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From CleanPosts

Rabbet

In carpentry, a rabbet is a sloping cut made on the edge of a board so that it

may join by lapping with another board similarly cut.

Raccahout

Raccahout is a flour prepared from the acorn of the Barbary Oak. It is mixed

with sugar and aromatics as a substitute for chocolate by the Arabs of North

Africa.

Racine Cardinals

see "Chicago Cardinals"

Radapon

see "Dalapon"

Radar

Radar is a system of locating an object or direction finding using high

frequency radio waves.

Radcliffe Library

The Radcliffe Library is a library founded in connection with Oxford

University, out of funds provided by John Radcliffe and opened in 1749.

Radian

The radian is the SI unit (symbol rad) of plane angles, an alternative unit to

the degree. It is the angle at the centre of a circle when the centre is joined

to the two ends of an arc equal in length to the radius of the circle. There

are 2 pi (approximately 6.284) radians in a full circle (360 degrees). One

radian is approximately 57 degrees, and 1 degree is pi/180 or approximately

0.0175 radians. Radians are commonly used to specify angles in polar

co-ordinates.

Radiation

Radiation is the emission of energy rays from an object. In particular the term

is applied to the emission of X-rays.

Radical

In chemistry, a radical is a group of atoms that behave as a unit in a chemical

reaction.

Radioactive

Radioactive elements are those of high atomic weight (radium, thorium, uranium

etc.) which spontaneously emit alpha, beta or gamma rays.

Radioactivity

Radioactivity is the spontaneous disintegration of an atomic nucleus to produce

more stable nucleus and accompanied by the emission of charged particles and

possibly also gamma rays.

Radiography

Radiography is the production of images on a fluorescent screen or photographic

plate by means of X-rays.

Radioisotope

In chemistry, a radioisotope is a radioactive isotope, often used as a tracer

in scientific research.

Radiolocation

Radiolocation is the original and now old term for Radar.

Radiometer

A radiometer is an instrument for measuring the mechanical effect of radiant

energy. It consists of four crossed arms of very fine glass supported in the

centre by a needle-point, and having at the ends thin pith discs blackened on

one side. The instrument is placed in a glass vessel exhausted of air and when

exposed to light the arms revolve. It was invented by Crookes in 1874 and forms

a popular amusement today.

Radium

Radium is a radioactive gaseous element with the symbol Ra.

Ragman Roll

The Ragman Roll is the name of the collection of those instruments by which the

nobility and gentry of Scotland were constrained to subscribe allegiance to

Edward I of England in 1296, and which were more particularly recorded in four

large rolls of parchment consisting of thirty-five pieces sewed together. It is

kept in the Tower of London.

Railway

A railway is a road made by placing on the ground on a specially prepared

track, continuous parallel lines of iron or steel rails, on which carriages

with flanged wheels are run with little friction and consequently at high

velocity. The necessity for railways originated in the requirements of the

coal-traffic of Northumberlandshire, where the first railways were constructed.

In 1676 near Newcastle the coals were conveyed from the mines to the banks of

the river by laying rails of timber straight and parallel; and bulky carts were

made, with four rollers fitting those rails, whereby the carriage was made so

easy that one horse could draw four or five chaldrons of coal.

Rain

Rain is condensed moisture from the atmosphere which falls to the ground in

visible separate drops.

Ralph Roister Doister

Ralph Roister Doister by Nicholas Udall and printed in 1566, was the earliest

known English comedy.

Ramtil Oil

Ramtil oil is a bland oil similar to sesamum oil, expressed from the seeds of

Guizotia oleifera, cultivated in India.

Ranch

A ranch is an establishment maintained for raising livestock under range

conditions, that is with wide open pasture.

RapidFile

RapidFile is ideal for the user who wants a fast file manager with

sophisticated capabilities, including a form-letter generator and a good report

writer. Since the product tries to load the entire database into RAM, databases

of a few thousand records or less run very quickly. Although it has more

sophisticated string and math functions it lacks some of the advanced features

of Q&A. RapidFile allows users to design multiple formats for viewing the same

data. The format that is active on the screen is the one that will be used to

produce reports.

