Unit19 Flashcards
bionic
Made stronger or more capable by electronic or mechanical devices.
eg. Bionic feet and hands for amputees have ceased to be mere sci-fi fantasies and are becoming realities.
biopsy
The removal and examination of tissue, cells, or fluids from a living body.
eg. Everyone felt relieved when the results of the biopsy showed the tumor wasn’t cancerous.
biodegradable
Able to be broken down into harmless substances by microorganisms or other living things.
eg. Though the advertisements promised that the entire package was biodegradable, environmentalists expressed their doubts.
symbiosis
(1) The close living together of two different forms of life in a way that benefits both.
(2) A cooperative relationship between two people or groups.
eg. The lichen that grows on rocks is produced by the symbiosis of a fungus and an alga, two very different organisms.
genesis
Origin, beginning.
eg. The genesis of the project dates back to 1976, when the two young men were roommates at Cornell University.
generator
A machine by which mechanical energy is changed into electrical energy
eg. The jungle settlement depended on a large generator, which provided electricity for a couple of hours each morning and evening.
genre
Kind, sort; especially a distinctive type or category of literature, art, or music.
eg. Opera was a new genre for her, since all her compositions up until then had been songs and chamber music.
carcinogenic
Producing or causing cancer.
eg. Although she knows all too well that the tobacco in cigarettes is carcinogenic, she’s too addicted to quit.
functionary
(1) Someone who performs a certain function.
(2) Someone who holds a position in a political party or government.
eg. He was one of a group of party functionaries assigned to do the dirty work of the campaign.
malfunction
To fail to operate in the normal or usual manner.
eg. An examination of the wreck revealed that the brakes may have malfunctioned as the truck started down the hill.
defunct
No longer, living, existing, or functioning.
eg. The company, which had once had annual sales of $150 million, was now defunct.
dysfunctional
(1) Showing abnormal or unhealthy behaviors and attitudes within a group of people. (2) Being unable to function in a normal way.
eg. A psychologist would call their family dysfunctional, but even though there’s a lot of yelling and slamming of doors, they seem pretty happy to me.
commute
(1) To exchange or substitute; especially to change a penalty to another one that is less severe.
(2) To travel back and forth regularly.
eg. There was a public outcry at the harshness of the prison sentence, and two days later the governor commuted it to five years.
immutable
Not able or liable to change.
eg. Early philosophers believed there was an immutable substance at the root of all existence.
permutation
A change in the order of a set of objects; rearrangement, variation.
eg. They had rearranged the rooms in the house plans four or five times already, but the architect had come up with yet another permutation.
transmute
(1) To change in shape, appearance, or nature, especially for the better; to transform.
(2) To experience such a change.
eg. Working alone in his cluttered laboratory in 15th-century Milan, he spent twenty years searching for a method of transmuting lead into gold.
fractious
(1) Apt to cause trouble or be unruly.
(2) Stirring up quarrels; irritable.
eg. Shopping with a fractious child is next to impossible.
fractal
An irregular shape that looks much the same at any scale on which it is examined.
eg. He was showing her the fractals in the local ferns, in which each leaf reproduced the shape of the entire fern.
infraction
The breaking of a law or a violation of another’s rights.
eg. The assistant principal dealt with any students who had committed minor infractions of the rules.
refraction
The change of direction of a ray of light or wave of energy as it passes at an angle from one substance into another in which its speed is different.
eg. From where I was standing, the refraction made it look as if her legs underwater were half their actual length
telegenic
Well-suited to appear on television, especially by having an appearance and manner attractive to viewers.
eg. The local anchorpeople all have telegenic faces and great hair, though they don’t always seem to know a lot about the economy or political science.
teleological
Showing or relating to design or purpose, especially in nature.
eg. Many naturalists object to the teleological view that sees everything in nature as part of a grand design or plan.
telemetry
The science or process of measuring such things as pressure, speed, or temperature, sending the result usually by radio to a distant station, and recording the measurements there.
eg. The telemetry of the satellite had gone dead in 1999, and its fate remains a mystery.
telecommute
To work at home using an electronic link with a central office.
eg. A dozen of our employees are now telecommuting, and we calculate that altogether they’re saving 25 gallons of gasoline and its pollution every day.
oenophile
A person with an appreciation and usually knowledge of fine wine.
eg. As an amateur oenophile, he was constantly talking to his friends in the vocabulary of wine tasting.
philatelist
A person who collects or studies stamps.
eg. The U.S. Postal Service issues first-day covers of each new stamp design especially for philatelists.
Anglophile
A person who greatly admires or favors England and English things.
eg. His grandparents were Anglophiles, and whenever they had guests in the afternoon the beautiful silver tea service would come out.
philanthropy
(1) A charitable act or gift.
(2) An organization that distributes or is supported by charitable contributions.
eg. Her last philanthropy was dedicated to protecting a vast area in central Africa where many of the great apes lived.
negligent
(1) Failing to take proper or normal care.
(2) Marked by or likely to show neglect.
eg. The Army Corps of Engineers was found negligent for having failed to keep the New Orleans levees in good repair.
abnegation
Self-denial.
eg. She’s been denying herself pleasures since she was a child, so she’s actually attracted by the life of abnegation that a nun leads.
negligible
So small as to be neglected or disregarded.
eg. Local weather forecasters had made it sound like the blizzard of the century, but the amount of snow turned out to be negligible.
renege
To go back on a promise or commitment.
eg. If his partners renege at this point, the whole project will probably fall through.
decalogue
(1) (capitalized) The Ten Commandments. (2) Any basic set of rules that must be obeyed.
eg. At 15 she posted a decalogue of life rules on her bedroom door, starting with “1. Be respectful to teachers.”
decathlon
An athletic contest made up of ten parts.
eg. Though the U.S. has dominated the Olympic decathlon for its whole modern history, the 1948 victory by the 17-year-old Bob Mathias still astonished the world.
decibel
A unit based on a scale ranging from 0 to about 130 used to measure the loudness of sound, with 0 indicating the least sound that can be heard and 130 the average level that causes pain.
eg. She worries about the damage that high decibel levels can cause, and always wears ear protection when mowing the lawn.
decimate
To reduce drastically or destroy most of.
eg. Before the developments of modern medicine, diphtheria and typhoid could decimate the populations of entire towns and cities.
centenary
A 100th anniversary or the celebration of it; a centennial.
eg. The company is celebrating the centenary of its founding with a lavish banquet.
centigrade
Relating to a temperature scale in which 0° is the freezing point of water and 100° is its boiling point.
eg. The normal temperature of a human body is 37° centigrade.
centimeter
A length measuring 1/100th of a meter, or about 0.39 inch.
eg. There are 2.54 centimeters in an inch, 30.48 centimeters in a foot.
centurion
The officer in command of a Roman century, originally a troop of 100 soldiers.
eg. Centurions and their centuries were the backbone of the great Roman armies.
