factously.html - noun
and adjective (Lifestyle and Leisure) noun: A spurious or questionable fact; especially, something that is popularly supposed to be true because it has been reported (and often repeated) in the media, but is actually based on speculation or even fabrication. adjective: Apparently factual, but actually only partly true; 'factional' (see faction above). Etymology: Formed by adding the suffix -oid (from Latin -oides and ultimately derived from Greek eidos 'form') to fact; the implication is that these spurious pieces of information have the form or appearance of facts, but are actually something quite different . History and Usage: The word was coined by the American writer Norman Mailer in 1973. In his book Marilyn (a biography of Marilyn Monroe), he defined factoids as facts which have no existence before appearing in a magazine or newspaper, creations which are not so much lies as a product to manipulate emotion in the Silent Majority. Since it so aptly described the mixture of fact and supposition that often characterized both biography and journalism in the seventies and eighties, factoid established a place for itself in the language as a noun and as an adjective. Santa Fe is full of writers, which is what he has now become. His speciality is big fat factoids full of real people, especially his old boss. The Times 19 Mar. 1987, p.
17 The vast bulk of it is devoted to a somewhat breathless and awestruck factoid account of how these difficulties will work themselves out to an inevitable , or at least dauntingly probable, finale. Spectator 4 July 1987, p. 31

factously.html - noun
Also written factor eight (Health and Fitness) A substance in blood which is essential to the coagulation process and is deficient in haemophiliacs. Etymology: Substances which contribute to the blood-clotting process have been called factors since the early years of this century, and were assigned a series of identifying Roman numerals by medical researchers. This is the eighth in the series . History and Usage: Although congenital factor VIII deficiency had been identified as the cause of haemophilia by the fifties, the term did not become widely known until the Aids era. In the mid eighties, before the implications of Aids for the blood donor system were fully understood , thousands of haemophiliacs worldwide were infected with the Aids virus HIV as a result of receiving injections to boost their levels of factor VIII. This, and the subsequent actions for damages, brought the term factor VIII to public attention. Doctors, unaware of the cause of his illness, pumped him with huge doses of Factor VIII...But with AIDS becoming a public issue...both he and Elizabeth were aware that the massive transfusions of blood could well have exposed him to the virus. New Idea (Melbourne)
9 May 1987, p.
8 More than 1,200 haemophiliacs were infected with the Aids virus after treatment with contaminated Factor VIII, a blood-clotting agent that was administered through the NHS. Sunday Times 30 Sept. 1990, p. 1

factously.html - n. & adj.
--n.

an assumption or speculation that is reported and repeated so often that it becomes accepted as fact; a simulated or imagined fact.

--adj.

being or having the character of a factoid; containing factoids.

factously.html - n. & v.
--n.

1 a circumstance, fact, or influence contributing to a result.
2 Math. a whole number etc. that when multiplied with another produces a given number or expression.
3 Biol. a gene etc. determining hereditary character.
4 (foll. by identifying number) Med. any of several substances in the blood contributing to coagulation (factor eight).
5 a a business agent; a merchant buying and selling on commission. b Sc. a land-agent or steward. c an agent or a deputy.
6 a company that buys a manufacturer's invoices and takes responsibility for collecting the payments due on them.

--v.

tr.
1 Math. resolve into factors or components.
2 tr. sell (one's receivable debts) to a factor.

factor analysis Statistics a process by which the relative importance of variables in the study of a sample is assessed by mathematical techniques.

factorable adj. [F facteur or L factor f. facere fact- do, make]

factously.html - n.
commission or charges payable to a factor.

factously.html - n. & adj.
Math. --n.

1 the product of a number and all the whole numbers below it (factorial four = 4 x 3 x 2 x 1).

Symb.: ! (as in 4!).
2 the product of a series of factors in an arithmetical progression.

--adj.

of a factor or factorial.

factorially adv.