing telescope. The Littrow type combines collimator and telescope, making the beam pass twice through the same lens. With a camera replacing the eyepiece, the instrument becomes a spectrograph, and when equipped with measuring scales and circles, a spectrometer.
The actual analysis is effected in refracting spectroscopes by one or more prisms of glass, or other refracting medium, which, by causing rays of shorter wave-lengths to deviate more than longer ones, splits up the beam into a rainbow spectrum with the red rays nearest the thin edge of the prism. As the dispersion increases with diminishing wave-length, the violet end is spread out more than the red, and the dispersion is called irrational. Small direct-vision instruments are made with an odd number of prisms in one tube, the even numbers reversed and of denser glass, so that for some mean ray the deviations cancel each other, the instrument being used pointing directly towards the light.

For some astronomical purposes the collimator is unnecessary, and the prism can be fixed outside the object glass of a telescope (known as an objective prism). For very refined measurements the resolving power of a prism is insufficient and a diffraction grating was used. Fraunhofer first tried an actual grating of fine silver wire, and afterwards an optical grating of parallel lines rules by a diamond on a glass plate. Later, silvered glass was used for reflection instead of transmission, and then speculum metal replaced the glass.

Diffraction spectra are formed in sets, first, second, third order etc, on each side of the directly reflected rays, with the violet end nearest the central undisturbed image. An idea of them may obtained by looking at the sun through a feather. Ruled gratings being very expensive, cheap replicas, called Thorp gratings, were made by moulding melted celluloid on a ruled grating. Rowland's concave grating acts as its own condenser and focusing lens, thus avoiding the loss of light due to absorption. It yields a perfectly normal spectrum when used in certain positions.
Resolving power is the ratio of the wave-length to the smallest difference of wave-length actually separated by the instrument. With a very narrow slit it nearly equals the number of lines in the whole grating multiplied by the order of spectrum considered. Michelson produced a grating with a resolving power of 300,000. He also invented a new form of optical grating called an echelon, comprised of glass plates of uniform thickness being arranged in steps. Higher resolving power is reached by interferometers, especially Michelson's. In these the analysis is produced by passing the ray between parallel plates of glass, one or both only partially silvered, the phase of emergent rays varying with the number of internal reflections.
Research Spectroscope

SPECTROSCOPY

Spectroscopy is the science which deals with the methods of production of the spectra from various sources of light, and their study.
The science of spectroscopy began properly with Kirchoff's interpretation of the Fraunhofer lines in 1859, that they indicated gases and metallic vapours surrounding the incandescent body of the sun.
Research Spectroscopy

SPECTRUM

A spectrum is coloured bands formed by dispersion when a ray of light from any source is passed through a prism. The visible portion of the spectrum varies from red through orange, yellow, green and blue to violet, but the spectrum is continued beyond the red and violet. The spectra of the sun and other stars are crossed by dark lines, characteristic of the chemical elements. These lines have enabled the composition of the stars to be suggested.
Research Spectrum

SPECULUM METAL

Speculum metal is an alloy of two parts copper to one part tin and a trace of arsenic. It is hard, white and brittle and can be highly polished. It was once used for making the mirrors of reflecting telescopes.
Research Speculum Metal

SPEED

Speed is the rate of time at which something moves, travels, proceeds or operates.
Research Speed

SPEED OF LIGHT

The speed of light is the speed at which light energy travels. In 1983 the
speed of light was defined as the speed at which light travels in a vacuum.
Research Speed Of Light

SPEEDBACK

SpeedBack by MicroTools Inc. is a fast and user friendly disk defragmenter for the PC. Using a special algorithm to minimize movement of data, files are moved to the front of the disk and placed in contiguous clusters.
Research SpeedBack

SPELTER

Spelter is an alloy of copper and zinc in equal parts used for hard soldering and brazing. The term is also applied to zinc ingots formed by smelting.
Research Spelter

SPERMACETI

Spermaceti is a solid wax separated on cooling the head oil of the sperm whale. It consists mainly of cetyl palmitate and was formerly used in the manufacture of candles and ointments.
Research Spermaceti

SPHEROIDAL STATE

Spheroidal state is the phenomena exhibited by small drops of water or other liquid when scattered on a plate of very hot metal. These elastic drops, which in their action and movement resemble globules of mercury, are not actually in contact with the plate, but are separated from it by a thin film of vapour, known as Crooks' layer, which serves as a cushion. They gradually evaporate, approaching more closely a spherical form as they grow smaller. The phenomena was first observed with water drops, but similar drops can be formed with alcohol, paraffin, turpentine, liquid air etc.
Research Spheroidal State

