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Animal charcoal Charcoal Char"coal`, n. [See Char, v. t., to burn or to
reduce to coal, and Coal.]
1. Impure carbon prepared from vegetable or animal
substances; esp., coal made by charring wood in a kiln,
retort, etc., from which air is excluded. It is used for
fuel and in various mechanical, artistic, and chemical
processes.
2. (Fine Arts) Finely prepared charcoal in small sticks, used
as a drawing implement.
Animal charcoal, a fine charcoal prepared by calcining
bones in a closed vessel; -- used as a filtering agent in
sugar refining, and as an absorbent and disinfectant.
Charcoal blacks, the black pigment, consisting of burnt
ivory, bone, cock, peach stones, and other substances.
Charcoal drawing (Fine Arts), a drawing made with charcoal.
See Charcoal, 2. Until within a few years this material
has been used almost exclusively for preliminary outline,
etc., but at present many finished drawings are made with
it.
Charcoal point, a carbon pencil prepared for use in an
electric light apparatus.
Mineral charcoal, a term applied to silky fibrous layers of
charcoal, interlaminated in beds of ordinary bituminous
coal; -- known to miners as mother of coal.
Animal electricity Animal An"i*mal, a. [Cf. F. animal.]
1. Of or relating to animals; as, animal functions.
2. Pertaining to the merely sentient part of a creature, as
distinguished from the intellectual, rational, or
spiritual part; as, the animal passions or appetites.
3. Consisting of the flesh of animals; as, animal food.
Animal magnetism. See Magnetism and Mesmerism.
Animal electricity, the electricity developed in some
animals, as the electric eel, torpedo, etc.
Animal flower (Zo["o]l.), a name given to certain marine
animals resembling a flower, as any species of actinia or
sea anemone, and other Anthozoa, hydroids, starfishes,
etc.
Animal heat (Physiol.), the heat generated in the body of a
living animal, by means of which the animal is kept at
nearly a uniform temperature.
Animal spirits. See under Spirit.
Animal kingdom, the whole class of beings endowed with
animal life. It embraces several subkingdoms, and under
these there are Classes, Orders, Families, Genera,
Species, and sometimes intermediate groupings, all in
regular subordination, but variously arranged by different
writers.
Note: The following are the grand divisions, or subkingdoms,
and the principal classes under them, generally
recognized at the present time:
Animal flower Animal An"i*mal, a. [Cf. F. animal.]
1. Of or relating to animals; as, animal functions.
2. Pertaining to the merely sentient part of a creature, as
distinguished from the intellectual, rational, or
spiritual part; as, the animal passions or appetites.
3. Consisting of the flesh of animals; as, animal food.
Animal magnetism. See Magnetism and Mesmerism.
Animal electricity, the electricity developed in some
animals, as the electric eel, torpedo, etc.
Animal flower (Zo["o]l.), a name given to certain marine
animals resembling a flower, as any species of actinia or
sea anemone, and other Anthozoa, hydroids, starfishes,
etc.
Animal heat (Physiol.), the heat generated in the body of a
living animal, by means of which the animal is kept at
nearly a uniform temperature.
Animal spirits. See under Spirit.
Animal kingdom, the whole class of beings endowed with
animal life. It embraces several subkingdoms, and under
these there are Classes, Orders, Families, Genera,
Species, and sometimes intermediate groupings, all in
regular subordination, but variously arranged by different
writers.
Note: The following are the grand divisions, or subkingdoms,
and the principal classes under them, generally
recognized at the present time:
Animal flower Note: If we examine a common flower, such for instance as a
geranium, we shall find that it consists of: First, an
outer envelope or calyx, sometimes tubular, sometimes
consisting of separate leaves called sepals; secondly,
an inner envelope or corolla, which is generally more
or less colored, and which, like the calyx, is
sometimes tubular, sometimes composed of separate
leaves called petals; thirdly, one or more stamens,
consisting of a stalk or filament and a head or anther,
in which the pollen is produced; and fourthly, a
pistil, which is situated in the center of the flower,
and consists generally of three principal parts; one or
more compartments at the base, each containing one or
more seeds; the stalk or style; and the stigma, which
in many familiar instances forms a small head, at the
top of the style or ovary, and to which the pollen must
find its way in order to fertilize the flower. --Sir J.
Lubbock.
3. The fairest, freshest, and choicest part of anything; as,
the flower of an army, or of a family; the state or time
of freshness and bloom; as, the flower of life, that is,
youth.
The choice and flower of all things profitable the
Psalms do more briefly contain. --Hooker.
The flower of the chivalry of all Spain. --Southey.
A simple maiden in her flower Is worth a hundred
coats of arms. --Tennyson.
