Glossary
Terms starting with P
374 definitions · page 1 of 7.
- P (peptidyl) site
- The site on the ribosome occupied by the peptidyl-tRNA just before peptide bond formation.
- P element
- A Drosophila transposable element that has been used as a tool for insertion mutagenesis and for germline transformation.
- P1
- Parental generation.
- P53
- A 53KDa protein the product of a tumour suppressor gene. The loss of this protein due to mutation is a primary event in the formation of many types of cancer (breast, colon, lung, leukaemia, liver). P53 is involved in regulating the activity of some other…
- PABA
- Para-aminobenzoic acid. Found in the vitamin B complex. Used as an ingredient in some sunscreen products.
- pachynema (pachytene stage)
- The stage of prophase 1 of meiosis in which chromatids are first distinctly visible.
- PACKAGE POLICY
- A single insurance policy that combines several coverages previously sold separately. Examples include homeowners insurance and commercial multiple peril insurance.
- Packet 3
- Instruction Package for Immigrant Visa Applicants.
- Packet 4
- Appointment Package for Immigrant Visa Applicants.
- Packet 4A
- Follow-up Letter and Instruction Package.
- PADD (PETROLEUM ADMINISTRATION FOR DEFENSE DISTRICTS)
- The United States is divided by the U.S. Department of Energy into five PADD regions for planning purposes. The states within PADD V are Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon and Washington, which are linked closely by their oil supply network…
- Paella
- A Spanish dish of rice and saffron that usually includes tomatoes, chicken and seafood. It originated in the Valencia region of Spain and gets its name from the broad shallow pan (paella or paellera) in which it's traditionally cooked and served from. The…
- Page
- Name for a basic web document. Websites usually consist of many (web) pages.
- Page view
- request to load a single HTML page.
- Pagerank
- it measures the importance of a page for a search engine
- PAHs
- Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a class of very stable organic molecules. They are flat molecules made only of carbon and hydrogen atoms. PAH molecules are quite common and highly carcinogenic. They are one of the by-products of combustion from…
- Pairs
- A three digit number bet whose any one pair of the first two digits, last two digits, and in some cases the first and last digit appear on the drawn number.
- Pak choi
- Closely related to bok choi, this leafy green Chinese vegetable belongs to the cabbage family (although it tastes nothing like cabbage!). It has long green, slightly ribbed leaf stalks and soft oval green leaves. The leaves and stems are best suited to brief…
- Palette
- A grouping of colors by family of tones or specific function.
- palindrome
- A sequence of letters, words, phrases, or nucleotides that reads the same regardless of direction, for instance what Adam said to Eve "Madam I'm Adam". The DNA sequence of type II restriction endonuclease recognition sites (eg EcoRI 5'GAATTC3') and the…
- Pancakes
- Pancakes are thin cakes made from a batter of milk (or milk and water), eggs and flour which is then cooked in a frying pan or on a griddle until golden brown on both sides. You can buy special pancake pans which are shallow and non-stick with curved sides…
- Pancetta
- An Italian type of bacon produced from belly of pork which is seasoned, then rolled up and dry cured. Flat slabs of pancetta are also available and this is normally how you'd find it in Italy. It can be bought in the UK pre-packed and either in cubes…
- Panel Physician
- Embassies and consulates which issue immigrant visas have selected certain doctors to do the medical examinations for immigrant visa applicants. These doctors are called panel physicians.
- Panettone
- A large, round yeasted fruit cake from Italy, traditionally eaten at Christmas and Easter. It's baked in a special tubular mould to give it height. They're beautifully packaged in tall decorated boxes and available from Italian delis and some larger…
- panmictic
- Referring to unstructured (random-mating) populations.
- Panna cotta
- The name for this cold dessert from Italy means 'cooked cream', although not all recipes call for the cream to be actually cooked. To make panna cotta, cream is added to gelatine and then flavoured, usually with vanilla or cinnamon but sometimes with alcohol…
- Panthenol
- Also known as vitamin B5, acts as a penetrating moisturizer.
- PAP
- (Password Authentication Protocol). PAP is the authentication protocol used over PPP connections.
- Papaya
- Also called a paw paw, this is a large fragrant fruit that looks a bit like a large mango, with green skin and sweet orange flesh filled with round black seeds. It's delicious on its own with a squeeze of lime juice, or use it in salsas, add it to fruit…
- Papillote (en)
- The term 'en papilotte' is used to describe a dish cooked in a parcel that protects the food from the high heat of the oven and keeps in the aroma and flavour. The dish is usually served at the table in the actual parcel so that each diner can unwrap their…
- Paprika
- Paprika is the ground bright red powder from sweet and hot dried peppers. It's much milder than cayenne pepper and has a characteristic sweetness. It's a favourite ingredient in European cookery: in Austria and Hungary paprika is a main flavouring in meat…
- paracentric inversion
- An inversion not involving the centromere. A chromosomal inversion that does not include the centromere.
