CS101 Introduction to Computing Glossary Terms

CS101 Introduction of computing
Virtualians Social Network www.virtualians.pk Prepared by: Irfan Khan

PAK301 - Pakistan Studies
Glossary

Islamization
:
Islamization is the imposition of Islamic legal, political, economic and social
system by the government.

Metapolitics
:
n. theoretical political study. metapolitical, a. metapolitician, n.

viceroy : A viceroy is a royal official who governs a country or province in the name of and
as representative of the monarch. The term derives from the Latin prefix vice-,
meaning "in the place of" and French roi, meaning king.

Oligarchy : Greek word meaning the rule of the few. It is considered as a bad form of
government since the few will always rule, as motivated by their own interests.
OR Oligarchy is a form of government where most or all political power
effectively rests with a small segment of society (typically the most powerful,
whether by wealth, family, military strength, ruthlessness, or political influence).
The word oligarchy is from the Greek words for "few" (oligo) and "rule" (arkhos).
Some political theorists have argued that all governments are inevitably
oligarchies no matter the supposed political system.

Abdication : Formal renunciation of crown, power or office by a sovereign or a ruler.

Swaraj : Swaraj(Self-Rule) was meant that India should be ruled by Indians not by the
Britains. It was an objective to get the Britain leave the Indian subcontinent and
establish a government led by the Indians. In other words it was meant
independence for India.

Apartheid : A South African word meaning "no government". It relates to policy of racial
segregation(separation of Whites and non-Whites) practiced mainly in South
Africa.

Armistice : A temporary cessation(termination) of fighting pending formal negotiations for
peace.

Asylum : Refuge or protection requested by or granted to a foreign national in another
country.


Autonomy : Right of Self-government; power to manage internal affairs in a restricted sense as
applied to a State in a federal order.

Balance of
Power :
This is an International states relation policy. The policy of preservation of
equilibrium (balance) of strength or power among countries or groups with a view
of preventing them from becoming too powerful for the safety of others is called
Balance of Power.

Blue Book : It denotes documents issued by the British Parliament as well as report of
Commissions and Committees. They are bound in blue paper covers.

Bolshevism : The political doctrine of Bolsheviks (in Russian, Bolsheviki means majority
within the party). It is the doctrine of Proletarian (lower class) Dictatorship as
advocated in Russia by the Bolsheviks led by V.I. Lenin.

Law : The Law is the body of rules and principles, governing the affairs of a community
and enforced by a political authority; a legal system.

Diplomacy : Diplomacy is the art and practice of conducting negotiations between
representatives of groups or nations.

Constitution
:
A constitution is a system, often codified in a written document, which establishes
the rules and principles by which an organization is governed. In the case of
countries this term refers specifically to a national constitution, which defines the
fundamental political principles and establishes the power and duties of each
government.

Socialism : A political and economic doctrine aiming at socialisation of the factors of
production and state control over the processes of distribution. Competition is to
be replaced by co-operation and rewards of labour are to be apportioned equitably.
Marxian socialists believe that such an order is born out of a public upsurge
culminating into a revolution. Others maintain that socialism is possible through
democratic methods. OR Socialism refers to a broad array of doctrines.As an
economic system, socialism is usually associated with state or collective
ownership of the means of production. This control, according to socialists, may
be either direct, exercised through popular collectives such as workers' councils,
or it may be indirect, exercised on behalf of the people by the state.

Secular : Secularity and secular are derived from the Latin word saeculum, an expression of
time meaning one generation or century.


Democracy : A political order wherein the government is run by the elected representatives of
the people. The ancient Greek philosophers defined democracy as a rule by the
people. In the modern times, however, the classic definition of democracy by
Abraham Lincoln (American President) as "government of the people, by the
people, for the people" is universally acceptable.

State : A state is a set of institutions that possess the authority to make the rules that
govern a society, having internal and external sovereignty over a definite territory.

Autocracy : An autocracy is a form of government where the political power is held by a
single individual. The term autocrat is derived from the Greek word autokratr
(lit. "self-ruler", "ruler of one's self"). Compare with oligarchy (rule by a minority,
by a small group) and democracy (rule by the majority, by the people).