4. Grain pulverized; meal; flour. [Obs.]
The flowers of grains, mixed with water, will make a
sort of glue. --Arbuthnot.
5. pl. (Old. Chem.) A substance in the form of a powder,
especially when condensed from sublimation; as, the
flowers of sulphur.
6. A figure of speech; an ornament of style.
7. pl. (Print.) Ornamental type used chiefly for borders
around pages, cards, etc. --W. Savage.
8. pl. Menstrual discharges. --Lev. xv. 24.
Animal flower (Zo["o]l.) See under Animal.
Cut flowers, flowers cut from the stalk, as for making a
bouquet.
Flower bed, a plat in a garden for the cultivation of
flowers.
Flower beetle (Zo["o]l.), any beetle which feeds upon
flowers, esp. any one of numerous small species of the
genus Meligethes, family Nitidulid[ae], some of which
are injurious to crops.
Flower bird (Zo["o]l.), an Australian bird of the genus
Anthornis, allied to the honey eaters.
Flower bud, an unopened flower.
Flower clock, an assemblage of flowers which open and close
at different hours of the day, thus indicating the time.
Flower head (Bot.), a compound flower in which all the
florets are sessile on their receptacle, as in the case of
the daisy.
Flower pecker (Zo["o]l.), one of a family (Dic[ae]id[ae])
of small Indian and Australian birds. They resemble
humming birds in habits.
Flower piece.
(a) A table ornament made of cut flowers.
(b) (Fine Arts) A picture of flowers.
Flower stalk (Bot.), the peduncle of a plant, or the stem
that supports the flower or fructification.
animal flowers Actinia Ac*tin"i*a, n.; pl. L. Actini[ae], E. Actinias.
[Latinized fr. Gr. ?, ?, ray.] (Zo["o]l.)
(a) An animal of the class Anthozoa, and family
Actinid[ae]. From a resemblance to flowers in form
and color, they are often called animal flowers and
sea anemones. [See Polyp.].
(b) A genus in the family Actinid[ae].
Animal force Force Force, n. [F. force, LL. forcia, fortia, fr. L. fortis
strong. See Fort, n.]
1. Strength or energy of body or mind; active power; vigor;
might; often, an unusual degree of strength or energy;
capacity of exercising an influence or producing an
effect; especially, power to persuade, or convince, or
impose obligation; pertinency; validity; special
signification; as, the force of an appeal, an argument, a
contract, or a term.
He was, in the full force of the words, a good man.
--Macaulay.
2. Power exerted against will or consent; compulsory power;
violence; coercion.
Which now they hold by force, and not by right.
--Shak.
3. Strength or power for war; hence, a body of land or naval
combatants, with their appurtenances, ready for action; --
an armament; troops; warlike array; -- often in the
plural; hence, a body of men prepared for action in other
ways; as, the laboring force of a plantation.
Is Lucius general of the forces? --Shak.
4. (Law)
(a) Strength or power exercised without law, or contrary
to law, upon persons or things; violence.
(b) Validity; efficacy. --Burrill.
5. (Physics) Any action between two bodies which changes, or
tends to change, their relative condition as to rest or
motion; or, more generally, which changes, or tends to
change, any physical relation between them, whether
mechanical, thermal, chemical, electrical, magnetic, or of
any other kind; as, the force of gravity; cohesive force;
centrifugal force.
Animal force (Physiol.), muscular force or energy.
Catabiotic force [Gr. ? down (intens.) + ? life.] (Biol.),
the influence exerted by living structures on adjoining
cells, by which the latter are developed in harmony with
the primary structures.
Centrifugal force, Centripetal force, Coercive force,
etc. See under Centrifugal, Centripetal, etc.
Composition of forces, Correlation of forces, etc. See
under Composition, Correlation, etc.
Force and arms [trans. of L. vi et armis] (Law), an
expression in old indictments, signifying violence.
In force, or Of force, of unimpaired efficacy; valid; of
full virtue; not suspended or reversed. ``A testament is
of force after men are dead.' --Heb. ix. 17.
Metabolic force (Physiol.), the influence which causes and
controls the metabolism of the body.
No force, no matter of urgency or consequence; no account;
hence, to do no force, to make no account of; not to heed.
[Obs.] --Chaucer.
Of force, of necessity; unavoidably; imperatively. ``Good
reasons must, of force, give place to better.' --Shak.
Plastic force (Physiol.), the force which presumably acts
in the growth and repair of the tissues.
Vital force (Physiol.), that force or power which is
inherent in organization; that form of energy which is the
cause of the vital phenomena of the body, as distinguished
from the physical forces generally known.
Syn: Strength; vigor; might; energy; stress; vehemence;
violence; compulsion; coaction; constraint; coercion.