SPIEGEL-EISEN

Spiegel-eisen (Mirror-Iron) is a pig-iron containing about 10 to 40 percent Manganese and 5 percent carbon. It is prepared by smelting manganiferous iron ores in a blast furnace. When broken it forms large crystalline plates of a very lustrous appearance, hence the name mirror-iron. It is used to add to the molten pure iron of the Bessemer and open-hearth processes in order to obtain steel.
Research Spiegel-eisen

SPIN DRYER

A spin dryer, formerly known as a drying-machine, is a machine used since at least 1900 in bleaching, dyeing, and laundry establishments - including washing machines and the home, consisting of two concentric drums or cylinders, one within the other, open at the top, and having the inner cylinder perforated at its side with numerous small holes. The goods to be dried are placed within the inner cylinder, and the machine is then made to rotate with great velocity, when, by the action of centrifugal force, the water escapes through the holes in the side. The action of the spin dryer is the same in principle as that witnessed when a person trundles a mop to dry it.
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SPINDLE FILE

A spindle file is a device for holding bills, invoices, memos and other paperwork. It consists of a metal spike, sometimes bent, projecting out of a base. The papers are then impaled upon the spike.
Research Spindle file

SPINDLE-WHORL

A spindle-whorl was a perforated disk employed in primitive spinning for steadying and imparting momentum to a rotating spindle. They appear to have been invented in the Mediterranean region around Neolithic times, and have been found from ancient Egypt and Greece and also Scotland and Ireland. Spindle-whorls were made of bone, wood, clay and stone.
Research Spindle-Whorl

SPINNING

Spinning is the process of twisting textile fibres into thread, so as to give them strength. The grip of the individual fibres prevents their sliding over one another.
Research Spinning

SPINNING WHEEL

Picture of Spinning Wheel

A spinning wheel is a device used for spinning wool, flax and the like into yarn or thread. It consists of a single spindle driven by a large, hand or foot operated wheel.
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SPINRITE

SpinRite version 5.0 from the Gibson Research Company is a 95,872 byte program written in assembly language for the IBM PC running the DOS or Windows operating system. It operates on fixed and removable disks to make them run perfectly. This is not disk partition software or a super Windows ScanDisk program. SpinRite does things that few, if any, other utilities can: It scrubs your drive surfaces, finding and fixing any problems it encounters. If data is unreadable by DOS or Windows (or other utilities), SpinRite recovers the data and makes it readable again. In addition, SpinRite performs preventive maintenance to help ensure your disk drives and data are safe.
SpinRite works directly on the hardware, not through the operating system, thus accessing controllers and drive technology (IDE, EIDE, SCSI).
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SPINTHARISCOPE

The spinthariscope was an instrument contrived by William Crookes in 1903 to show the luminous effects due to radium. It consisted of a short brass tube closed at one end by a convex lens, and at the other by a zinc sulphide screen, with a small piece of radium salt placed close in front of it. Am observer looking at the screen through the lens, saw it lit up by dazzling scintillations, each of which marked the impact of an alpha particle hurled from the disintegrating radium.
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SPIRAL

A spiral is a curve which runs continuously about a fixed centre with constantly increasing radius vector. The chief spirals are the Archimedes spiral, the radius of which increases uniformly with the angle; the hyperbolic spiral, in which the radius vector is inversely proportional to the angle; and the logarithmic spiral, or spiral of growth, which is the spiral commonly found in nature, in which the angle is proportional to the logarithm of the radius vector.
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SPIRIT STAIN

A spirit stain is a solution of spirit soluble dye such as nigrosine, turmeric or gamboge, in industrial alcohol. Spirit stains are very penetrating stains which evaporate rapidly making them a very difficult material to apply evenly.
Research Spirit Stain

SPIRITS OF SALT

Spirits of salt is an old popular name for hydrochloric acid.
Research Spirits of salt

SPOKESHAVE

Picture of Spokeshave

A spokeshave is a carpenter's cutting tool consisting of a blade set between two handles. Spokeshaves were originally used for shaping wheel spokes, hence the name, and are now used for dressing curved edges like a plane might be used for straight edges.
Research Spokeshave

SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION

Spontaneous Combustion is the ignition of a body by the internal development of heat without the application of fire. It not unfrequently takes place among heaps of rags, wool, and cotton when lubricated with oil; hay and straw when damp or moistened with water; and coal in the bunkers of vessels. In the first case the oil rapidly combines with the oxygen of the air, this being accompanied with great heat; in the second case the heat is produced by a kind of fermentation; in the third by the pyrites of the coal rapidly absorbing and combining with the oxygen of the air. The term is also applied to the extraordinary alleged phenomenon of the human body being reduced to ashes without the direct application of fire. It is said to have occurred in the aged and persons that were fat and hard drinkers; but most chemists reject the theory altogether, maintaining that none of the instances adduced are well authenticated.
Research Spontaneous combustion