Rayon

Rayon is an artificial silk made from cellulose.

Ready, Set, Go!

Ready, Set, Go! is a powerful desktop publishing program for the Mac with a

full-featured built-in word processor. The program uses a flexible grid

approach. To create a document, users choose from one of eight standard grids

or customize their own. Style sheets to use with any document, automatic

chaining of text blocks, and interactive facing pages gives precise control

over page composition and enables fast work. Ready, Set, Go! has very strong

text-handling capabilities. Its full-featured word processor, similar to

MacWrite includes a 100,000 word spelling dictionary a glossary, automatic

hyphenation and kerning, and search-and-replace functions. Search-and-replace

and make global changes are possible based on font attributes, type styles, and

point sizes of up to 255 characters. Ready, Set, Go! can import formatted text

files directly from MacWrite, Microsoft Word and other word processing

programs. Graphics can be imported in a variety of formats or through the

Clipboard. Scaling and sizing is done through a dialog box in which positions

are defined and images sized through measured units. Defining the distance at

which text should wrap around an object frame is also possible through the

dialog box. The built-in graphic toolbox allows boxes, lines, rules, circles,

and ovals to be drawn on a document.

Ream

The ream is a unit of writing paper measurement equal to 20 quires or 480

sheets of writing paper, 516 sheets of printing paper.

Recorder

The recorder is a woodwind musical instrument.

Red

Red is one of the primary colours. It is the colour of the spectrum which is

farthest away from violet. Red pigments are derived from cinnabar, realgar,

cochineal and coal-tar.

Red Cow

see "Will's Coffee House"

Red Dog

Red Dog was originally a banking game in which punters bet on whether any card

in their hand would be the same suit as and higher than a card to be dealt from

the pack.

Red dwarf

A red dwarf is a cool, faint star.

Red giant

A red giant is a cool, bright star.

Red Hand

In heraldry, the red hand was originally the arms of the province of Ulster,

but it was granted to baronets as their distinguishing badge on the institution

of the order in 1611. It consists of a sinister (left) hand, open, erect,

showing the palm.

Red-lead

Red-lead is an oxide of lead used as a red pigment.

Redondillas

Redondillas is the name given to a species of versification formerly used in

the south of Europe, consisting of a union of verses of four, six or eight

syllables, of which generally the first rhymed with the fourth, and the second

with the third. At a later period verses of six and eight syllables in general,

in Spanish and Portuguese poetry, were called redondillas, whether they made

perfect rhymes or assonances only.

Reduction

In chemistry, reduction is the removal of oxygen from a compound; the gain of

electrons by a substance or a decrease in it's valence.

Reefer

A reefer is a refrigerated cargo ship.

Reflection 1

Reflection 1 and Reflection 1 Plus were designed by Hewlett-Packard 3000

experts to turn the IBM PC, XT, AT, or PS/2 into a fully functional HP 3000

workstation by emulating the HP 2392, 2622A, or 2624B (which activates advanced

forms processing). They also emulate the DEC VT102 terminal. Both Reflection

packages support speeds to 38.4K bps via direct connect. Screen features

similar to those of the HP 262x as well as complete block-mode capability for

V-3000 are supported. 132-column display is available through horizontal

scrolling. Both Reflection packages include a proprietary built-in application

programming interface (API), allowing programmers to extend the terminal

emulation capabilities of the package by writing DOS applications to existing

host programs. Manual terminal emulation commands, such as typing on a PC

keyboard, or issuing host commands, can be simulated through API commands. In

addition, both packages support Codepage 863, and print to disk capabilities.

Reflection supports a type-ahead key buffer so you do not have to wait for your

HP 3000 print spoolings. It includes a complete system for transferring files

between the PC and the HP 3000, VAX under VMS, and most UNIX and HPUX systems.