Monarchy : Monarchy, (from the Greek monos, "one," and archein, "to rule")is a form of
government that has a monarch as Head of State. A distinguishing characteristic
of most monarchies is that the Head of State usually reigns for life; in a republic,
the Head of State (often called the president) is normally elected for a certain
amount of time. There are currently 29 extant monarchies in the world.

Glorious
Revolution :
The term Glorious Revolution refers to the generally popular overthrow of James
II of England in 1688 by a conspiracy between some Parliamentarians and the
Dutch stadtholder William III of Orange-Nassau (William of Orange). The
revolution was the last successful invasion of England.The Revolution is closely
tied in with the events of the Nine Years War on the continent of Europe.

Commonwealth
:
The English noun Commonwealth dates originally from the fifteenth century.
The original phrase "common wealth" or "the common weal" comes from the
old meaning of 'wealth' which is 'well-being'. The term literally meant
"common well-being". Thus commonwealth originally meant a state governed
for the common good as opposed to a authoritarian state governed for the
benefit of a given class of owners, including even despots. When capitalised,
"Commonwealth" normally refers to the 53 member Commonwealth of Nations
- formerly the "British Commonwealth" - a loose confederation of nations
formerly members of the British Empire (with one exception: Mozambique).

Agent
Provocateur
:
A person employed and smuggled into the territory of the adversary to organize
subversion while outwardly posing as an adherent; it also relates to a person
employed to detect suspected offenders by tempting them to overt action.

Allegiance : Loyalty or duty of a subject to the sovereign or the government.


Ambassador
:
A diplomatic envoy of the highest order sent by one Sovereign or State on mission
to another Sovereign or State.

Anarchy : Greek word meaning "no government". It relates to conditions in a country
equivalent to absence of government or with a government, powerless to maintain
order. The doctrine that advocates conditions of anarchy is called anarchism.

Mobilizing : Mobilize means: 1: To make mobile or capable of movement. 2: To assemble,
prepare, or put into operation for or as if for war. 3: To assemble, marshal, or
coordinate for a purpose.

Amnesty : General Pardon shown to the convicts on special occasions or an exemption from
prosecution or punishment granted to political and other offenders.

Appeasement,
Policy of :
The act of gratifying ones adversary with concessions even by sacrificing
principles. This policy has topical reference to the British policy of appeasing
Hitler by granting him territorial concessions during the period 1935-38.

Aristocracy : A word of Greek origin meaning government by the best men. In modern times,
however, it refers to the government by a superior class, superior in birth and
position.

Bamboo
Curtain :
First used by British's war-time Prime Minister, Mr. Winston Churchill in an
address in 1946, the term denotes the Soviet Union's efforts to seal off itself and
its East European satellites from normal contacts with the non-communist
countries.

Iron Curtain
:
First used by British's war-time Prime Minister, Mr. Winston Churchill in an
address in 1946, the term denotes the Soviet Union's efforts to seal off itself and
its East European satellites from normal contacts with the non-communist
countries.(also known as Bamboo Curtain)

Bicameral
system :
A form of government in which Legislative Assembly comprises two chambers,
as the Upper House and Lower House. In England Upper house is known as
House of the Commons and Lower is House of Lords. In Pakistan Upper house
is known as Senate and lower house is known as National Assembly.

Black
Panthers :
A terrorist organization of the American Negroes whoes members wear black
jackets, carry firearms and resist white excesses by resaorting to racial violence.


Big Five : The five big participants in the II World War against the Axis powers(this was
name of alliance see Axis power). They are U.S.A., U.S.S.R., U.K., France and
China. These nations continue to have a dominant voice in the United Nation. The
first powers are called the Big Four.

Axis Powers
:
The Axis Powers were those nations opposed to the Allies during the Second
World War. The three major Axis Powers, Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, and
Imperial Japan, referred to themselves as the "Rome-Berlin-Tokyo Axis" and
were part of an alliance. At their zenith, the Axis Powers ruled empires that
dominated large parts of Europe, Asia, Africa and the Pacific Ocean, but the
Second World War ended with their total defeat.