SPOOF EMAIL

Spoof email is email which appears to have originated from one internet computer (IP address) but in fact came from another. It is achieved by Telneting to port 25 of the machine you want the mail to appear to originate from. This will connect you directly to the SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) daemon running on that host. Then, enter SMTP commands by hand directly to the SMTP daemon. On systems that have RFC 931 implemented, spoofing your 'MAIL FROM:' line will not work. Also, newer SMTP daemons, such as smail 3.1.29.1+ or sendmail 8. 7+, perform an identity check when you connect to them, to reduce the possibilities of spoofing.
Research Spoof Email

SPREAD SPECTRUM

In radio, spread spectrum is a modulation method that spreads transmitter energy across a relatively wide frequency range according to a modulating code.
Research Spread Spectrum

SPRENGEL PUMP

The Sprengel pump is a device used for obtaining high vacus. It was invented by the German chemist Hermann Sprengel and consists essentially of a vertical capillary glass tube, its upper end communicating with a funnel by means of a rubber tube which can be compressed as required. Below the rubber connexion is a lateral branch of the glass tube to the vessel in which a vacuum is desired. The lower end of the tube is bent and dips into a trough. The funnel is filled with mercury, which is allowed to drip past the lateral connexion, and in doing so traps a portion of the air from the vessel and carries it down the tube. The continued application of the method finally exhausts the air from the vessel. The Sprengel pump is also used for collecting gases.
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SPRING

A spring is an elastic device for linking two objects together so as to allow of relative displacement between them, this being resisted by a force which increases as the displacement becomes greater. The most common forms of metal springs are the spiral - used chiefly for clockwork, helical - which are used to resist extension or compression in the direction of their axes, double spiral, laminated cantilever and laminated semi-elliptic.
Laminated springs are generally employed in vehicles. They are composed of a number of steel plates bound together at the centre or at one end, but free to slide over one another at other points. The length of the plates increases regularly to give the spring the shape of a triangle, or of two triangles set base to base. The plates are curved , so that they will be straightened by the greatest load they are called upon to carry. It is important in a laminated spring that all the plates are of the same width and thickness.
The most perfect form of spring is of air under compression, as it is infinitely elastic and has no limit of strength.
Research Spring

SPROCKET

Picture of Sprocket

A sprocket or sprocket wheel is a toothed wheel engaging with a conveyor or power chain, such as occurs on the backwheel a typical bicycle or motorbike.
Research Sprocket

SPUR WHEEL

Picture of Spur Wheel

In mechanics, a spur wheel (spur gear) is a gear having straight teeth cut on the rim parallel to the axis of rotation.
Research Spur Wheel

SPYWARE

Spyware is a computer term for software that may or may not display advertisements when it is running. If the host computer is not connected to the internet when running, the software attempts to make a connection and ' call home'. If the host computer is connected to the internet, information is transmitted to unknown parties regarding the buying habits, etc of the user of the host computer.
Research Spyware

SQL

SQL stands for Structured Query Language. Often referred to as Sequel for short,
SQL was developed as a query language to access mainframe databases such as IBM's DB2. PC products that incorporate
SQL are IBM's OS/2 Extended Edition, dBASE IV, SQL Server from Ashton-Tate and Microsoft, Paradox, DataEASE (using a modified form called DQL), PC/FOCUS, and many others. PC implementations of SQL fall into, two categories. Firstly, SQL commands can be written directly by programmers and experienced users to access databases. The second implementation recognises that most PC users are not programmers and do not want to learn SQL and so provides them with their normal friendly user interface. The underlying software then writes the SQL commands directly for them, which are used to query SQL server databases. Another benefit of SQL is that it will provide a common programming language for different machine architectures, i.e. code written on an IBM mainframe can be moved to a PC with less rewriting than with conventional languages. A full implementation of SQL also contains a very critical component for creating robust transactional databases. Often referred to as ROLL RACK/COMMIT, the facility allows a transaction that was interrupted half
way through updating multiple files to be rolled back, thereby preventing damage to the data files. Many PC implementations of SQL are subsets of the ANSI standard, and some include extensions to the ANS standard.
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SQL SERVER