Usage: Force, Strength. Strength looks rather to power as
an inward capability or energy. Thus we speak of the
strength of timber, bodily strength, mental strength,
strength of emotion, etc. Force, on the other hand,
looks more to the outward; as, the force of
gravitation, force of circumstances, force of habit,
etc. We do, indeed, speak of strength of will and
force of will; but even here the former may lean
toward the internal tenacity of purpose, and the
latter toward the outward expression of it in action.
But, though the two words do in a few cases touch thus
closely on each other, there is, on the whole, a
marked distinction in our use of force and strength.
``Force is the name given, in mechanical science, to
whatever produces, or can produce, motion.' --Nichol.
Thy tears are of no force to mollify This flinty
man. --Heywood.
More huge in strength than wise in works he was.
--Spenser.
Adam and first matron Eve Had ended now their
orisons, and found Strength added from above,
new hope to spring Out of despair. --Milton.
Animal heat Animal An"i*mal, a. [Cf. F. animal.]
1. Of or relating to animals; as, animal functions.
2. Pertaining to the merely sentient part of a creature, as
distinguished from the intellectual, rational, or
spiritual part; as, the animal passions or appetites.
3. Consisting of the flesh of animals; as, animal food.
Animal magnetism. See Magnetism and Mesmerism.
Animal electricity, the electricity developed in some
animals, as the electric eel, torpedo, etc.
Animal flower (Zo["o]l.), a name given to certain marine
animals resembling a flower, as any species of actinia or
sea anemone, and other Anthozoa, hydroids, starfishes,
etc.
Animal heat (Physiol.), the heat generated in the body of a
living animal, by means of which the animal is kept at
nearly a uniform temperature.
Animal spirits. See under Spirit.
Animal kingdom, the whole class of beings endowed with
animal life. It embraces several subkingdoms, and under
these there are Classes, Orders, Families, Genera,
Species, and sometimes intermediate groupings, all in
regular subordination, but variously arranged by different
writers.
Note: The following are the grand divisions, or subkingdoms,
and the principal classes under them, generally
recognized at the present time:
Animal kingdom Animal An"i*mal, a. [Cf. F. animal.]
1. Of or relating to animals; as, animal functions.
2. Pertaining to the merely sentient part of a creature, as
distinguished from the intellectual, rational, or
spiritual part; as, the animal passions or appetites.
3. Consisting of the flesh of animals; as, animal food.
Animal magnetism. See Magnetism and Mesmerism.
Animal electricity, the electricity developed in some
animals, as the electric eel, torpedo, etc.
Animal flower (Zo["o]l.), a name given to certain marine
animals resembling a flower, as any species of actinia or
sea anemone, and other Anthozoa, hydroids, starfishes,
etc.
Animal heat (Physiol.), the heat generated in the body of a
living animal, by means of which the animal is kept at
nearly a uniform temperature.
Animal spirits. See under Spirit.
Animal kingdom, the whole class of beings endowed with
animal life. It embraces several subkingdoms, and under
these there are Classes, Orders, Families, Genera,
Species, and sometimes intermediate groupings, all in
regular subordination, but variously arranged by different
writers.
Note: The following are the grand divisions, or subkingdoms,
and the principal classes under them, generally
recognized at the present time:
Animal magnetism Animal An"i*mal, a. [Cf. F. animal.]
1. Of or relating to animals; as, animal functions.
2. Pertaining to the merely sentient part of a creature, as
distinguished from the intellectual, rational, or
spiritual part; as, the animal passions or appetites.
3. Consisting of the flesh of animals; as, animal food.
Animal magnetism. See Magnetism and Mesmerism.
Animal electricity, the electricity developed in some
animals, as the electric eel, torpedo, etc.
Animal flower (Zo["o]l.), a name given to certain marine
animals resembling a flower, as any species of actinia or
sea anemone, and other Anthozoa, hydroids, starfishes,
etc.
Animal heat (Physiol.), the heat generated in the body of a
living animal, by means of which the animal is kept at
nearly a uniform temperature.
Animal spirits. See under Spirit.
Animal kingdom, the whole class of beings endowed with
animal life. It embraces several subkingdoms, and under
these there are Classes, Orders, Families, Genera,
Species, and sometimes intermediate groupings, all in
regular subordination, but variously arranged by different
writers.
Note: The following are the grand divisions, or subkingdoms,
and the principal classes under them, generally
recognized at the present time:
Animal spirits Spirit Spir"it, n. [OF. espirit, esperit, F. esprit, L.
spiritus, from spirare to breathe, to blow. Cf. Conspire,
Expire, Esprit, Sprite.]
1. Air set in motion by breathing; breath; hence, sometimes,
life itself. [Obs.] ``All of spirit would deprive.'
--Spenser.