- Paraffin
- A beeswax substitute derived from petroleum.
- parallax
- the apparent shift of a relatively nearby object against a fixed background due to the motion of the observer; astronomers observe the parallax of stars to measure their distances
- PARALLEL PATH FLOW
- As defined by NERC, this refers to the flow of electric power on an electric system's transmission facilities resulting from scheduled electric power transfers between two other electric systems. (Electric power flows on all interconnected parallel paths in…
- paralogous genes
- Two genes or clusters of genes at different chromosomal locations in the same organism that have structural similarities indicating that they derived from a common ancestral gene.
- paramecin
- A toxin liberated by a killer Paramecium.
- parameters
- Measurements of attributes of a population.
- parapatric speciation
- speciation in which the evolution of reproductive isolating mechanisms occurs when a population enters a new niche or habitat within the range of the parent species.
- paraphrase
- The practice by Renaissance composers of embellishing or elaborating a cantus firmus in polyphonic vocal works.
- Parboil
- This means to boil vegetables until they’re just slightly cooked. It’s a technique that’s used to part-cook potatoes and other hard root vegetables prior to roasting them at a high temperature to ensure the inside is cooked while the outside crisps up well…
- parental ditype (PD)
- A tetrad type containing two different genotypes, both of which are parental. A spore arrangement in Ascomycetes that contains only the two non-recombinant-type ascospores.
- Parental Lock
- Many movies on DVD are available with variable ratings capability. According to your parental lock setting, the movie will skip over particular scenes, playing the version that you choose from among those available on the disc. This feature can be set by…
- Parimutuel or Pari-mutuel
- A common method of payoffs that splits the total available money between all winners of a particular prize level.
- parlante
- Nineteenth-century operatic style in which the voices declaim in a rapid, speechlike manner against a backdrop of melody and accompaniment.
- Parmesan
- Originating from around Parma in the north-west of Italy, this is one of the world’s best-known cheeses. It's stamped with the official Parmigiano Reggiano mark as a guarantee of origin. Fragrant and tangy, it has a hard, grainy texture and a buttery yellow…
- parsec
- the distance an object would have to be from Earth so that its parallax when viewed from two points separated by 1 AU would be one arcsecond; equal to 3.26 light-years.
- Parsley
- No kitchen should be without a good supply of this multi-purpose herb. It can be used as a garnish and flavouring and as a vegetable. There are two main varieties: curly leaf and flatleaf. Both can be used for the same purposes, although flatleaf parsley has…
- part
- (1) One of the voices in a polyphonic work; (2) the written music for a single player in an ensemble.
- Part Time Jobs
- A job that doesn't offer work for the amount of hours one would normally work. Some employees chose to take several part time jobs rather than one full time job, while others find that a part time job fits better with their lifestyle.
- parthenogenesis
- The production of offspring by a female with no genetic contribution from a male. The development of an individual from an unfertilized egg that did not arise by meiotic chromosome reduction .
- partial
- Same as overtone.
- partial digest
- A restriction digest that has not been allowed to go to completion and thus contains pieces of DNA with some restriction endonuclease sites that have not yet been cleaved.
- PARTIAL LOAD
- An electrical demand that uses only part of the electrical power available. [See California Code of Regulations, Title 24, Section 2-5342(e) 2]
- particulate inheritance
- The model proposing that genetic information is transmitted from one generation to the next in discrete units (particles) so that the character of the offspring is not a smooth blend of essences from the parents (See blending inheritance).
- PARTICULATE MATTER (PM)
- Unburned fuel particles that form smoke or soot and stick to lung tissue when inhaled. A chief component of exhaust emissions from heavy-duty diesel engines.
- PARTNERSHIP
- - A business relationship between two or more people who agree to share their resources, profits, and losses in specific portions.
- Partnership
- A partnership is a form of business enterprise. A partnership exists where there is a voluntary association of two or more persons engaged together for the purpose of doing business as a partnership, for profit. Partnerships are assumed to exist where the…
- Pascal s triangle
- A triangular array of numbers made up of the coefficients of the binomial expansion.
- Paskha
- A Russian dessert traditionally served at Easter. It’s a creamy set pudding with a similar consistency to cheesecake, made from curd, cream or cottage cheese, eggs, sugar and dried fruit and flavoured with vanilla. The sides of the cake are sometimes…