A chronometer was any instrument that measures time, as a clock, watch, or dial; but, specifically, this term is applied to those time-keepers which were used for determining the longitude at sea, or for any other purpose where an accurate measure of time was required, with great portability in the instrument. The chronometer differed from the ordinary watch in the principle of its escapement, which was so constructed that the balance was free from the wheels during the greater part of its vibration, and also in being fitted with a compensation adjustment, calculated to prevent the expansion and contraction of the metal by the action of heat and cold from affecting its movements. Marine chronometers generally beat half-seconds, and were hung in gimbals in boxes 6 or 8 inches square. The pocket chronometer did not differ in appearance from a watch except that it was somewhat larger. Research Chronometer
In grammar, a diminutive is a word having a special affix which conveys the idea of littleness, and all other ideas connected with this, as tenderness, affection, contempt, etc. The opposite of diminutive is augmentative. In Latin, diminutives almost always ended in lus, la, or lum; as Tulliola, meum corculum, little Tullia, my dear or little heart; homunculus, a manikin. The Italian is particularly rich in diminutives and augmentatives, such compound diminutives as fratellinucciettinetto (a diminutive of frate, brother) being sometimes employed. Among English diminutive affixes are kin, as in manikin, a little man: pipkin, a little pipe: ling, as in gosling, a little goose; darling, that is, dearling, or little dear; and et, as in pocket, from poke, a bag or pouch; tablet, a little table. Diminutives are also formed, in colloquial and familiar language, by adding y or ie to the names, as Charley, Mousie, etc. Research Diminutive
An herbarium, or Hortus Siccus is , a collection of dried plants systematically arranged. Herbariums were popular among the Victorians, and a Victorian text describes the process for collecting specimens thus:
'The specimens should be collected in dry weather, and carried home in a japanned tin-box or vasculum, a small pocket-box being desirable, however, for mosses and small plants. Very delicate specimens should be at once placed in a small field-book of unsized blotting-paper carried tightly strapped between suitable boards, At home they are carefully arranged upon bibulous paper, and pressed between smoothly planed deal boards either by putting weights upon the boards or by using a screw-press. The paper is changed every day or two, as they are found to part with their moisture more or less freely.
Succulent plants (such as stone-crops) should be killed by immersion in boiling water, and left for some time to drain, before pressing. If the stem be thick and woody, or if the flower be thick and globular, as in the thistle, one half may be cut away without depriving it of its character. When the process of desiccation has been completed specimens are fastened upon stiff paper with a mixture of gum-tragacanth and gum-arabic, or thin glue, or with slips of gummed paper, or a needle and thread. To preserve the specimens from the ravages of insects, camphor should be placed in the cabinet and frequently renewed.' Research Herbarium
In the USA, the American Constitution provides that, if the President does not either sign or veto a bill within ten days, it shall become law without his signature, 'unless the Congress by their adjournment prevent its return, in which case it shall not be a law'. This gives the President opportunity to prevent a bill from becoming law, if it is passed in the last days of a session, by simply taking no action upon it. This is called the 'pocket veto'. It was first used by President Madison in 1812 in the case of a naturalization act. But the first conspicuous instances were those by General Jackson, seven of whose twelve vetoes were of this sort. Research Pocket Veto
Tic-tac is a method of signalling in use on racecourses. Its chief object is to communicate the betting movements in Tattersall's to book-makers in the smaller rings and on the course itself when outside betting is permitted.
The tic-tac is operated in a triangular manner, the betting movements in Tattersall's being communicated by one of the operators to a second stationed on the grandstand, who passes on the message to a third person, who in turn, communicates the information to the bookmaker for whom he works.
The signals are made by touching various parts of the head, arms and body, and although more or less universally used, are varied at times to deceive outsiders by introducing what is colloquially called the 'twist', i.e. the signs are made the reverse way and the numbers assigned to horses on the race cards are reversed or otherwise altered.
Customarily the signs used run from the right shoulder, over to the left shoulder, and up either arm, a few of them being as follows: One, right shoulder touched with right hand; two, right ear with right hand; three, right side top of head with right hand; six, left shoulder with left hand; ten, both hands placed together; 7-to-4 against, tips of left hand fingers, with right hand; 5-to-2 against, breast pocket with right hand. Research Tic-Tac
A trammel or trammel net is a kind of fishing net consisting of a fine net hung loosely between vertical walls of a coarser net so that fish passing through the coarse net carry some of the finer net through with them and are caught in the resulting pocket. Research Trammel
The pouched mouse, pocketmouse or kangaroorat (Dipodomys) is a genus of North American rodents belonging to the family Geomyidae, and characterized by the elongated tail and hind limbs, the slender form, and the presence of large cheek pouches. Research Pouched Mouse
Sir Clive Sinclair is the English electronics genius who produced the first widely available pocket calculator and a series of home computers. Research Clive Sinclair
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
Research Chronometer