The mild air, with season moderate, Gently
attempered, and disposed eo well, That still it
breathed foorth sweet spirit. --Spenser.
2. A rough breathing; an aspirate, as the letter h; also, a
mark to denote aspiration; a breathing. [Obs.]
Be it a letter or spirit, we have great use for it.
--B. Jonson.
3. Life, or living substance, considered independently of
corporeal existence; an intelligence conceived of apart
from any physical organization or embodiment; vital
essence, force, or energy, as distinct from matter.
4. The intelligent, immaterial and immortal part of man; the
soul, in distinction from the body in which it resides;
the agent or subject of vital and spiritual functions,
whether spiritual or material.
There is a spirit in man; and the inspiration of the
Almighty giveth them understanding. --Job xxxii.
8.
As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith
without works is dead also. --James ii.
26.
Spirit is a substance wherein thinking, knowing,
doubting, and a power of moving, do subsist.
--Locke.
5. Specifically, a disembodied soul; the human soul after it
has left the body.
Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was,
and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.
--Eccl. xii.
7.
Ye gentle spirits far away, With whom we shared the
cup of grace. --Keble.
6. Any supernatural being, good or bad; an apparition; a
specter; a ghost; also, sometimes, a sprite,; a fairy; an
elf.
Whilst young, preserve his tender mind from all
impressions of spirits and goblins in the dark.
--Locke.
7. Energy, vivacity, ardor, enthusiasm, courage, etc.
``Write it then, quickly,' replied Bede; and
summoning all his spirits together, like the last
blaze of a candle going out, he indited it, and
expired. --Fuller.
8. One who is vivacious or lively; one who evinces great
activity or peculiar characteristics of mind or temper;
as, a ruling spirit; a schismatic spirit.
Such spirits as he desired to please, such would I
choose for my judges. --Dryden.
9. Temper or disposition of mind; mental condition or
disposition; intellectual or moral state; -- often in the
plural; as, to be cheerful, or in good spirits; to be
downhearted, or in bad spirits.
God has . . . made a spirit of building succeed a
spirit of pulling down. --South.
A perfect judge will read each work of wit With the
same spirit that its author writ. --Pope.
10. Intent; real meaning; -- opposed to the letter, or to
formal statement; also, characteristic quality,
especially such as is derived from the individual genius
or the personal character; as, the spirit of an
enterprise, of a document, or the like.
11. Tenuous, volatile, airy, or vapory substance, possessed
of active qualities.
All bodies have spirits . . . within them. --Bacon.
12. Any liquid produced by distillation; especially, alcohol,
the spirits, or spirit, of wine (it having been first
distilled from wine): -- often in the plural.
13. pl. Rum, whisky, brandy, gin, and other distilled liquors
having much alcohol, in distinction from wine and malt
liquors.
14. (Med.) A solution in alcohol of a volatile principle. Cf.
Tincture. --U. S. Disp.
15. (Alchemy) Any one of the four substances, sulphur, sal
ammoniac, quicksilver, or arsenic (or, according to some,
orpiment).
The four spirits and the bodies seven. --Chaucer.
16. (Dyeing) Stannic chloride. See under Stannic.
Note: Spirit is sometimes joined with other words, forming
compounds, generally of obvious signification; as,
spirit-moving, spirit-searching, spirit-stirring, etc.
Astral spirits, Familiar spirits, etc. See under
Astral, Familiar, etc.
Animal spirits.
(a) (Physiol.) The fluid which at one time was supposed
to circulate through the nerves and was regarded as
the agent of sensation and motion; -- called also the
nervous fluid, or nervous principle.
(b) Physical health and energy; frolicsomeness;
sportiveness.
Ardent spirits, strong alcoholic liquors, as brandy, rum,
whisky, etc., obtained by distillation.
Holy Spirit, or The Spirit (Theol.), the Spirit of God,
or the third person of the Trinity; the Holy Ghost. The
spirit also signifies the human spirit as influenced or
animated by the Divine Spirit.
Proof spirit. (Chem.) See under Proof.
Rectified spirit (Chem.), spirit rendered purer or more
concentrated by redistillation, so as to increase the
percentage of absolute alcohol.
Spirit butterfly (Zo["o]l.), any one of numerous species of
delicate butterflies of tropical America belonging to the
genus Ithomia. The wings are gauzy and nearly destitute
of scales.
Spirit duck. (Zo["o]l.)
(a) The buffle-headed duck.
(b) The golden-eye.
Spirit lamp (Art), a lamp in which alcohol or methylated
spirit is burned.
Spirit level. See under Level.
Spirit of hartshorn. (Old Chem.) See under Hartshorn.
Spirit of Mindererus (Med.), an aqueous solution of acetate
of ammonium; -- named after R. Minderer, physician of
Augsburg.