Bilateral
agreement :
Bilateral means mutual or two-sided, therefore bilateral agreement means an
agreement signed by two countries by equal willingness.

Blitzkrieg : A German word meaning lightning war, a violent, lightning attack indented to
bring about a speedy, sweeping victory.

Bourgeoisie
:
French name given initially to citizens of French towns and subsequently to
middle classes everywhere, generally belonging to the mercantile and trading
communities. The word used in the Marxian terminology denotes the modern
capitalists.

Bureaucracy
:
Form of the government wherein the paid officials exercise the controlling
influence. These days, the class of officials is also known as bureaucracy.

Cabinet
system :
A parliamentary process by which a council of ministers, loosely known as the
Cabinet, is made responsible for the government of a country. In a parliamentary
democracy, the majority party elects a leader who chooses his colleagues to form
his council of Ministers. The Cabinet must enjoy the majority support of the
Parliament, failing which it has to resign.

Casting Vote
:
The Vote of the chairman that decides between the two parties of equal strength.

Caucus : American term for a meeting of party managers to devise strategy and select a
candidate for election. The term also denotes a powerful faction or a dominate
group within a party.

Charge'd
Affaires :
The senior most diplomat after the Head of the Mission who temporarily conducts
the affairs of the Mission during the absences of the Head of the Mission.


Chauvinism
:
Aggressive partriotism with contempt towards other nation.

Coalition : A combination or association of two parties with the purpose of forming a
composite government. In times of war, a coalition of the party in power and the
opposition is formed to forge unity of action.

Co-existence
:
Simultaneous Existence (and toleration) of conflicting creeds, ideologies and
systems. Co-existence may be national or international and political, economic or
religious.

Collective
responsibility
:
In a parliamentary democracy, the fact of the Cabinet being jointly answerable to
the legislature. Thus every member of the Cabinet (designated as Minister) is
responsible for the action of the Cabinet, as the Cabinet as a whole is responsible
for the action of the Minister.

Cominform : Communist information Bureau, formed in 1947 by Russia and her satellites. It
expelled Yugoslavia in 1948 for insisting on autonomy. The Bureau was
liquidated in 1956 to reconcile Marshal Tito, President of Yugoslavia.

Comintern : The Third International, formed in 1919 at Moscow to spread Marxian socialism
in the world. Stalin dissolved this organization in 1943 as a friendly gesture
towards the Allies.

Confederation
:
Alliance of countries for specific purposes but States continue to retain their
individual independence.

Cold War : The extremely aggressive propaganda campaign waged between two power blocs
and having potentialities of culminating into a shooting war any time. This
campaign may be accompanied by a mad struggle for power and prestige.

Constituent
assembly :
A constituent assembly is a body elected with the purpose of drafting, and in some
cases, adopting a constitution. OR Body of elected representatives who have
assembled to fram a constitution for country.

Coup detat : Sudden change of government, forcibly effected by a ruler, the Army or a political
party.

Counsul : An official accredited by a State to protect the commercial interests of her


nationals in a foreign country.

Contraband : Goods and war material which are forbidden under the international law to be
supplied by the neutral State to the belligerents.

De facto
recognition :
Recognition accorded to a country in fact, whether valid in a law or not.

Demagogy : The art of provoking and appealing to the prejudices of the people by false,
unscrupulous orators.

Dialectical
Materialism
:
The doctrine developed by Marx and Engels and based largely on the logic of
dialectic propounded by the German philosopher Hegel. According to him,
progress results from the interaction of two conflicting half-truths; one concept
(thesis) yoking its opposite (antithesis) and the two interacting to form new
concept (synthesis). According to Marx, historical change is the result of the
conflict between the classes. The workers' struggle is seen as thesis, the capital's
antagonism as antithesis and the resulting compromise as synthesis.

Dictatorship
:
A political order wherein supreme power are vested in an official or a part leader-
turned-ruler.

Affidavit : A written statment, confirmed by oath, for use as evidence in legal proceedings.

