Key terms & definitions

An agreement between an employer and an employee setting out the terms of employment, including working hours and pay.

An unwritten agreement to try to win while following the written and unwritten rules of a sport and allowing opponents a fair chance to compete and win.

A statement that contradicts itself. The final Commandment claims equality while declaring that some animals have a superior status.

The difference between parts of an image that makes structures easier to distinguish.

The presentation of differences between characters, settings or events so that their meanings become clearer.

A contrast between words, details or sections of a text that helps emphasise their differences.

Placing different people, situations or ideas alongside one another to make their differences significant.

Settings with meaningfully different geographical characteristics, such as a coastal environment and an urban neighbourhood.

The selling price of one unit minus its variable cost. This is the amount each sale contributes towards covering fixed costs and, once those are covered, profit.

Sorrow for sins committed, together with a resolve not to sin again.

A comparison group or area not exposed to the factor being investigated.

A comparison set-up that shows changes caused by factors other than the one being investigated.

A comparison used to check whether an observed change was caused by the factor being investigated.

An unchanged comparison used to show what happens without the treatment being investigated.

A comparison treatment used to help establish whether the factor being investigated caused an observed difference.

A set of connections carrying control signals, such as read and write signals, between components.

A time-series chart showing a statistic from successive samples, together with limits used to decide whether the production process needs checking or correcting.

A trial carried out without the substance being tested, used as a baseline for comparison.

The order in which a program executes its instructions.

A comparison group that does not receive the treatment or intervention being investigated.

A comparison group or condition that does not receive the treatment being tested and provides a baseline.

A comparison group that does not receive the treatment being investigated.

A chain reaction maintained at a steady rate: on average, one neutron from each fission causes another fission.

Conditions kept consistent so that comparisons between experimental results are valid.

Adding and combining reagents in a way that controls their amounts and the conditions in which they react.

An observation usually conducted in a controlled environment, such as a laboratory, where the researcher can manipulate the independent variable.

The region that shows whether liquid has travelled through the strip and the test has operated correctly.

An action, rule or item of equipment used to reduce the likelihood or severity of harm from a hazard.

An action or feature that reduces the likelihood or severity of harm, such as using a smaller quantity, a safety screen or suitable eye protection.

The stored instructions that determine how a microcontroller responds to inputs and controls outputs.