Hackish speech makes heavy use of pseudo-m
AThem
ATical metaphors. Four particularly important ones involve the terms "coefficient", "factor", "index", and "quotient". They are often loosely applied to things you cannot really be quantit
ATive, but there are subtle distinctions among them th
AT convey inform
ATion about the way the speaker mentally models wh
ATever he or she is describing. "Foo factor" and "foo quotient" tend to describe something for which the issue is one of presence or absence. The canonical example is
fudge factor. It' s not important how much you' re fudging the term simply acknowledges th
AT some fudging is needed. You might talk of liking a movie for its silliness factor. Quotient tends to imply th
AT the property is a r
ATio of two opposing factors: "I would have won except for my luck quotient." This could also be "I would have won except for the luck factor", but using *quotient* emphasises th
AT it was bad luck overpowering good luck (or someone else' s good luck overpowering your own). "Foo index" and "coefficient of foo" both tend to imply th
AT foo is, if not strictly measurable,
AT least something th
AT can be larger or smaller. Thus, you might refer to a paper or person as having a "high bogosity index", whereas you would be less likely to speak of a "high bogosity factor". "Foo index" suggests th
AT foo is a condens
ATion of many quantities, as in the mundane cost-of-living index "coefficient of foo" suggests th
AT foo is a fundamental quantity, as in a coefficient of friction. The choice between these terms is often one of personal preference e.g. some people might feel th
AT bogosity is a fundamental
ATtribute and thus say "coefficient of bogosity", whereas others might feel it is a combin
ATion of factors and thus say "bogosity index". [
Jargon File] (1994-11-29)
In addition suitable contents:
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