Host resident error checking programs are included as is support for XMODEM,

with cyclic redundancy check (CRC), and KERMIT protocols. Reflection 1 Plus

included all functions of Reflection 1, and added a function which lets you

back up and restore PC files to a file on a VAX running VMS or UNIX. The host

file transfer program maintained an internal structure in the backup file to

keep track of all the PC files it contains. If something disastrous occurs and

you needed to restore one or more files, you could tell Reflection 1 Plus to

restore files in all subdirectories as well as the files in the specified

directory. By using the command language program to invoke the backup procedure

ensures timely, accurate, and automated file backups. Reflection 1 Plus

ts LANS such as DEC's LAT, Novell, 3Com, Ungermann-Bass, and LANs that use

interrupt 14. Both programs support multitasking or background mode operation,

so you can run DOS applications in the foreground, and hotkey back to your host

session.

Reflection 2

Reflection 2 is a software program designed to turn an IBM PC, XT, AT, or PS/2

into the functional equivalent of DEC's VT52, 102, 220, and 320 terminals. The

program shares some benefits offered by other Reflection products, such as

background multitasking, and on-screen 132-column display (with supported

adapters). Reflection 2 Plus includes all functions of Reflection 2, and adds a

function which lets you back up and restore PC files to a file on a VAX running

VMS or UNIX. The host file transfer program maintains an internal structure in

the backup file to keep track of all the PC files it contains. If something

disastrous occurs and you need to restore one or more files you can tell

Reflection 2 Plus to restore files in all subdirectories as well as the files

in the specified directory. By using the command language program to invoke the

backup procedure; timely, accurate, and automated backups of files can be

ensured. Reflection 2 Plus supports LANs, such as DEC's LAT, Novell, 3Com,

IBM's PC Network, Ungermann-Bass, and LANs that use interrupt 14. Both

Reflection packages include a proprietary built-in application programming

interface (API), allowing programmers to extend the terminal emulation

capabilities of the package by writing DOS applications to existing host

programs. Manual terminal emulation commands, such as typing on a PC keyboard,

or issuing host commands, can be simulated through API commands. In addition,

both packages support Codepage 863, DEC SIXEL graphics, and print to disk

capabilities.

Reflection 4

Reflection 4 emulates DEC's VT330/340 ReGIS (Remote Graphics Instruction Set)

colour graphics terminals and DEC's VT241 terminal including the Tektronix

4014, and VT52, 100, 220, and 320. Digital's ALL-IN-1, DECgraph, Datatrieve,

and Access Technology's 20/20 can make special use of the VT340's capabilities.

Features such as 16 colours from a palette of 64, polygon fill, shading with

selected patterns, rubberband cursors, rotated and italicised character sets,

pixel vector positioning, and mouse support are all included. Reflection 4

includes all emulation and communication features in Reflection 2. It adds

emulation of all ReGIS commands on an IBM PC, XT, AT, or PS/2 with an EGA or

VGA card and provides a scaled image showing the complete ReGIS screen (800 x

480 pixels) on the physical display (640 x 350 with an EGA monitor). ReGIS

graphs can be captured and saved to PC disk and changed and redisplayed without

a host connectionurs and character set storage can be configured. Reflection 4

Plus includes all of the functions of Reflection 4 and adds a function which

lets you back up and restore PC files to a file on a VAX running VMS or UNIX.

Reflection 7

Reflection 7 is a terminal emulation program for the IBM PC, XT, AT, or PS/2

that enables them to become the functional equivalents of the Hewlett-Packard

2623A monochrome graphics terminal or the HP 2627A colour graphics terminal, as

well as providing Tektronix 4010 and DEC VT102 emulations. HP 2627A colour

graphics emulation can display graphs in up to eight colours and requires an

EGA or VGA display adapter with 256K of video RAM and an EGA or VGA colour

display. The HP 2623A monochrome graphics emulation runs with most standard

graphics adapters. Colour graphics emulation features include the ability to

create graphics text in eight sizes, either upright or slanted. Text can be

displayed in any of four directions, and can be left, right, or center

justified. Plotters can be attached through a serial port to support either

eavesdrop or pass-through mode. Reflection 7 supports all the features of

Reflection 1. Reflection 7 Plus supports LANs such as DEC's LAT, Novell, 3Com,

Ungermann-Bass, and LANs that support interrupt 14. Reflection 7 Plus adds a

function which lets you back up and restore PC files to a file on a VAX running

VMS or UNIX. Both Reflection packages include a proprietary built-in

application programming interface (API), allowing programmers to extend the

terminal emulation capabilities of the package by writing DOS applications to

existing host programs. Manual terminal emulation commands, such as typing on a

PC keyboard, or issuing host commands, can be simulated through API commands.