Spirit of nitrous ether (Med. Chem.), a pale yellow liquid,
of a sweetish taste and a pleasant ethereal odor. It is
obtained by the distillation of alcohol with nitric and
sulphuric acids, and consists essentially of ethyl nitrite
with a little acetic aldehyde. It is used as a
diaphoretic, diuretic, antispasmodic, etc. Called also
sweet spirit of niter.
Spirit of salt (Chem.), hydrochloric acid; -- so called
because obtained from salt and sulphuric acid. [Obs.]
Spirit of sense, the utmost refinement of sensation. [Obs.]
--Shak.
Spirits, or Spirit, of turpentine (Chem.), rectified
oil of turpentine, a transparent, colorless, volatile, and
very inflammable liquid, distilled from the turpentine of
the various species of pine; camphine. See Camphine.
Spirit of vitriol (Chem.), sulphuric acid; -- so called
because formerly obtained by the distillation of green
vitriol. [Obs.]
Spirit of vitriolic ether (Chem.) ether; -- often but
incorrectly called sulphuric ether. See Ether. [Obs.]
Spirits, or Spirit, of wine (Chem.), alcohol; -- so
called because formerly obtained by the distillation of
wine.
Spirit rapper, one who practices spirit rapping; a
``medium' so called.
Spirit rapping, an alleged form of communication with the
spirits of the dead by raps. See Spiritualism, 3.
Sweet spirit of niter. See Spirit of nitrous ether,
above.
Animal spirits Animal An"i*mal, a. [Cf. F. animal.]
1. Of or relating to animals; as, animal functions.
2. Pertaining to the merely sentient part of a creature, as
distinguished from the intellectual, rational, or
spiritual part; as, the animal passions or appetites.
3. Consisting of the flesh of animals; as, animal food.
Animal magnetism. See Magnetism and Mesmerism.
Animal electricity, the electricity developed in some
animals, as the electric eel, torpedo, etc.
Animal flower (Zo["o]l.), a name given to certain marine
animals resembling a flower, as any species of actinia or
sea anemone, and other Anthozoa, hydroids, starfishes,
etc.
Animal heat (Physiol.), the heat generated in the body of a
living animal, by means of which the animal is kept at
nearly a uniform temperature.
Animal spirits. See under Spirit.
Animal kingdom, the whole class of beings endowed with
animal life. It embraces several subkingdoms, and under
these there are Classes, Orders, Families, Genera,
Species, and sometimes intermediate groupings, all in
regular subordination, but variously arranged by different
writers.
Note: The following are the grand divisions, or subkingdoms,
and the principal classes under them, generally
recognized at the present time:
Baptismal name Baptismal Bap*tis"mal, a. [Cf. F. baptismal.]
Pertaining to baptism; as, baptismal vows.
Baptismal name, the Christian name, which is given at
baptism.
Decimal fraction Fraction Frac"tion, n. [F. fraction, L. fractio a breaking,
fr. frangere, fractum, to break. See Break.]
1. The act of breaking, or state of being broken, especially
by violence. [Obs.]
Neither can the natural body of Christ be subject to
any fraction or breaking up. --Foxe.
2. A portion; a fragment.
Some niggard fractions of an hour. --Tennyson.
3. (Arith. or Alg.) One or more aliquot parts of a unit or
whole number; an expression for a definite portion of a
unit or magnitude.
Common, or Vulgar, fraction, a fraction in which the
number of equal parts into which the integer is supposed
to be divided is indicated by figures or letters, called
the denominator, written below a line, over which is the
numerator, indicating the number of these parts included
in the fraction; as 1/2, one half, 2/5, two fifths.
Complex fraction, a fraction having a fraction or mixed
number in the numerator or denominator, or in both.
--Davies & Peck.
Compound fraction, a fraction of a fraction; two or more
fractions connected by of.
Continued fraction, Decimal fraction, Partial fraction,
etc. See under Continued, Decimal, Partial, etc.
Improper fraction, a fraction in which the numerator is
greater than the denominator.
Proper fraction, a fraction in which the numerator is less
than the denominator.
Formal cause Formal Form"al (f[^o]rm"al), a. [L. formalis: cf. F. formel.]
1. Belonging to the form, shape, frame, external appearance,
or organization of a thing.
2. Belonging to the constitution of a thing, as distinguished
from the matter composing it; having the power of making a
thing what it is; constituent; essential; pertaining to or
depending on the forms, so called, of the human intellect.
Of [the sounds represented by] letters, the material
part is breath and voice; the formal is constituted
by the motion and figure of the organs of speech.
--Holder.
3. Done in due form, or with solemnity; according to regular
method; not incidental, sudden or irregular; express; as,
he gave his formal consent.
