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acoustics
Acoustics
is the study of sound waves and how they are soaked up or reflected.
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aerodynamics
Aerodynamics is the science
that deals with air moving against an object.
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alloy
An Alloy is a metal that has
a mixture of two or more metals or sometimes a non-metal.
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amalgam
Amalgam is a special alloy
that has a special mixture of metals, one is mercury.
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ampere
Ampere is the scientific name
used to measure one unit of electric current, usually shortened to
Amp.
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anodizing
Anodizing places a protective
coating of oxide on the surface of a metal.
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antiseptics
Antiseptics
kill and prevent the growth of disease causing organisms.
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asepsis
Asepsis is the
condition where there is a complete absence of bacteria or other
germs.
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bacteriophage
Bacteriophage often called
phage, is any virus that attacks bacteria.
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barometer
A Barometer measures the
change in atmospheric pressure.
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Brownian
motion
Brownian motion is the
continual movement of microscopic particles suspended in liquid or
gas.
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buoyancy
Buoyancy is the name given to
the upwards forces exerted on a given object when it is in liquid or
gas.
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calcium
Calcium is a soft, silvery
white metallic element which reacts with water and oxygen.
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capillary
action
Capillary action
is the process which causes liquid in the soil to rise up through
roots and stems.
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Celsius
The Celsius
scale is one of the measuring systems for temperature. It is
sometimes called the Centigrade scale.
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deforestation
When deforestation occurs on
steep slopes, it is very damaging to the environment, often causing
erosion.
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desertification
Desertification
is the process by which an existing desert spreads across a previous
fertile area
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diamond
Diamonds are the
hardest known naturally occurring substance and are extremely
resistant to acid or alkali.
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ecologist
An Ecologist is a person who
studies why plants and animals live in some places and not in other
places.
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electroencephalograph
Electroencephalograph
is an instrument designed to record the electrical activity of the
brain.
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enzymes
Enzymes break down substances into a
more simple substance that living things can
use.
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frequency
The unit of frequency is
measured in Hertz which was named after someone called
Heinrich Hertz.
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friction
Friction is a force which
tends to stop objects from sliding past each other.
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fuel
Nuclear, natural gas,
petroleum, coal, oil, hydroelectric and wind generation can all be
used for fuel.
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galvanizing
Galvanizing is
an industrial process for rust proofing iron and steel. The metals are covered with a thin layer of zinc.
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gestation
Gestation is the
early development, from the time of fertilization to the moment of
birth.
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histology
Histology is the
branch of biology concerned with the tissues of plants and animals.
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hurricanes
Hurricane
winds blow anticlockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in
the southern hemisphere.
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hydrogen
Hydrogen is a
colourless, odourless gas and about 14 times lighter than air.
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implosion
An Implosion is
the reverse of an explosion. An implosion occurs when a vessel
collapses inward.
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In
The symbol In. stands for
Indium which is a soft, silvery metallic element.
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indigo
Indigo is blue.
It used to be derived from several plants but now it is made
artificially.
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jade
Jade is a hard,
compact mineral that is often used to make jewellery and carved
ornaments.
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jasper
Jasper is a
variety of flint. It is commonly red but it may be brown, yellow or
green.
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jet
If you look at
Jet under a microscope you can see the texture of wood running
through it.
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kaolin
Kaolin, or China
clay is a white or nearly white clay. When wet, it is plastic and
made into pottery.
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keratin
Keratin is a
tough material that forms the basis of hair, feathers, wool, claws,
nails, hooves etc.
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krypton
Krypton is an
inert gas and occurs in the air.
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landslide
Landslide
disasters occur when large masses of soil and rock crash down a
mountain side.
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lapis
lazuli
Lapis Lazuli is
a beautiful, deep blue stone which can be cut and polished to make
ornaments.
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laughing
gas
Laughing Gas is
a common name for Nitrous Oxide. It is a colourless gas with
slightly sweet
smell and taste.
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magma
Magma is molten rock that
rises from the interior of the earth and solidifies either on
the surface or beneath it to form igneous rocks.
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magnetite
Magnetite is a black,
metallic mineral consisting of iron oxide.
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magnetometer
A Magnetometer
measures the earth's natural magnetism. Magnetometers are used
in geophysical surveys.
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naphthalene
The smell of
Naphthalene repels insects and pests, therefore it is sometimes used to keep stored
clothes free of insects.