In addition, both packages support Codepage 863, and print to disk capabilities.

Reflex

Where as most database products are designed to facilitate the storage and

retrieval of data, Reflex was designed for analysing data. It helps to see

relationships and trends and is particularly appropriate for analysing survey

results. Because Reflex allows the user to create graphs and crosstabs, it was

recommended for the executive who must make decisions based on the information

stored in the database.

Reflex

A reflex is an automatic response to a stimuli.

Reichstag

The Reichstag was the German parliament building.

Relativity

Relativity is a theory concerning the nature of space and time propounded by

Einstein. The theory consists of two parts. The special theory states that the

speed of light is the same for all observers, whatever their speed. That is

that light from an object travels at the same velocity whether the object is

moving or stationary. The general theory of relativity relates to gravity.

Matter in space is said to cause space to curve so as to set up a gravitational

field and gravitation becomes a property of space.

Relay Gold

Relay Gold by Microcom is a versatile terminal emulation software package which

allows PCs connection to mainframes, information services, or other PCs. It

offers a single, universal solution to a variety of connectivity needs through

support for asynchronous dial-up, networks such as TYMNET and TELENET,

satellite connections, 3270 emulation boards, or through protocol converters

via a single user interface. It offers advanced technology for automatic

communications and multitasking. Its implementation of the ACT data compression

algorithm, licensed from Adaptive Computer Technologies, makes file transfer

throughput up to four times faster than the effective speed of your modem,

offering up to 9600 bps with a 2400 bps modem. You can connect to a mainframe

for 3270 emulation over normal phone lines without additional boards or cables.

Relay Gold supports up to 15 simultaneous communications sessions on a PC and

lets users send and receive files in background without leaving their

foreground application. For example, you can be simultaneously connected to two

different computers through a modem and a 3270 emulation board. The script

language lets you automate applications such as login, complex data collection,

and file transfer between Relay Gold and other applications products. Using

IE.THEN..ELSE logic, nesting, and looping, Relay Gold can handle any

contingency and can perform transfer operations unattended. A learn mode

captures your keystrokes and creates scripts automatically Pop-up windows make

the script language easy to use. Relay Communications also has host component

software available which will allow your PC to do 3270 terminal emulation

asynchronously, without an emulation adapter. The two programs, Relay Gold on

the PC and Relay (VM, TSO, or 3270) on the host, work together to create a

shell on the PC which handles the EBCDIC to ASCII data translation and converts

file attributes. This can be a real savings for large users who want neither the

of emulation adapters or cluster controllers. With the host component

installed, users are also guaranteed error-free file transfer between PC and

the host. In this environment Relay Gold provides 3278 models 2, 3, 4, and 5 as

well as 3279 models 2 and 3 terminal emulations. In addition, Relay Gold

supports graphics terminals such as the IBM 3279 models S2G and S3G (fully

supporting the IBM 3279 Program Symbol Set), and DEC VT240 (fully supporting

ReGIS and SIXEL graphics). Relay Gold provides DFT support for both SNA and

non-SNA single- and multisession applications.