Legislative
Assembly :
A Legislative Assembly in British constitutional thought is the second-to-top or
third-to-top tier of a government led by a Governor-General, Governor or a
Lieutenant-Governor, inferior to an Executive Council and equal to or inferior to a
Legislative Council.Politicians elected to a Legislative Assembly are usually
referred to as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA).

Despotism : Despotism is a form of government by a single authority, either an individual (ie.
autocracy) or tightly knit group (ie. oligarchy), which rules with absolute political
power. On its classical form, a despotism is a state where one single man wields
all the power and authority, and everyone else is considered as his slave.

The Nine
Years War :
The Nine Years War can also refer to a conflict in Ireland, 15941603; see Nine
Years War.The war was fought to resist French expansionism along the Rhine, as
well as, on the part of England, to safeguard the results of the Glorious Revolution
from a possible French-backed restoration of James II of England.


Anarchism : As political doctrine, anarchism does not mean disorder or absence of normalcy.
According to this doctrine, the State or government is evil and should be
abolished and replaced by free association of groups with no laws or restrictions.
The instinctive desire on the part of the people to act together for their mutual
benefit will ensure order in such a State.

Balfour
Declaration :
The policy statement of the British Foreign Secretary, Mr. A. J. Balfour in 1917,
pledging British support for the establishment of a Jewish State on the Palestinian
land is called Balfour Declaration.

Ballot : Secret voting or the votes so recorded.

Buffer State
:
The word "buffer" means a shock-absorbing object, interposed between two
bodies about to come into contact. A Buffer State is therefore, a small neutral
State between two large States (generally not on good terms) helping in
minimising the chances of hostilities.

By-election : A mid-term to a seat rendered vacant by death, resignation or the unseating of
member.

Communism
:
A socio-economic theory, based on Marxian doctrines and ultimately aiming at a
classless society in which the principle from each according to his abilities, to
each according to his needs will be consistently applied. In the economic field all
resources of the nation will be communally owned and production and distribution
will be state-directed. Socialism is the transitional phase leading ultimately to the
goal of communism.

Concordat : An agreement between the Pope, in his spiritual capacity, and a State, as the
temporal authority, regulating points of conflict between the Church and the State.

Cut motion : A motion or resolution, moved by a legislator, calling for a token cut (as small as
a rupee) but occasioning discussion on the performance and budgetary demands of
a Ministry or department.

Sovereignty
:
It is the supreme and ultimate power of a State to impose its will upon all persons,
associations and things within its jurisdiction. Freedom from external control is an
essential element of sovereignty. OR Sovereignty is the exclusive right to exercise
supreme political (e.g. legislative, judicial, and/or executive) authority over a
geographic region, group of people, or oneself.

Adjourment A motion moved by a member in the legislature to adjourn consideration of the


Motion : business in hand and instead discuss a matter of urgent public importance of
which he simultaneously gives a notice.

Nomenclature
:
1: Nomenclature is a system of names used in an art or a science. 2:
Nomenclature is also a procedure of assigning names to the kinds and groups of
organisms listed in a taxonomic classification.

Legitimize : Legitimize means to make something legally right or to justify something in legal
terms.

Delegitimize
:
Delegitimize means to make something legally wrong or to revoke the legal or
legitimate status of something.

Blockade : Closing of ports and coasts of a country (in war) to prevent ships from reaching or
leaving it. The measure is generally against neutral ships trading with the enemy.

Condominium
:
Joint rule over a country by two or more other States. The Sudan was jointly
administred by Britain and Egypt from 1899 to 1955.

Envoy : A diplomatic emissary accredited to a country and holding a status below that of
an Ambassador.

Espionage : A well-planned and well-directed system of spying laid by a government or its
agency in a foreign country.

Fascism : A narrow political creed developed in Italy by Mussolini. A reaction against
socialism and democratic equalitarianism, it meant end of parliamentary
government, concentration of power in the autocrat, anti-Semitism, aggressive
nationalism and denial of collective bargaining to the labour and of right to
declare lockouts to the management.

Civil-
Disobedience
:
Non-cooperation towards and disobedience of the authority of the government

Collective
Security :
The doctrine that all nations should collectively ensure safety of individual
nations; the security alliances like NATO, SEATO, CENTO, AND Warsaw Pact
are described as such alliances but, in reality, they are bastions of aggressive
power.