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nebula
A Nebula is a
vast mass of gas and dust in space. The name Nebula comes from the
Latin word meaning "cloud".
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nekton
Nekton is the name
given to all those animals that swim actively at various levels in the sea.
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oil shale
Oil Shale is a fine-grained,
dark brown or black rock from which oil can be extracted.
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organs
An organ is any
distinct part of a human or animal or plant that has a characteristic shape
and structure.
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ovaries
Only females
have ovaries. The ovary contains eggs or ova and produces sex hormones.
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parasites
A parasite is
any species of plant or animal that lives in close association with
another species.
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pasteurization
The process was
first developed by the Frenchman Louis Pasteur.
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peat
Peat is a kind
of coal that is used as fuel and fertilizer. It is found in bogs.
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pneumatics
Pneumatics uses
the power of compressed air to operate or drive machines that run on compressed air.
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quadrant
A quadrant is an
instrument used to measure latitudes and altitudes.
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quicksand
People who tread
on quicksand may sink into it and drown because they struggle to escape.
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quinine
Quinine is a
drug to lower fever, particularly in treating malaria. It also acts
to destroy the malaria parasites in the body.
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reflex
Reflex is an
automatic response of the body. If you touched a hot object your
automatic reflex makes you pull away from the hot object.
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resources
Resources are
all those raw materials, including sources of energy that the earth provides.
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Richter Scale
Richter scale is
a measurement using the numbers 1 to 12 to express the magnitude of
earthquakes.
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saint Elmo
Saint Elmo's Fire is a glow
like halo sometimes seen around pointed buildings in stormy weather
or around an aircraft flying in stormy air or dry snow.
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seismograph
A Seismograph is
a very sensitive instrument which is used to record the magnitude of
an earthquake in terms of the shock waves it produces.
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shock
Shock is a
serious state of collapse that occurs when the body over-reacts to
an injury, a severe emotional upset, or some other form of stress.
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tannin
Tannin is a
yellow compound that occurs in parts of many plants, such as the
bark of trees, oak galls, walnuts and even tea leaves and coffee beans.
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theodolite
A Theodolite is
an instrument which measures vertical and horizontal angles and
distances. It is used to survey accurately a large area of land.
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Thomas Alva Edison
Thomas Alva
Edison (1847-1931) invented over 1000 inventions. He was born in
Milan, Ohio, in the US.
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tsunami
Tsunami is a
large, often destructive, sea wave produced by a submarine
earthquake, subsidence or volcanic eruption.
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U.F.O.
A UFO is short
for Unidentified Flying Object. Tales of UFO's have been around for
a long time.
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ultrasonics
Ultrasonics
sound waves are a movement of particles back and forth along the
direction the sound travels.
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uranium
Uranium is a
silvery, radioactive, metallic element that is used as a source of
nuclear power.
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vinblastine
Vinblastine is a
cytotoxic drug used in the treatment of lymphomas.
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viruses
Viruses are much
smaller even than bacteria and can only be seen with an electron
microscope.
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vulcanizing
Vulcanizing is a
process for hardening rubber. The rubber from the tree is sticky and
plastic.
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Wardian case
A Wardian Case
is a type of glass container used for housing delicate ferns and
similar plants.
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water
All living
creatures depend upon water for survival.
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wood decay
All wood decay is caused by
bacteria and fungi. They eat into the cells and leave rotting wood
behind.
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xenon
Xenon is
colourless. It is also odourless and a gaseous element occurring in
trace amounts in air.
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xerophthalmia
Xerophthalmia is
an excessive dryness of the cornea and conjunctiva, caused by a
deficiency of vitamin A
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xerostomia
Xerostomia means
there is an abnormal lack of saliva. You will have extreme dryness
of the mouth.
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yeast
Yeast is a fungi
that lives on fruit naturally. It feeds on the fruit's sugar and
converts it to carbon dioxide and water.
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yolk
The yolk is the
substance in an animal ovum consisting of protein and fat that
nourishes the developing embryo.
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ytterbium
Ytterbium is a
soft malleable silvery element of the lanthanide series of
metals that occurs in
monazite.
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zenith
Astronomers use
the term Zenith for the point of the celestial sphere that lies
directly above an observer.
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zodiac
The Zodiac is a
region of the sky lying on either side of the ecliptic, the sun's
apparent path
through the heavens.
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zygote
The zygote is
the fertilized egg of an animal or plant.
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