Remote 2

Remote 2 is a remote-control communications program that lets you control one

PC from either a PC or a dumb terminal as if you were at its keyboard. Useful

for remote support or diagnostics, Remote 2 supports both remote and local

printing and a variety of terminal emulations, including 3270 through an IRMA

card. A chat window lets users send messages back and forth while performing

support or file transfer functions. Because it does not use a serialization

scheme, Remote 2 needs only a single copy of the package to operate. The

package includes both the host and support modules necessary to remotely

control one PC from another or a dumb terminal. Even though the program was

designed around, and works best with, its own host and support modules, it can

be used with nearly any communication program, including Crosstalk XVI and

Crosstalk Mk 4, to call and operate the host module. Remote 2 has password

security protection and callback security and supports modem speeds up to

38,400 bps. The program gives a choice of three operational modes: manual,

where the host accepts a call at the user's request, keeping the keyboards live

for troubleshooting and co-computing; restart, where Remote 2 responds to a

call, then reboots and waits for the next call; and always read. where Remote 2

lets you call in and monitor the program of an ongoing application, make

changes, and contine after hanging up.

Renaissance

The renaissance was an intellectual period between the 14th and 17th centuries.

Repetetive Strain Injury

see "Writer's Cramp"

Replevin

In English law, replevin is an action brought to recover possession of goods

illegally seized, the validity of which seizure it is the regular mode of

contesting.

Resin

Resin is an adhesive and inflammable substance which is insoluble in water

secreted by plants and animals.

Respiration

Respiration is the process of breathing. It is the liberation of energy from

materials within the body of the organism.

Retiarius

In Roman times, a retiarius was a gladiator who wore a short tunic and was

armed with a trident and net. He would face an opponent protected by a helmet

and shield, and armed with a sword.

Reuters

Reuters is a news agency. It was founded in 1849 at Aix-la-Chapelle by Paul

Reuter. Today Reuters is famous as perhaps the premier news agency supplying

news stories to the worlds newspapers and broadcasters.

Rexatal

see "Phenobarbital"

Rhenium

Rhenium is a metal element with the symbol Re.

Rhizome

In botany, a rhizome is a sort of stem running along the surface of the ground,

or partially subterranean, sending forth shoots at its upper end and decaying

at the other.

Rhodium

Rhodium is a metal element with the symbol Rh.

Rhythm

Rhythm is the beat behind a piece of music.

Ribble-Row

Ribble-Row is rambling, meaningless chatter.

Ribbon

A ribbon is a woven narrow band of silk or other material used for adornment.

Riboflavin

see "Vitamin B2"

Ricin

Ricin is a poison extracted from the leaves of the castor oil plant.

Ricochet

A ricochet is the rebounding of a projectile.

Riddle

A riddle is a question designed to test ingenuity or give amusement.

Ride the Bus

see "Scat"

Riding the Marches

Riding the marches was the Scottish name for the ceremony of Beating the Bounds.

Risolid

Risolid is a tradename for Chlordiazepoxide hydrochloride.

RM/COBOL

RM/COBOL is an implementation of a CSA-certified COBOL that is based on the

ANSI 74 standards. It executes on more than 35 operating systems, including PC

DOS, MS DOS, TRS-DOS, RM/COS, OASIS, and Unix. The program is used often for

accounting applications. RM/COBOL is available on the MC68000, Z80, 6809,

Z8000, 8086, 9900, PDPll, LSI-11, and the IBM 30xx, 43xx, and 370 mainframes. A

major advantage of RM/COBOL is its ability to develop an application on the

mainframe for use on the PC or vice versa. Software developed in RM/COBOL on

one system can execute on any RM/COBOL system. RM/COBOL supports all standard

COBOL file-access methods at the highest ANSI 74 level.

RMS

RMS is a tradename for morphine sulphate.

Road Bowling

Road Bowling is a game in which two players bowl a metal ball along an ordinary

road, the winner being the one who reaches a set distance in the least throws.

The ball is made of iron and weighs 790 grams.

Robe

A robe is a long loose outer garment.

Robitussin Pediatric

Robitussin Pediatric is a tradename for dextromethorphan hydrochloride

Rochester Royals

see "Cincinnati Royals"

Rockaway

see "Crazy Eights"

Rocker

A rocker is a curved bar fixed to an item so that it may rock.

Rocket

A rocket is a cylindrical case which can be projected as a result of the

reaction of gases discharged from its rear when its combustible contents are

ignited.

Rococo

Rococo is a style of decoration which originated in France and Italy in the

17th century.