Credentials : Credential is literally meaning of the letter of introduction. It refers to the letter of
authority and other documents regarding the appointment of an envoy to another
country which he presents to the Head of the State of the country, he is accredited
to, before formally getting down to his official work.

Cross
Voting :
The act or practice of some individuals or groups, both ruling and in opposition, to
vote against the directions of the party they belong to. Thus some from the ruling
group vote for opposition and vice versa.

Laissez-faire
:
French phrase meaning "Let alone". It is the individualist doctrine envisaging no
interference by government in politics or commerce.

Diarchy
(Dyarchy) :
A system of government wherein the executive is divided into two sections one
consisting of elected representatives responsible to the legislature and the other
comprising nominated officials or others responsible to the Head of the State.

Federal
Government
(Federalism)
:
A system of government in which autonomous states unite and agree to surrender
a part of their authority for certain purposes but for others they are independent.
The division of power is laid down in the Constitution. The central subjects
generally include defence, external affairs and communications whereas subjects
of local importance are given over to the federal units.

Electorial
college :
Electoral College is a body of electors chosen to elect President or Nazim.

People's
republic :
Peoples Republic is a political organization founded and controlled by a national
Communist Party.

Fixed-term
elections :
A Fixed-term election is an election that occurs on a set date, and cannot be
changed by the incumbent politician. Fixed-term elections are common for
mayors and presidents, but less common for prime ministers and other members
of a parliamentary system of government.

Parliament : 1.A national representative body having supreme legislative powers within the
state. 2.Parliament The national legislature of various countries, especially that of
the United Kingdom, made up of the House of Lords and the House of Commons.

Upper &
Lower
Houses :
In Pakistan National Assembly is lower house and Senate is upper house. The
members of the National Assembly are directly elected and executive is taken
from the lower house. Lower house is broadly representative of the population.
The upper house is representative of the federation and has equal representation of


federating units.

Achhut
Community
:
Achhut Community is a term which refers to all the untouchables, lower class
communities and Pariahs.

Feudalism : A socio-economic order in which feudal lords were granted absolute rights in land
return for certain services to the king including the raising and providing of
solding of solidier in time of war.

Floor
Crossing :
The act or practice of a person or a political group, under democracy, to cross over
to the opposition with the intent of toppling the ministry system, etc.

Franchise : Right of voting at public elections.

Fundamental
Rights :
The basic rights of an individual, especially in a civilized society. These include
freedom of expression and religion, rights to equality, liberty and property and
right of constitutional remedies. The fundamental rights have been embodied in
most of the world's written constitutions.

Gallup Poll : An opinion poll devised and put into vogue by G.H.Gallup, American journalist.
Trends in public opinion are gauged and broad conclusions are deduced with the
help of this device by interviewing representative sets of people.

Genocide : Willful extermination of a racial, ethnic, religious or a political group. This has
been made an international crime by a UN Convention of 1948. Genocide was
systematically practiced by the Nazi regime in Germany and millions of Jews
were done to death by various means. It was practiced by Mujibur Rehman with
Indian help in East Pakistan.

Good offices
:
A pacific and conciliatory role played by a third party to help compose the
difference between two groups or nations antagonist to each other.

Local
elections :
Rules for, and experience with, local elections vary widely across jurisdictions. In
those electoral systems that roughly follow the Westminster model, a terminology
has evolved with roles such as Mayor or Warden to describe the executive of a
city or town or region, and Reeve, Alderman or Councillor to describe the
legislators who deliberate decisions. However, job descriptions vary so widely
across jurisdictions that these terms do not effectively describe the various ways
in which local election campaigns and means of election vary.


Four
Freedoms :
In his message to the Congress in June, 1941, President Roosevelt of the USA,
pleaded for four freedoms to form the basis of civilied society. They are freedom
of speech and expression, freedom of worship, freedom from want and freedom
from fear.

Deadlock : Completely standstill situation wherein further negotions are impossible.

Embargo : Temporary stoppage of a particular trade; originally it related to the denial of
freedom of movement to ships.