His obscure funeral . . . No noble rite nor formal
ostentation. --Shak.
4. Devoted to, or done in accordance with, forms or rules;
punctilious; regular; orderly; methodical; of a prescribed
form; exact; prim; stiff; ceremonious; as, a man formal in
his dress, his gait, his conversation.
A cold-looking, formal garden, cut into angles and
rhomboids. --W. Irwing.
She took off the formal cap that confined her hair.
--Hawthorne.
5. Having the form or appearance without the substance or
essence; external; as, formal duty; formal worship; formal
courtesy, etc.
6. Dependent in form; conventional.
Still in constraint your suffering sex remains, Or
bound in formal or in real chains. --Pope.
7. Sound; normal. [Obs.]
To make of him a formal man again. --Shak.
Formal cause. See under Cause.
Syn: Precise; punctilious; stiff; starched; affected; ritual;
ceremonial; external; outward.
Usage: Formal, Ceremonious. When applied to things, these
words usually denote a mere accordance with the rules
of form or ceremony; as, to make a formal call; to
take a ceremonious leave. When applied to a person or
his manners, they are used in a bad sense; a person
being called formal who shapes himself too much by
some pattern or set form, and ceremonious when he lays
too much stress on the conventional laws of social
intercourse. Formal manners render a man stiff or
ridiculous; a ceremonious carriage puts a stop to the
ease and freedom of social intercourse.
Formal cause Cause Cause (k[add]z), n. [F. cause, fr. L. causa. Cf.
Cause, v., Kickshaw.]
1. That which produces or effects a result; that from which
anything proceeds, and without which it would not exist.
Cause is substance exerting its power into act, to
make one thing begin to be. --Locke.
2. That which is the occasion of an action or state; ground;
reason; motive; as, cause for rejoicing.
3. Sake; interest; advantage. [Obs.]
I did it not for his cause. --2 Cor. vii.
12.
4. (Law) A suit or action in court; any legal process by
which a party endeavors to obtain his claim, or what he
regards as his right; case; ground of action.
5. Any subject of discussion or debate; matter; question;
affair in general.
What counsel give you in this weighty cause! --Shak.
6. The side of a question, which is espoused, advocated, and
upheld by a person or party; a principle which is
advocated; that which a person or party seeks to attain.
God befriend us, as our cause is just. --Shak.
The part they take against me is from zeal to the
cause. --Burke.
Efficient cause, the agent or force that produces a change
or result.
Final cause, the end, design, or object, for which anything
is done.
Formal cause, the elements of a conception which make the
conception or the thing conceived to be what it is; or the
idea viewed as a formative principle and co["o]perating
with the matter.
Material cause, that of which anything is made.
Proximate cause. See under Proximate.
To make common cause with, to join with in purposes and
aims. --Macaulay.
Syn: Origin; source; mainspring; motive; reason; incitement;
inducement; purpose; object; suit; action.
Gimmal joint Gommal Gom"mal, a.
Made or consisting of interlocked ring? or links; as, gimmal
mail.
In their pale dull mouths the gimmal bit Lies foul with
chewed grass. --Shak.
Gimmal joint. See Gimbal joint, under Gimbal.
Hemal arch Hemal He"mal, a. [Gr. a"i^ma blood.]
Relating to the blood or blood vessels; pertaining to,
situated in the region of, or on the side with, the heart and
great blood vessels; -- opposed to neural.
Note: As applied to vertebrates, hemal is the same as
ventral, the heart and great blood vessels being on the
ventral, and the central nervous system on the dorsal,
side of the vertebral column.
Hemal arch (Anat.), the ventral arch in a segment of the
spinal skeleton, formed by vertebral processes or ribs.
Isothermal line Isothermal I`so*ther"mal, a. [Cf. F. isotherme.]
(a) Relating to equality of temperature.
(b) (Phys. Geog.) Having reference to the geographical
distribution of temperature, as exhibited by means of
isotherms; as, an isothermal line; an isothermal chart.
Isothermal line.
(a) An isotherm.
(b) A line drawn on a diagram of energy such that its
ordinates represent the pressures of a substance
corresponding to various volumes, while the absolute
temperature is maintained at a constant value.
Isothermal zones, spaces on opposite sides of the equator
having the same mean temperature, and bounded by
corresponding isothermal lines.
Isothermal zones Isothermal I`so*ther"mal, a. [Cf. F. isotherme.]
(a) Relating to equality of temperature.
(b) (Phys. Geog.) Having reference to the geographical
distribution of temperature, as exhibited by means of
isotherms; as, an isothermal line; an isothermal chart.
Isothermal line.
(a) An isotherm.
(b) A line drawn on a diagram of energy such that its
ordinates represent the pressures of a substance
corresponding to various volumes, while the absolute
temperature is maintained at a constant value.
