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New English :: active
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active - adjective (Science and Technology) Programmed so as to be able to monitor and adjust to different situations or to carry out several different functions; smart, intelligent . Etymology: A simple development of sense: the software enables the device to act on the results of monitoring or on commands from its user. History and Usage: This sense of active became popular in the naming of products which make use of developments in artificial intelligence and microelectronics during the late eighties and early nineties: for example, the Active Book, the trade mark of a product designed to enable an executive to use facilities like fax, telephone, dictaphone, etc. through a single portable device; the active card, a smart card with its own keyboard and display , enabling its user to discover the remaining balance, request transactions, etc.; active optics, which makes use of computer technology to correct light for the distortion placed upon it as it passes through the atmosphere; active suspension, a suspension system for cars in which the hydraulic activators are controlled by a computer which monitors road conditions and adjusts suspension accordingly; and active system, any computerized system that adjusts itself to changes in the immediate environment, especially a hi-fi system. The only development that I would class as the 'biggy' for 1980 was the introduction of reasonably priced active systems. Popular Hi-Fi Mar. 1981, p.
15 The company is also pioneering the development of active or supersmart cards, which rivals...believe to be impractical on several counts. New Scientist 11 Feb. 1989, p.
64 One of our mottos is 'Buy an Active Book and get 20 per cent of your life back'. Daily Telegraph 30 Apr. 1990, p. 31 |
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Traditional English :: active
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active - adj. & n. --adj. 1 a consisting in or marked by action; energetic; diligent (leads an active life; an active helper). b able to move about or accomplish practical tasks (infirmity made him less active).
2 working, operative (an active volcano).
3 originating action; not merely passive or inert (active support; active ingredients).
4 radioactive.
5 Gram. designating the voice that attributes the action of a verb to the person or thing from which it logically proceeds (e.g. of the verbs in guns kill; we saw him). --n. Gram. the active form or voice of a verb. active carbon = activated carbon (see ACTIVATE ). active list Mil. a list of officers available for service. active service full-time service in the armed forces. actively adv. activeness n. [ME f. OF actif -ive or L activus (as ACT v.)] |
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Related Words
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volcano
x
downloads
report
man
hotel
learning
control
mail
order
warehouse
wear
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Most Often Usage
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active volcano
active x downloads
active report
man active
active hotel
active learning
active x control
active mail order
active warehouse
active wear
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