Episcopacy : The government of Church by bishops or government of religious leaders.

Extradition : Extradition is handing over by one government to another of a fugitive from
justice.

Guided
Democracy :
The 'Guided Democracy' is a political system in which the free play of democratic
practices has been subjected to certain limitations.

Gold
Standard :
Gold Standard is a state of affairsin which a country keeps the value of a defined
weight of gold at an equality with each other.

Hansard : Varbatim record of the day-to-day proceeedings of the British Parliament. It is
named after Thomas Curson Hansard, an English printer, who began to issue
accounts of Parliamentary debates in 1803. In 1908, the government tok over this
responsibility but retained the name given to these reports.

Hierarchy : It denotes a body, religious or secular, organised on ranks, order or gardes.

Hot line : A direct telephone line between the White House(USA) and the Kremlin (USSR),
established in 1963, making personal contract at the top possible between the two
countries in a time of crisis and thus avoiding accidental wars. A similar Hot line
was also established between Moscow and Paris in November, 1966 "in order to
strengthen mutual contacts at highest level".

Impeachment
:
Formal accusation and prosecution by a legislature against the Head of State or
high public officials for serious misconduct or crime against the State or
Constitution.

Imperial
Preference :
The system whereby some goods from the countries within the British Empire
were exempt from the paymant of duties while others were granted tariff


concessions.

Imperialism
:
An urge of nation to organize economic and political penetration in othercountries
culminating in empire building. During the last 200 years, many European nations
acquired, administered and developed less advanced territories for purposes of
trade, prestige and domination.

Lobbying : Play of influence and pressure by some legislators over the others in the lobbies of
the legislature in connection with important legislative business.

Lynching : System of extra legal punishment inflicted on Negroes by the Whites in the 18th
century in America and Europe. It was widely prevalent in the areas where racial
antagonism was strong and authority weak. The name is taken from the Virginian
farmer Charles Lynch who was the leader of those who took summary vegeance
on black men for offences against the whites.

Mandate : The system of trusteeship established by the League of Nations for the seized
German and Turkish colonies or territories. Under this system, Britain governed
Tanganyika, Palestine and Jordan and France governed Syria as mandated
territories.

Money Bills
:
Bills involving financial commitments on the part of the government such as the
annual budget, etc.

National
Anthem :
The official song of a nation which is played on state ceremonial occasions.

Nationalism
:
The doctrine of social philosophy in which the good of the nation is paramount. In
its narrow sense, it may mean excessive or aggressive zeal for the welfare and
advancement of the country, even at the cost of other people's interests.

Naturalisation
:
The process by which an alien is granted citizenship of a country.

Nazism : The political ideology of the National Socialist German Workers Party, led by
Adolf Hitler till 1945. It was steeped in the glorification of German race (the
purest Aryans), strong nationalism, anti-Semitism and establish of a pan-German
empire. Jews and Communist were the "greatest enemies" of Nazism.

Neutrality : An attitude (or policy) of strict impartiality and non-alignment towards the


warring nations or ideologically antagonistic countries.

Open Door
Policy :
It refers to the policy of equal commercial and industrial rights for all nations.

Ordinance : A decree or Act promulgated by the Head of the State in a state of emergency, or
when the legislature is not in session. Such ordinances are valid only for a specific
periood after which they must be a approved by the legislature.

Pacifism : Doctrine of elimination of war by individual and collective action. The pacifists
strongly oppose the wilful killing of human beings and adocate obstruction of all
efforts at militarism.

Parole : A prisoner's word of honour that, if released, he will not attempt escape, will
return to custody and (in case of a military prisoner) will not take up arms against
the captors for a specific period.

Pilgrim
Fathers :
The English Puritan separatists who sailed to America in 1620 in the Mayflower
and founded the Plymouth colony, Massachusetts.

Plenipotentiary,
Envoy :
A diplomatic official who has been invested with full and special powers with
regard to his assignment.

Polycentralism
:
The doctrine that all socialist countries and all communist parties have equal
rights, with none possessing the privilage or riht to impose its particular
experience on others.

Power
Politics :
Political activity aimed mainly at capturing power or retaining it in disregard to
the welfare and good of the people.