Isothermal zones, spaces on opposite sides of the equator
having the same mean temperature, and bounded by
corresponding isothermal lines.
Normal nonane Nonane Non"ane, n. [L. nonus ninth.] (Chem.)
One of a group of metameric hydrocarbons C9H20 of the
paraffin series; -- so called because of the nine carbon
atoms in the molecule. Normal nonane is a colorless
volatile liquid, an ingredient of ordinary kerosene.
normal pyrotartaric acid Glutaric Glu*tar"ic, a. [Glutamic + tartaric.] (Chem.)
Of, pertaining to, or designating, an acid so called; as,
glutaric ethers.
Glutaric acid, an organic acid obtained as a white
crystalline substance, isomeric with pyrotartaric acid; --
called also normal pyrotartaric acid.
Normal school School School, n. [OE. scole, AS. sc?lu, L. schola, Gr. ?
leisure, that in which leisure is employed, disputation,
lecture, a school, probably from the same root as ?, the
original sense being perhaps, a stopping, a resting. See
Scheme.]
1. A place for learned intercourse and instruction; an
institution for learning; an educational establishment; a
place for acquiring knowledge and mental training; as, the
school of the prophets.
Disputing daily in the school of one Tyrannus.
--Acts xix. 9.
2. A place of primary instruction; an establishment for the
instruction of children; as, a primary school; a common
school; a grammar school.
As he sat in the school at his primer. --Chaucer.
3. A session of an institution of instruction.
How now, Sir Hugh! No school to-day? --Shak.
4. One of the seminaries for teaching logic, metaphysics, and
theology, which were formed in the Middle Ages, and which
were characterized by academical disputations and
subtilties of reasoning.
At Cambridge the philosophy of Descartes was still
dominant in the schools. --Macaulay.
5. The room or hall in English universities where the
examinations for degrees and honors are held.
6. An assemblage of scholars; those who attend upon
instruction in a school of any kind; a body of pupils.
What is the great community of Christians, but one
of the innumerable schools in the vast plan which
God has instituted for the education of various
intelligences? --Buckminster.
7. The disciples or followers of a teacher; those who hold a
common doctrine, or accept the same teachings; a sect or
denomination in philosophy, theology, science, medicine,
politics, etc.
Let no man be less confident in his faith . . . by
reason of any difference in the several schools of
Christians. --Jer. Taylor.
8. The canons, precepts, or body of opinion or practice,
sanctioned by the authority of a particular class or age;
as, he was a gentleman of the old school.
His face pale but striking, though not handsome
after the schools. --A. S. Hardy.
9. Figuratively, any means of knowledge or discipline; as,
the school of experience.
Boarding school, Common school, District school,
Normal school, etc. See under Boarding, Common,
District, etc.
High school, a free public school nearest the rank of a
college. [U. S.]
School board, a corporation established by law in every
borough or parish in England, and elected by the burgesses
or ratepayers, with the duty of providing public school
accommodation for all children in their district.
School committee, School board, an elected committee of
citizens having charge and care of the public schools in
any district, town, or city, and responsible for control
of the money appropriated for school purposes. [U. S.]
Normal spectrum Spectrum Spec"trum, n.; pl. Spectra. [L. See Specter.]
1. An apparition; a specter. [Obs.]
2. (Opt.)
(a) The several colored and other rays of which light is
composed, separated by the refraction of a prism or
other means, and observed or studied either as spread
out on a screen, by direct vision, by photography, or
otherwise. See Illust. of Light, and Spectroscope.
(b) A luminous appearance, or an image seen after the eye
has been exposed to an intense light or a strongly
illuminated object. When the object is colored, the
image appears of the complementary color, as a green
image seen after viewing a red wafer lying on white
paper. Called also ocular spectrum.
Absorption spectrum, the spectrum of light which has passed
through a medium capable of absorbing a portion of the
rays. It is characterized by dark spaces, bands, or lines.
Chemical spectrum, a spectrum of rays considered solely
with reference to their chemical effects, as in
photography. These, in the usual photogrophic methods,
have their maximum influence at and beyond the violet
rays, but are not limited to this region.
Chromatic spectrum, the visible colored rays of the solar
spectrum, exhibiting the seven principal colors in their
order, and covering the central and larger portion of the
space of the whole spectrum.
Continous spectrum, a spectrum not broken by bands or
lines, but having the colors shaded into each other
continously, as that from an incandescent solid or liquid,
or a gas under high pressure.
Diffraction spectrum, a spectrum produced by diffraction,
as by a grating.
Gaseous spectrum, the spectrum of an incandesoent gas or
vapor, under moderate, or especially under very low,
pressure. It is characterized by bright bands or lines.
