degeneration

n 1: the process of declining from a higher to a lower level of

effective power or vitality or essential quality

2: the state of being degenerate in mental or moral qualities

[syn: {degeneracy}]

3: passing from a more complex to a simpler biological form

[syn: {retrogression}]

defenestration

(From the traditional Czechoslovakian method of

assassinating prime ministers, via SF fandom) 1. Proper karmic

retribution for an incorrigible punster. "Oh, ghod, that was

▫awful▫!" "Quick! Defenestrate him!"

2. The act of exiting a window system in order to get better

response time from a full-screen program. This comes from the

dictionary meaning of "defenestrate", which is to throw

something out a window.

3. The act of discarding something under the assumption that

it will improve matters. "I don't have any disk space left."

"Well, why don't you defenestrate that 100 megs worth of old

core dumps?"

[{Jargon File}]

(1996-05-13)