Priviliege
Motion :
A motion moved by a legislator to draw attention of the House towards a matter
involving breach of privilege of the House or any of its members.

Protectorate
:
A dependent (in certain cases weak) State which looks to another (strong) State
for its protection and for the conduct of its foreign relations.

Protocol : Diplomatic etiquette; original draft of terms and treaty (between two
governments) agreed to in conference and signed by the parties.

Quorum : A fixed minimum of members (in legislature and other elected bodies) whose


presence is essential for the proceedings to be held valid.

Referendum
:
The Swiss practice of referring constitutional amendments and other important
legislation of controversial nature to the direct vote of the people. The verdict of
the people is binding on the government.

Responsible
government
:
A system of government in which the excutive is answerable for all its actions to
the elected legislature.

Rule of Law
:
A political order in which all people irrespective of their religion,colour or
profession, are equal in the eye of law. No man will be punished bodily or in any
other manner except for a clear breach of law, established in the odinary legal
manner.

Sabotage : Wanton destruction of machinery or other factors of production by the workers. It
also means senseless demage of public utility services or important defence
installations by paid agents of the enemy.

Sanctions : Penalty or reward imposed for disobedience or obedience (as the case may be)
attached to a law. This is done to enforce obedience to any rule of conduct.

Secularism : The system under which there is no state religion yet all religions and faiths enjoy
equality of treatment. In the strict literal sense, secularism denotes a system that
rejects belief in God, religion and future life.

Self-
determination
:
The term means the right of a nation to decide its own form of government and
its political desting.

Single
transferable
vote :
A phenomenon in which a member of the electioral college possesses one vote but
as many prefernces as the number of candidates. By exercising his preference, the
elector is said to have transferred his vote to another person.

Skinheads : Close-cropped, heavy-booted white youngsters in Britain (mostly coming from
the nation's slums) who provide an antithesis to the "hippy cult". Of late, these
elements have been terrorizing the coloured immigrants, especially the Asians, in
Britain.

Spoils The widely prevalent practice in the U.S.A. to apportion important offices to the


system : loyal members of the party in power.

Court
Martial :
A Service Court for trying members of the Armed Forces, both officers and men,
in accordance with the military law for offences or violations of the military
discipline.

Fifth
Column :
Body of anti-national spies who, in the time of war, sympathise with the enemy
and work for it by organising subversion to hinder the national effort.

Fillbuster : Pirates and adventurers who either plundered the newly established colonies or
organised armed attacks into friendly countries. In modern times, it refers to the
obstructionist activities in the legislative bodies (especially in the U.S)

Habeas
Corpus :
Act of British Parliament passed in 1679. Under the Act, if a person is kept in
prison without trial the Courts are empowered to issue a writ to the jailor to
produce the person and bring him for proper trial. It also provides facilities to the
prisoner for a speedy trial and release on bail.

Manifesto : A pre-election declaration of policy by a political party detailing its future
programmes, if voted to power.

Mediation : Efforts by intermediaries to help compose differences between two antagonists.

Plebiscite : Derived from a Greek word, it denotes vote of the entire electorate on a distinct or
important issue.

Syndicalism
:
A doctrine of French origin which , during the days of early 20th century, aimed
at the elimination of the captalists, and control and management of industry by the
syndicates comprising the workers.

Territorial
Waters :
A belt of sea surrounding the coasts of a country over which that country has
jurisdiction. The generally accepted territorial waters limit is three miles though
some countries are know to have arbitrarily increased this limit.

Theocracy : Domination of religion in country.

Totalitarianism
:
A political order in which absolute powers are concentrated in one (the ruling)
group and no rival loyalties or parties are tolerated.

Treason : Gross violation by a subject of allegiance to the authority of the State or active


collaboration with, or adherence to the enemy.

Troika : The unsuccessaful Russian proposal for the abolition of the post of the UN
Secretary-General and its replacement by a three nation excecutive, called Troika,
comprising a member each from the West, Soviet Bloc and the neutral nations
respectively. All the three members were to be invested with veto power.