SQL Server provides a fast, transaction-oriented server for database requests sent from client programs across a LAN. SQL Server was developed by Sybase, Microsoft, and Ashton-Tate. It is an enhanced version of the popular Sybase SQL Server product that has been available on Minicomputers since the 1980s. This minicomputer origin makes the system fast, secure, robust, and able to provide a high throughput of transactions. With most multi-user database managers, the file server needs to send entire copies of index files and database files down the LAN. It is a tribute to the high performance of modern networks that the performance of these DBMS is adequate. Systems based on SQL Server promise to change this. The database server handles high-level requests using SQL. Client programs send database queries to the server, which then processes the request locally, sending back only the data required by the client. This reduces the network traffic immensely: instead of several megabytes worth of index information, only a few kilobytes of
data need be exchanged. SQL Server uses the OS/2 LAN Manager Named Pipes protocol to exchange data between clients and the server. This protocol is straight forward for application programmers to use, and the system includes C libraries and full documentation for developers to write their own client interfaces to the server. OS/2 provides two distinct methods for programs to run simultaneously. Processes are usually used for running distinct programs, and occupy a large system overhead as they can theoretically write to their own virtual screen. Threads are 'quick and dirty', and simply inherit most of the context of their owner. SQL Server uses threads, which means that the transaction throughput of an 80386 PC is generally better than that of a low-end VAX minicomputer. Centralising data access using a database server also improves security. Conventional shared databases offer little, if any, security - both against intrusion and accidental loss of data. To use the SQL Server, each client must provide a valid user name and password when
first setting up the connection. Security levels can be assigned to deny access on a field by field basis within tables in a database. Users can also be granted read but not write access, and write but not read access. SQL Server uses the features of the TRANSACT SQL language to support full transactional processing. This ensures that the database will always retain self consistency and integrity. Should the server or LAN fail during a database update, the next time SQL Server is started it will 'roll back' the transactions that were in process, and restore the database to its original state prior to the failure.
Research SQL Server

SQUELCH

Squelch is a circuit in a radio receiver that quiets the receiver until the strength of a received signal exceeds a specified level.
Research Squelch

SQWEZ

SQWEZ by JM Software is an easy to use multi-file compression package that outputs a self expanding program. File overwrite and CRC data checks are used to help assure quality data compression and decompression. Ideal for software authors to package their program files for distribution.
Research SQWEZ

SSB

SSB or Single Sideband is a form of radio signal modulation. In SSB transmitters, the carrier and one sideband are removed before the signal is amplified. Either the upper sideband (USB) or lower sideband (LSB) of the original amplitude modulation signal is transmitted.
SSB is a much more efficient mode than amplitude modulation since all of the transmitter's power goes into transmitting useful intelligence.
Research SSB

STADIOMETER

A stadiometer is an instrument used for measuring the length of curves, dashes, etc. It is comprised of a toothed wheel which is run along the item to be measured.
Research Stadiometer

STAND OIL

Stand oil is a drying oil, usually best quality linseed oil, which has been polymerised by heat treatment without the addition of driers. Stand oil is very pale in colour and has excellent qualities of flow.
Research Stand Oil

STANDING WAVE RATIO

The standing wave ratio (SWR) is the ratio of power sent down a feed line from the transmitter to the power reflected back through the feed line to the transmitter. A ratio of 1:1 is considered ideal; anything higher than 2:1 usually indicates a problem in the impedance matching of the feed line or antenna.
Research Standing Wave Ratio

STANNIC ACID

Stannic acid is a compound of tin. It exists in two forms, both solid distinguished as stannic and metastannic acids or as alpha- and beta-stannic acids. Stannic acid may be prepared by adding calcium carbonate to a solution of stannic chloride. It forms a series of salts known as stannates. Meta-stannic acid is obtained by the action of nitric acid on tin.
Research Stannic Acid

STARCH

Starch is a carbohydrate stored in plants. It is a white powder comprised of a large numbers of glucose molecules combined which appear as ovoid granules. When heated in water the granules swell enormously, and at the temperature of boiling water are ruptured forming a gelatinous paste.
Research Starch

STARK EFFECT

The Stark Effect is the change produced by a strong electrostatic field in the spectrum emitted by a gas subjected to an electric discharge in a highly exhausted tube. The light emitted by the atoms of the gas is due to the motion of electrons and the motion of these is disturbed when they are subjected either to a magnetic field or to an electric field, the former case being that of the Zeeman effect. The Stark effect was discovered in 1913 by Stark.
Research Stark Effect

STATICS

Statics is the branch of dynamics dealing with states of balance in which no motion occurs because the forces tending to produce it are so arranged that their effects neutralise each other.
Research Statics

STATOR

A stator is an assembly of fixed plates in a variable capacitor.
Research Stator

STEAM

Steam is the transparent, colourless gas into which water is converted when it vaporises.
Research Steam

STEAM ENGINE

Picture of Steam Engine

A steam engine is an apparatus for converting heat energy into useful work by means of th expansive force of steam.
The earliest recorded attempt to construct a working steam engine was conducted by Hero of Alexandria about 130BC, whose engine was later adapted for use with water instead of steam and became known as the Barker's Mill. Giobvanni della Porta at the beginning of the 17th century adapted another of Hero's inventions, his famous fountain replacing the expanded air used in the original with steam. In 1655 the marquess of Worcester is credited with the invention of a steam engine for pumping water.

The first practical step towards the application of steam power as a motive force was taken by Thomas Savery who patented and exhibited a model of his steam engine at the Royal Institution in London in 1698. Thomas Savery's engine essentially consisted of a cylinder into which steam entered and forced out a charge of water, sucked into it by a previous charge of steam that was suddenly condensed by a jet of cold water allowed to flow over the outer surface of the cylinder. Thomas Savery's steam engines were erected in many parts of Great Britain to pump water. However, Dionysius Papin had published a design for a high-pressure steam engine in 1690, and it is probable that Savery took the plan from him.