Normal spectrum, a representation of a spectrum arranged
upon conventional plan adopted as standard, especially a
spectrum in which the colors are spaced proportionally to
their wave lengths, as when formed by a diffraction
grating.
Ocular spectrum. See Spectrum, 2
(b), above.
Prismatic spectrum, a spectrum produced by means of a
prism.
Solar spectrum, the spectrum of solar light, especially as
thrown upon a screen in a darkened room. It is
characterized by numerous dark lines called Fraunhofer
lines.
Spectrum analysis, chemical analysis effected by comparison
of the different relative positions and qualities of the
fixed lines of spectra produced by flames in which
different substances are burned or evaporated, each
substance having its own characteristic system of lines.
Thermal spectrum, a spectrum of rays considered solely with
reference to their heating effect, especially of those
rays which produce no luminous phenomena.
normal stannic acid Stannic Stan"nic, a. [L. stannum tin: cf. F. stannique.]
(Chem.)
Of or pertaining to tin; derived from or containing tin;
specifically, designating those compounds in which the
element has a higher valence as contrasted with stannous
compounds.
Stannic acid.
(a) A hypothetical substance, Sn(OH)4, analogous to silic
acid, and called also normal stannic acid.
(b) Metastannic acid.
Stannic chloride, a thin, colorless, fuming liquid,
SnCl4, used as a mordant in calico printing and dyeing;
-- formerly called spirit of tin, or fuming liquor of
Libavius.
Stannic oxide, tin oxide, SnO2, produced artificially as
a white amorphous powder, and occurring naturally in the
mineral cassiterite. It is used in the manufacture of
white enamels, and, under the name of putty powder, for
polishing glass, etc.
normal titanic acid Titanic Ti*tan"ic, a. [Cf. F. titanique.] (Chem.)
Of or pertaining to titanium; derived from, or containing,
titanium; specifically, designating those compounds of
titanium in which it has a higher valence as contrasted with
the titanous compounds.
Titanic acid (Chem.), a white amorphous powder, Ti.(OH)4,
obtained by decomposing certain titanates; -- called also
normal titanic acid. By extension, any one of a series
of derived acids, called also metatitanic acid,
polytitanic acid, etc.
Titanic iron ore. (Min.) See Menaccanite.
orthosilicic or normal silicic acid Silicic Si*lic"ic, a. [L. silex, silicis, a flint: cf. F.
silicique.] (Chem.)
Pertaining to, derived from, or resembling, silica;
specifically, designating compounds of silicon; as, silicic
acid.
Silicic acid (Chem.), an amorphous gelatinous substance,
Si(HO)4, very unstable and easily dried to silica, but
forming many stable salts; -- called also orthosilicic,
or normal silicic, acid.
Pseudhaemal fluid Pseudhaemal Pseud*h[ae]"mal, a. [Pseudo- + h[ae]mal.]
(Zo["o]l.)
Pertaining to the vascular system of annelids.
Pseudh[ae]mal fluid, the circulatory fluid, or blood, of
annelids, analogous to the blood of vertebrates. It is
often red, but is sometimes green or colorless.
Pseudh[ae]mal vessels, the blood vessels of annelids.
Pseudhaemal vessels Pseudhaemal Pseud*h[ae]"mal, a. [Pseudo- + h[ae]mal.]
(Zo["o]l.)
Pertaining to the vascular system of annelids.
Pseudh[ae]mal fluid, the circulatory fluid, or blood, of
annelids, analogous to the blood of vertebrates. It is
often red, but is sometimes green or colorless.
Pseudh[ae]mal vessels, the blood vessels of annelids.
Thermal conductivity Thermal Ther"mal, a. [L. thermae hot springs, fr. Gr. ?, pl.
of ? heat, fr. ? hot, warm, ? to warm, make hot; perhaps akin
to L. formus warm, and E. forceps.]
Of or pertaining to heat; warm; hot; as, the thermal unit;
thermal waters.
The thermal condition of the earth. --J. D.
Forbes.
Thermal conductivity, Thermal spectrum. See under
Conductivity, and Spectrum.
Thermal unit (Physics), a unit chosen for the comparison or
calculation of quantities of heat. The unit most commonly
employed is the amount of heat necessary to raise the
temperature of one gram or one pound of water from zero to
one degree Centigrade. See Calorie, and under Unit.
Thermal conductivity Conductivity Con`duc*tiv"i*ty
(k[o^]n`d[u^]k*t[i^]v"[i^]*t[y^]), n.
The quality or power of conducting, or of receiving and
transmitting, as heat, electricity, etc.; as, the
conductivity of a nerve.
Thermal conductivity (Physics), the quantity of heat that
passes in unit time through unit area of a plate whose
thickness is unity, when its opposite faces differ in
temperature by one degree.