Persona non
grata. :
A diplomatic envoy not welcome (or not acceptable) in the host country.

Personality
cult :
Extreme adulation of a ruler or a political figure by the people. Such idolization
generally turns that person's head and often helps him assume absolute powers
and turn a tyrant.

Plutocracy : A government run (or dominated) by a wealthy class of people.

Polerization
:
A situation when two factions within an organization or when two separate
organizations come to profess and practice diametrically opposite opinions and
ideologies, forming themselves into mutually-opposite forces.

Prerogative : The exclusive right or privilege enjoyed by a person or a body.

Quisling : A traitor who helps and co-operates with the enemy who is in occupation of his
country.The term is derived from Vidkun Quisling, an officer in the Norwegian
Army, who assisted the German invasion of Norway in 1940 and who was
installed a puppet Premier. After the war, he was tried for treason and shot. His
name has become a synonym for a traitor.

Representative
Government :
A government run by the elected representatives of the people. The elected
representatives, in fact, carry out the wishes of the electors which are reflected in
the various legislative and excutive actions of the government.

Sphere of
Influence :
Territories where the will and the influence of a superior power have a decisive
role.

Statute : Laws made by the Parliament, which are said to have been placed on the statute
book. These laws are binding on all subjects of a particular contury.

Suffrage : The right of voting in political elections.


Guerilla : Irregular warfare. Guerilla warfare consists in attacks upon a regular army by
bands of irregular troops, usually the inhabitant of an invaded country.

Nationalization
:
The Policy of taking business, industries or other projects under the control and
mangement of the State.

Inquest : A legal or judicial probe into the circumstances leading to the death of an
individual.

International
law :
Body of laws regulating the relations between nations and including pacts, treaties
and conventions. It deals with such matters as the treatment of prisoners and the
wounded, contraband and blockade and the rights of neutrals. International law is
administered by the Court of International Justice at the Hague.

Legation : A diplomatic mission in status lower than the Embassy. The official residence of
the head of this mission is also known by this name.

Liberalism : A political order, credited with free trade, religious liberty, abolition of slavery
and extension of franchise.

Limited
Monarchy :
A constitutional set-up wherein the monarch enjoys only nominal powers and the
real power rests with the representatives of the people though the business of the
State is conducted in the name of the monarch. Such a system exists in England.

Naxalism : Taking its name from the Naxalbari uprising of March, 1967, it is the ultra-
revolutionary Marxist movement, violent in character.Forcible dispossession of
the land-owners, grabbing of land by the tillers and armed agrarian revolution are
the prominent features of this movement. All Naxalites are Mao supporters.

Republic : Opposite of Monarchy. Under this system, sovereignty rests with the people and is
exercised by their elected representatives. Head of the State is called the
President.

Proportional
Representation
:
The fact of a member of an electoral college commanding a number of votes in
poportion to the number of electors that he represents.

Unicameral : A legislature having only one house.

Weightage : Allowing a particular community (or group) more representation than it can claim


on the basis of its population.

whip : An important party official, entrusted with the responsibility of organising
disciplined voting according to the party directions and ensuring attendance of
theparty members on a specific occasion.

White Paper
:
A detailed policy statement issued by a government with regard to a matter of
considerable public importance. Originally, it was the name given to the reports of
the British Government giving official version of important of important matters
of public concern

All rights
reserved. :
Warning by the owner of the copy right against any infringement thereof.

Decree : Decision or a judgement having the force of law.

Will : A legal document by which a person disposes of his assets on death.

Writ : A written order by the Supreme Court or the High Court directing the state or a
lower Court to act or abstain from acting in a particular matter.

Attorney,
Power of :
A document, executed under seal and in proper manner, appointing another person
and conveying his authority to act on his behalf in the matters specified in the
document.

Jury : A formally appointed body of persons to render verdict on questions, submitted to
them before trial, in respect of both civil and criminal cases of importance.

Proxy : A person acting on behalf of another

CS101 Introduction to Computing Glossary Terms

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

CS101 Introduction to Computing Glossary Terms

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

CS101 Introduction of computing

Virtualians Social Network www.virtualians.pk Prepared by: Irfan Khan

You might also like