Whether designed by Thomas Savery or Dionysius Papin, the early steam engine described was considerably improved by Thomas Newcomen and John Cawley who introduced a piston, driven down by atmospheric pressure as a vacuum was created in the cylinder by the condensation of the steam. This improved steam engine was also used for pumping water.
In 1769 James Watt patented a double-condenser which was another major improvement upon the efficiency of the steam engine, and in 1804 Richard Trevithick applied the steam engine to run along rails.
Research Steam Engine

STEAM HAMMER

A steam hammer is a power-driven hammer invented around 1842 by James Nasmyth. As originally designed, the striker of the hammer was attached to the lower end of the piston rod of an inverted cylinder and the instrument was worked by steam controlled by a valve.
Research Steam Hammer

STEAM ROLLER

Picture of Steam Roller

A steam roller (or steamroller) was a machine, heavily built, with one or more broad-rimmed wheels, used for levelling roads. They were originally driven by a steam engine, which was later replaced by a combustion engine. Steam rollers are notable for their fantastic power, from whence the popular term 'to steamroller' meaning to overwhelm, squash or otherwise forcibly overcome opposition comes from.
Research Steam Roller

STEAM SHOVEL

A steam-shovel or steam-navvy was a machine for excavating earthworks. It consisted of a bucket on a long arm with an engine for articulating the bucket which was used to scoop out large quantities of earth.
Research Steam Shovel

STEARIC ACID

Stearic acid is a long chain fatty acid derived from animal and vegetable fats and oils where it occurs widely, constituting the bulk of hard fats such as suet and tallow. Stearic acid is a white, lustrous, crystalline substance soluble in alcohol but not water. Mixed with rubber in a small proportion, it is a very valuable softener and activates many vulcanisation accelerators.
Research Stearic Acid

STEARIN

Stearin or glycerol tri-stearate, is, along with glycerol tri-palmitate, the main component of the solid fats. In its pure state it forms pearly crystals, which are tasteless, and insoluble in water, but dissolve in ether and similar solvents. The term stearin is sometimes applied to commercial stearic acid
Research Stearin

STEEL

Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon.
Research Steel

STEELYARD

Picture of Steelyard

A steelyard is a portable balance consisting of a pivoted bar with two unequal arms. The load to be weighed is suspended from the shorter arm and the bar is returned to the horizontal by adding weights to the longer arm, or moving a counterbalance along the longer, graduated arm.
Research Steelyard

STEMMING

In mining, stemming refers to a material employed to confine an explosive charge in a bore hole. The material used for stemming must be flexible, so that it can take the shape of the bore hole, and non-combustible, especially in coal mining. One of the best materials for stemming is damp fine clay which is rammed into position over the charge. Efficient stemming nearly doubles the explosive effect of the charge used.
Research Stemming

STENCIL

A stencil is a thin metal plate or other piece of material with a series of holes forming a design or lettering through which colouring-matter is applied to a surface.
Research Stencil

STENOTYPE

A stenotype is a small, light easily portable machine somewhat resembling a typewriter used for stenotypy. The speed attainable with the machine far exceeds that possible in any of the written systems of shorthand.
Research Stenotype

STENOTYPY

Stenotypy is a method of using a printer instead of a written character for recording shorthand, effected by a small, light and easily portable machine called a stenotype.
Research Stenotypy

STEPHANOME

The stephanome was an instrument invented by Professor Tait and used at the Ben Nevis observatory for measuring the angular size of halos, glories, fogbows etc. It consisted of a graduated rod with a sight at one end, and a sliding bar with an outer and inner pair of points. In practice the eye was applied to the sight and the sliding bar moved along the graduated rod until either the outer or inner pair of points on it coincided with the ends of a diameter of the circle being measured. The graduations on the rod were reduced to angular measure and tabulated, measurements being made to an average accuracy of about five minutes of arc.
Research Stephanome

STEREO-CHEMISTRY

Stereo-chemistry is the science of the study of the spatial configuration of the atoms and groups constituting the molecule in chemical compounds. The foundations of
stereo-chemistry were laid by the work of Louis Pasteur on tartaric acid in 1850.
Research Stereo-chemistry

STEREOSCOPE

Picture of Stereoscope

A stereoscope is an optical instrument producing an impression of depth or solidity. As early as the 1930s the technique of 3-D films shown to an audience wearing stereoscopes of a red glass filter for one eye and a green glass filter for the other eye were common in Britain.
Research Stereoscope