Rogue

Rogue is a Dungeons-and-Dragons-like game using character graphics, written

under BSD UNIX and subsequently ported to other UNIX systems and MS-DOS. The

original BSD `curses(3)' screen-handling package was hacked together by Ken

Arnold to support `rogue(6)' and has since become one of UNIX's most important

and heavily used application libraries. Nethack, Omega, Larn, and an entire

subgenre of computer dungeon games all took off from the inspiration provided

by `rogue(6)'.

Roll

The roll was a British measurement of parchment equal to 60 skins.

Romaika

Romaika is a book detailing Roman history from its earliest times to the first

century. It was written by Dion Cassius, the Roman historian.

Rontgen

The rontgen is the unit of X-ray or gamma ray radiation.

Rontgen Rays

see "X-Rays"

Rood

The rood is a unit of measurement of area equivalent to 1210 square yards.

Rook

Rook is the name of a group of games and of the special deck of cards for the

game which was introduced by Parker Brothers in 1906. The games are popular in

Eastern Kentucky, in the Mennonite communities of Southern Ontario (near Elmira

/ Waterloo), Manitoba, Pennsylvania and Ohio, and probably also in other parts

of North America. The Rook deck contains 57 cards. There are four suits

coloured black, red, green and yellow. In each suit the cards are numbered from

1 to 14. The 57th card is the rook card, which carries a picture of the bird.

It is likely that Rook cards were introduced for the benefit of members of

fundamentalist protestant religions, such as the Mennonites, who considered

(and in some cases still consider) playing cards to be the "devil's tool". They

were forbidden to play cards; but Parker Brothers filled the void with a game

that was played like cards but did not use the standard playing card deck.

There are people who refuse to play any cards with a standard deck but who will

happily play Rook all night every weekend. There is a close parallel here with

Kvitlech cards, which were playing cards bearing numbers, made for use by

Central European Jews who were also forbidden by their religion to use standard

cards. The deck normally comes with a booklet describing a number games which

can be played with the cards. The main group of games are point trick games

with trumps and bidding. The cards in each suit rank from 14 (high) to 1 (low)

and the counting cards are generally the 14 and 10 of each suit (worth 10

points each) and the 5 (worth 5 points). The Rook card, when used, is worth 20,

and is generally an extra trump. In some games the 1 is promoted to rank above

the 14 and is worth 15 points.

Root

The root is that part of a plant which is below or in the soil and serves to

attach the plant to the soil, and conveys nourishment from the soil to the

plant.

Rope

Rope is a stout cord in excess of one inch in circumference.

Roquelaure

A roquelaure was a man's cloak popular in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Rorschach test

The Rorschach test is a psychological projective test developed by Hermann

Rorschach consisting of ten standard bilaterally symmetrical inkblots. Five of

the blots are achromatic, two have some colour and the other three are in

various colours. Each blot is presented to the subject who is asked to state

freely what he or she sees in either the blot as a whole or in any part of it.

Complex scoring systems have been developed which supposedly measure the

subjects emotional responsiveness to the environment and other factors of an

equally dubious nature.

Rosaniline

Rosaniline is a base compound of many aniline dyes. It is a basic compound

prepared by oxidising a mixture of aniline and toluidine by nitro-benzene in

the presence of ferrous chloride. Rosaniline itself is a colourless solid, but

if converted into a salt by the addition of an acid, it loses water and becomes

coloured.

Rosary

A rosary is a string of beads used in religion to count prayers.

Rose's Act

The Rose's Act of 1793 brought benefit societies under the control of the

government.

Rose's Metal

Rose's metal is a fusible alloy consisting of 50 per cent bismuth, 25 percent

lead and 25 per cent tin.

Rosein

see "Magenta"

Rosetta stone

The rosetta stone is a tablet bearing an inscription in Greek, and

hieroglyphics. It's discovery by Napoleon's soldiers in 1799 made the

deciphering of hieroglyphics possible.