STERLING SILVER

Sterling silver is an alloy of silver and copper.
Research Sterling silver

STILL ENGINE

The still engine is a combined internal combustion and steam engine invented by W J Still. It was designed to utilise a greater proportion of the heat of the fuel than is possible with an ordinary gas or oil engine. Taking a single cylinder of a marine type vertical engine working with oil, the upper part of the cylinder acts as an oil engine, the piston being impelled on its down stroke by the firing of the oil, while the lower part is a steam engine, the piston being impelled by steam on its upward stroke. The water jacket round the cylinder being in effect the boiler by which the steam is generated, the heat being provided by the combustion of the oil.
Research Still Engine

STILLSON WRENCH

The Stillson wrench is a form of monkey wrench with a pivoting, adjustable jaw that grips round objects, such as pipes and bars, more tightly as more pressure is exerted on the handle.
Research Stillson Wrench

STONEWARE

Stoneware is a crude kind of porcelain, of which the materials, mainly flint and felspar, are of coarser quality and have not been so strongly heated and nearly fused in the process of manufacture.
Stoneware is unlike porcelain in being opaque, and differs from earthenware in not being porous. It is, however, usually salt-glazed, that is glazed by throwing salt into the furnace, the sodium of the salt forming a kind of glass with the silica of the ware.
Research Stoneware

STORM

A storm is a violent atmospheric disturbance caused by unequal atmospheric pressure and often occurring suddenly.
Research Storm

STOVING

Stoving is the process of drying and hardening a paint coating by means of the application of heat at a temperature above 150 degrees Fahrenheit.
Research Stoving

STOWAWAY TRUE ARCHIVAL SYSTEM

The Stowaway True Archival System by Patri-Soft is a utility computer program that frees hard disk space by archiving inactive files from hard disks to a library of offline archive disks. You use its directory manager to select data to be archived. It works like a backup program to move the files to diskette while indexing them on your hard disk. It has data compression, automatic diskette formatting and viewing of files prior to archival.
Research Stowaway True Archival System

STRATOSPHERE

The stratosphere is that region of the upper atmosphere where the temperature ceases to fall with increasing height above the earth's surface, and either remains constant or slightly increases.
Research Stratosphere

STRAWBOARD

Strawboard is a variety of cardboard made mainly of straw which has been boiled in lime or soda to soten it. Strawboard was once used for making boxes and for packaging.
Research Strawboard

STRINGER

In engineering, a stringer is a small, subsidiary beam, joist, or girder. A stringer is connected with, and supported by, other portions of a structure, such as a roof-rafter, floor joist, or the girders or beams of a bridge carrying the rails or roadway and supported in turn by other girders.
Research Stringer

STRONTIUM

Strontium is a metal element with the symbol Sr of the alkaline-earth group. It is found mainly in celestine and strontianite. It is a hard yellowish metal which acts on water releasing the hydrogen.
Research Strontium

STRUCTURAL FORMULA

In chemistry, the structural formula is the formula which shows the arrangement of the atoms in a molecule.
Research Structural formula

STYRENE

Styrene or vinyl benzene is a liquid produced from benzene and ethylene, for example coal and petroleum, which polymerises upon heating to form a solid resinous substance.
Research Styrene

SUBLIMED BLUE LEAD

Sublimed blue lead is a grey pigment consisting of basic lead sulphate. Sublimed grey lead is a rust inhibitive pigment and has been used as a primer for steel and iron, particularly in locations exposed to a polluted atmosphere.
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SUBSTITUTION REACTION

In chemistry, substitution reaction is a chemical reaction in which one or more elements or radicals in a compound are replaced by other elements or radicals.
Research Substitution reaction

SUCCINIC ACID

Succinic acid is a solid dibasic acid occurring in amber and other resins, from the former of which it can be obtained by distillation, though it can also be prepared by the fermentation of calcium malate.
Research Succinic Acid

SUCROSE

Sucrose is cane sugar. It is formed by the chemical combination of glucose and fructose. It occurs naturally in sugar-beet and sugar cane, in sweet fruits and in roots such as carrots.
Research Sucrose

SUDAN 1

Sudan 1 (also known as CI Solvent 14) is a popular name for 1-Phenylazo-2-Hydroxynaphthalene, a synthetic red dye that is generally used for colouring solvents, oils, waxes, petrol and polishes but is also added to the soil by the growers of some chilli peppers to give the fruit a better red colour. Research suggests that Sudan 1 dye can cause cancer in some animal species, and on the basis of that many governments prohibit the use of the dye in human food products - there is no proven link between the consumption of Sudan 1 dye and cancer in humans. In 2005 a scandal hit Britain when Sudan 1 dye was found in chilli powder used in Worcestershire sauce made by Premier Foods, an ingredient itself used in over 400 processed foods including the very popular 'Branston Pickle' range of pickles. These products which were subsequently recalled from shops and supermarkets in the biggest food recall ever in Britain. Sudan 1 dye has been found in chilli powder exported from India.
Research Sudan 1

SUDAN YELLOW R

Sudan Yellow R is the popular name for 4-AminoazoBenzene, an orange powder used as a dye for lacquer, varnish, waxes, oils and styrene resins as well as being used in insecticides and as an intermediate in the manufacture of the dyes Chrysoidine, Induline, Solid Yellow and Acid Yellow.
Research Sudan Yellow R

SUGAR SOAP

Sugar soap is a soluble alkaline soap preparation used by painters and decorators for washing down paintwork, preparing old paintwork for repainting and for stripping old paintwork. Sugar soap is primarily comprised of washing soda mixed with yellow bar soap, a small amount of crude palm oil and a little Russian or Swedish turpentine.
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SUGARS

In chemistry, the sugars are a group of carbohydrates, soluble in water and having a sweet taste. The group includes glucose, lactose and saccharose.
Research Sugars

SUINT

Suint is the natural, greasy compound of potash found on the fleeces of sheep, derived from the sheep's sweat. From suint is derived lanolin and sometimes potash is extracted from it.
Research Suint

SULPHOCYANATE

A sulphocyanate (sulphocyanide, thiocyanate) is a salt of thiocyanic acid and is usually obtained from gas-purification residues.
Research Sulphocyanate

SULPHONIC ACID

Sulphonic Acids are acids having an organic group combined with the group SO2OH.
Research Sulphonic Acid

SULPHUR DIOXIDE

Sulphur dioxide is a sulphurous anhydride gas that is given off from some volcanoes and is produced whenever sulphur or its compounds are burned in air. It is a colourless gas with a very sharp, suffocating smell. It is very soluble in water forming an acid, which in the atmosphere is known as acid rain. It is a powerful antiseptic and is used to remove traces of chlorine from bleached material, and in the curing of hops.
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SULPHURIC ACID

Sulphuric acid has the formulae H2SO4.
Research Sulphuric Acid

SULPHUROUS ACID

Sulphurous Acid (H2SO3) is a solution of sulphur dioxide in water.
Research Sulphurous Acid

SUNN HEMP

Sunn Hemp (Bengal Hemp) is a fibre somewhat similar to flax, obtained from the stem of the plant Crotolaria juncea and used for making rope.
Research Sunn Hemp

SUNSET YELLOW

Sunset yellow (E110) is an azo yellow dye extensively used in foods in the UK, while being banned from use in Norway and Finland. Sunset yellow has been linked to nasal congestion, allergies, hyperactivity (including bad behaviour and temper tantrums in children) and kidney tumors among consumers and causes an allergic reaction in some people.
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SUNSHINE RECORDER

Picture of Sunshine Recorder

A Sunshine recorder is an instrument for recording the duration of sunshine and the degree of its intensity. A commonly adopted sunshine recorder was the Campbell-Stokes recorder which comprised a precision glass sphere, usually about ten centimeters in diameter which focused the sun's rays upon a strip of cardboard placed in a cup-shaped frame, which partially surrounded the sphere. As the sun passed from east to west, its focused rays burned a line in the cardboard during the periods of bright sunshine, and as the cardboard was graduated in hours and tenths of hours, the daily duration of sunshine could be readily determined.
Research Sunshine Recorder

SUPERBASE 2

Superbase 2 by Precision Software, is a system which offers file management to end users together with a more powerful multi-file relational capability within the Windows 2 environment. Because the product uses a graphical interface accessing data is as simple as pointing and clicking a mouse. The product can run using either a full copy of Microsoft Windows 2 or the runtime version of Windows that is bundled with the package.
Superbase 2 gives three types of views; a record view (default), a table view and a page view which allows you to place fields any place on your screen. Once you open a particular view on screen,
Superbase 2 provides a VCR-type panel that allows you to easily browse through your data. A row of symbols across the bottom of the screen represent commonly used functions such as fast-forward, reverse and pause. Superbase 2 gives access to many powerful features including calculated fields, required ranges, external lookups and externally linked text and graphics fits. The externally linked text files can be edited and stored in Superbase 2s built-in text editor.
Superbase 2 includes report capabilities such as optional date stamping page numbering and headings. Fields can be from any file, making it a fully relational report writer. In-line calculations and text concatenations allow for calculated fields in the report output.
Research Superbase 2

SUPERBASE 4

Superbase 4 is a relational database which runs under Microsoft Windows. Like Superbase 2, it appeals to end users, but also includes additional powerful features for the applications developer as well. Superbase 4 contains all the features and functionality of Superbase 2, and adds a Form Designer module, for creating presentation quality forms that integrate directly with your databases. It also includes a full-scale command line language called Database Management Language (DML). DML is useful for customizing and fine-tuning applications to include functionality beyond what is accessible through the menus. With the addition of these two features,
Superbase 4 extends its appeal to the higher-end user.
Research Superbase 4