Rota Club

The Rota Club was a society who met at Miles' Coffee-house in New Palace yard,

Westminster during the administration of Oliver Cromwell. Their plan was that

all the great officers of state should be chosen by ballot, and that a certain

number of members of parliament should be changed annually by rotation from

whence they took their title.

Rouqualone-300

see "Methaqualone"

Rovescino

see "Ciapano"

Roxanol 100

Roxanol 100 is a tradename for morphine sulphate.

Roxanol SR

Roxanol SR is a tradename for morphine sulphate.

Royal Society

The Royal Society is a discussion and philosophical organisation organised in

1660 and constituted by Charles II as The Royal Society of London, with the aim

of 'improving natural knowledge'.

Royal Standard

The Royal Standard is a flag bearing the royal national arms, flown only by the

Sovereign.

Rubber

Rubber is a gummy substance exuded by a wide variety of trees and plants,

especially the trees Hevea brasiliensis, and several other species of Hevea

which grow in the East Indies, particularly the Malay peninsula, and other

parts of the world. Rubber is also obtained from the large tree Castilla

elastica, found in Mexico. So-called dandelion rubber is derived from the roots

of various species of dandelion plant Taraxacuin, chiefly Kok sagyz, etc.,

grown in Turkestan. Rubber trees are tapped and the latex, a milk-like juice,

containing about 30-40% rubber, is coagulated by exposing it to heat and wood

smoke, or by mechanical means, so as to separate the rubber from the water,

mineral salts, sugars, resins, and protein matters. The rubber obtained in this

way is known as 'crude'. Latex is also extensively used in industry for making

foam rubber products, footwear, dolls, etc. Untreated crude rubber is naturally

soft and lacks the requisite strength for making into manufactured articles. To

improve its strength and usefulness it is vulcanised or heated with sulphur,

the proportion of sulphur used determining the hardness and elasticity of the

rubber. Fillers such as carbon black or channel black are also vital

constituents of rubber, particularly tyre rubber. About 75% of the rubber

produced goes into the manufacture of tyres, the remainder being utilised for

cable sheathing, wire covering, footwear, flooring, proofing of clothing, togs,

upholstery material, hose, etc. Latest developments include bullet-proof tyres,

non-tear rubber for fuel tanks, flame-proof hose, suits for frogmen.

Rubefacient

A rubefacient is a counter-irritant which causes heat and redness - such as hot

water for example.

Ruff and Honours

Ruff and Honours was an ancestor of Whist, played in England in the 17th

century.

Rufmariasch

Rufmariasch is a card game related to the Czech and Slovak Marias and the

Hungarian Ulti, played by the Donauschwaben - the German settlers on the banks

of the Danube - in 18th and 19th century Hungary.

Rugby School

Rugby School is a famous British public school in Warwickshire. It was founded

in 1567 by Lawrence Sheriff, a London tradesman. The school prospered under the

headmastership of Dr Thomas Arnold who entered it in 1828.

Russian Preference

Preference is one of the most widespread card games among serious card players

in Russia. There are four main varieties: Sochi Preference, Leningrad

Preference, Classic Preference and Rostov (or Moscow) Preference, and many

smaller variations within these.

Russophobe

A russophobe is a person who hates or fears Russians.

Russophobia

Russophobia is the fear or hatred of Russians.

Rust

Rust is an iron oxide.

Ruthenium

Ruthenium is a metal element with the symbol Ru.

Rutherfordium

Rutherfordium is an artificial radioactive element with the symbol Rf and with

a very short lifespan.

Rye-House Plot

The Rye-House Plot was a plan to secure the succession of the duke of Monmouth

to the throne in preference to the duke of York (afterwards James II), a Roman

Catholic. Some of the conspirators planned to assassinate the king, Charles II

and his brother. However, the plan was frustrated by the king's house at

Newmarket accidentally catching fire which caused the royal party to leave

eight days before the plot was to take effect, on March 22nd 1683. The plot was

discovered on June 12th and Lord William Russell and Algernon Sidney were

arrested and illegally convicted and executed. The plot was so named after the

conspirators meeting place, the Rye-House at Broxbourne, Hertfordshire.