SUPERGRAPHICS

SuperGraphics by Computer Associates consists of two modules: SuperImage and SuperChart. SuperChart is a modified version of the popular SuperCalc 5 spreadsheet, available separately. It has been modified to provide links with SuperImage. Charts produced with SuperChart can be edited, enhanced, and annotated with SuperImage. Superimage is a complete PC drawing system designed for rapid enhancement of presentation graphics. Like comparable products, Superimage provides tools to create freehand drawings, and can edit existing charts and graphs imported from spreadsheets or from SuperChart. It can create word charts, which can be created from predefined or custom stencils, then combined with charts or backdrops. Completed drawings can then be output to printer, plotter, or 35mm slides. Output can be immediate, or jobs can be queued for batch output. Superimage can transmit batched output files to a remote, offsite plotter using a modem.
Research SuperGraphics

SUPERKEY

SuperKey, by Borland International, is a menu-driven, macro-generating program that includes a number of useful non-macro related utilities. For example, SuperKey offers vehicles for added security including methods of file encryption, a password-protected keyboard lock, and an instant screen-saving feature. SuperKey can be used to develop consistent interfaces across applications. Its macros can simplify complex command sequences and can be used to store and insert boilerplate text. The display-only macros are perfect for creating help screens. SuperKey's interface is similar to that of SideKick but includes more menus. If you prefer, you can bypass the menus by redefining a set of Ctrl or Alt key combinations.
Research SuperKey

SUPERPAINT

SuperPaint combines the best features of painting and drawing programs in one package. SuperPaint contains both a drawing tool menu and a paint tool menu that are as comprehensive as the standalone equivalents of these applications. Icons appear depending upon whether you have chosen the drawing stylus or paintbrush tool. This lets you do pixel-based painting and object-oriented drawing on the same screen, each on separate layers. In addition to the standard commands and drawing and painting tools, SuperPaint has features to make creating your illustration easier than with some other programs. The program includes automatic scrolling which moves the page as your cursor moves, and snap-to grids which let you define the unit of measure for both grids and rulers. You can hide the command menus and use the entire screen for your illustration. At any time, you can choose to show the painted bit-mapped elements of your illustration, the drawn object-oriented elements, or both. There is also AutoTrace, the capability of automatically tracing bit-mapped
images in the Paint layer to create object-oriented line art in the Draw layer.
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SUPERPHOSPHATE

Superphosphate is a manure made by mixing calcium hydrogen phosphate with gypsum.
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SURANJI

Suranji (aal) is a red dye extracted from the roots of the aal plant, in India and used for dyeing cotton cloth.
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SURFACE COMBUSTION

Surface combustion is a method of causing a mixture of air and gas to burn by bringing it into contact with a suitable porous surface. Usually this consists of a diaphragm of porous refractory material, to one side of which a mixture of gas and air is supplied under a low pressure.
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SURFACE TENSION

Surface tension is a property characteristic of liquids, by which the surface behaves as if it were covered with an elastic stretched skin. The effect is due to the fact that at the surface the attraction between the molecules of the liquid is unbalanced, surface molecules being attracted towards the body of the liquid, whereas in the body of the liquid a molecule is attracted equally in all directions.
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SURFSAVER

SurfSaver is a computer browser add-on that lets you store Web pages directly from your browser into Searchable folders. You can save a single page, selected links on a page, or an entire Web site on your computer. Save important facts, figures, news reports, and research into your own Knowledgebase. Use SurfSaver to instantly search this information for any word or phrase. Search and browse stored pages (even when you're not connected to the Internet), share folders in a network with SurfSaver Pro, and add notes, comments, and keywords to the pages you save.
SurfSaver is compatible with Netscape and Internet Explorer (versions 4.0 or higher).
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SUSCEPTIBILITY

In physics, susceptibility is the ratio of the intensity of magnetization produced in a material to the intensity of the magnetic field to which the material is exposed. It measures the extent to which a material is magnetized by an applied magnetic field. Diamagnetic materials have small negative susceptibilities; paramagnetic materials have small positive susceptibilities; ferromagnetic materials have large positive susceptibilities.
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SUSPENSION

In chemistry, suspension is a system consisting of small particles dispersed in a liquid. The particles will settle out slowly upon standing.
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SWINGLE

A swingle is a flat-bladed wooden instrument used for beating and scraping flax or hemp to remove coarse matter from it.
Research Swingle

SYNCHRONOUS DETECTION

In radio, synchronous detection is a circuit that replaces the carrier in a received AM signal with an internally generated replacement to reduce the effects of fading.
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SYNERSIS

In chemistry, synersis is the shrinking of a gel, with the expulsion of water or other liquid from it.
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SYNTHESIS

In chemistry, synthesis is the construction of a compound by the union of elements or simple compounds.
Research Synthesis

 
 
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