Enviro Data Documentation
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www.geotech.com Data Management • GIS • Graphics • Internet GLOSSARY OF ENVIRONMENTAL AND COMPUTING TERMS By Dr. Dave Rich, President, Geotech Computer Systems, Inc. [email protected] Revised January 2020 The following are some common terms used in the environmental and computing industries. We encourage reader feedback. A Access time - Hard disk speed is rated by its access time, given in milliseconds (ms). The shorter the AA - Atomic absorption. A procedure for inorganic access time, the faster data can be manipulated and analysis based on the absorption of radiation by stored. mercury vapor (cold vapor), flame, or graphite furnace. Accreditation - A formal recognition that an organization (e.g., laboratory) is competent to carry Abscissa - Horizontal or X-axis of a graph. out specific tasks or specific types of tests. See also Absolute coordinates - Coordinates tied to an Certification. established reference system such as position on the Accreditation criterion - A requirement that a globe. laboratory must meet to receive authorization and Absolute method - A body of procedures and approval to perform a specified task. techniques for which measurement is based entirely Accredited laboratory - A laboratory that has been on physically defined fundamental quantities. evaluated and given approval to perform a specified Acceptable quality level - A limit above which measurement or task, usually for a specific property quality is considered satisfactory and below which it or analyte and for a specified period of time. is not. In sampling inspection, the maximum Accuracy - The degree of agreement between an percentage of defects or failures that can be observed value and an accepted reference value. considered satisfactory as an average. Inaccuracy includes a combination of random error Acceptable quality range - The interval between (precision) and systematic error (bias) components specified upper and lower limits of a sequence of which are due to sampling and analytical operations. values within which the values are considered to be EPA recommends that this term not be used and that satisfactory. precision and bias be used to convey the information Acceptable value - An observed or corrected value usually associated with accuracy. See Precision and that falls within the acceptable range. See Corrected Bias. value and Observed value. ACIL - American Council of Independent Acceptance sampling - The procedure of drawing Laboratories. Trade group of independent testing samples from a lot or population to determine laboratories that fosters communication between whether to accept or reject a sampled lot or laboratories. population. ACS - American Chemical Society. Accepted reference value - A numerical quantity Action limit - See Control limit. that serves as an agreed-upon basis for comparison, Acute toxicity - The effect of high-level, short-term and which is derived as l) a theoretical or established (as opposed to long term or chronic) exposure to a quantity, based on scientific principles, 2) an toxic substance. assigned value, based on experimental work of some recognized organization, or 3) a consensus quantity Adjusted value - The observed value after based on collaborative experimental work under the adjustment for values of a blank or bias of the auspices of a scientific or engineering group. measurement system. 1 ADSL - Asymmetrical digital subscriber line Analyte - The substance, a property of which is to be broadband communication connection. Download measured by chemical analysis. speeds are usually higher than upload speeds. Analytical batch - A group of samples, including ADR - Automated Data Review. Software from quality control samples, which are processed together Laboratory Data Consultants formerly used on using the same method, the same lots of reagents, and USACE projects. at the same time or in continuous, sequential time Adsorption - Adhesion of contaminants to liquids or periods. Samples in each batch should be of similar solids. composition and share common internal quality control standards. Aerobic - Having a high oxygen content, or an organism that lives or is active in the presence of Analytical blank - See Reagent blank. oxygen. Analytical limit of discrimination - See Method AES - Atomic Emission Spectrometry. detection limit. AFCEC - Air Force Civil Engineering Center. Analytical method - A method used to determine the Formerly called AFCEE, Air Force Center for concentration of a chemical compound or chemical Environmental Excellence. Organization responsible element. for the ERPIMS environmental data system. Analytical protocol - See Statement of Work AFCEE - See AFCEC. (SOW). AFE - Authority for Expenditure. A document Analytical reagent (AR) - The American Chemical authorizing expenditure of funds, similar to a Society’s designation for the highest purity of certain purchase order. chemical reagents and solvents. See Reagent grade. Air Quality System - EPA's repository of ambient Android - Operating system software from Google. air quality data. Popular on portable devices such as smartphones and tablets. Algorithm - An algorithm is a numerical method. For example, in mapping, a common algorithm used ANOVA - Analysis of variance. Statistical test to for creating grids is “weighted moving average”. determine whether two populations have the same mean. Aliquant - A subsample derived by a divisor that divides a sample into a number of equal parts but ANSI - American National Standards Institute. This leaves a remainder; a subsample resulting from such organization develops and publishes standards in a a divisor. See Subsample. variety of technical areas. Aliquot - A subsample derived by a divisor that ANVO - Accept No Verbal Orders. All project divides a sample into a number of equal parts and changes should be in writing. leaves no remainder; a subsample resulting from such AOC - Analytical Operations Data Quality Center. a division. In analytical chemistry the term aliquot is The U.S. EPA Center which directs the national generally used to define any representative portion of Contract Laboratory Program. the sample. Apache - Popular open-source web server software. Alpha error - See Type I error. API - Application Programming Interface. A system Alternate method - Any body of procedures and for software applications to talk to each other through techniques of sample collection and/or analysis for a a set of defined interfaces. characteristic of interest which is not a reference or Append - To append something is to add a block or approved equivalent method but which has been file to an existing file without removing the contents demonstrated in specific cases to produce results of the original file. The new material is “tacked on” comparable to those obtained from a reference the end of the existing file. method. Apple - Technology company. Amazon - Shopping and technology company. Application - Software to perform a particular task Anaerobic - Having low oxygen content, or an such as data management or mapping. organism that lives or is active in the absence of APPS - Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships. oxygen. AQS - See Air Quality System. Analysis (chemical) - The determination of the qualitative and/or quantitative composition of a Aquaveo - A company and software for surface and substance. subsurface fluid modeling. 2 Aquifer - An underground geologic unit that can 122 z store water and supply it to wells and springs. ASP - Application Service Provider. A company that Aquitard - An underground geologic unit with a low hosts software that users can operate over the permeability that inhibits the vertical flow of water. Internet. See also Confining layer. ASP - Active Server Pages. A Microsoft technology ARAR - Applicable or Relevant and Appropriate that creates Web pages on the fly based on user Requirement. Cleanup or other standards that address requests. Usually the data displayed is coming from a problems or situations present at a CERCLA site. database. The language used is a dialect of Visual They are used to set cleanup goals, select a remedy, Basic. and determine how to implement that remedy. Aspect ratio - Relative scale of the horizontal and ArcGIS - Well-known geographic information vertical axes, such as on a video screen. system software from ESRI. Assignable cause - A factor or an experimental Architecture - The internal electronic configuration variable shown to significantly change the quality of of the data pathway on the motherboard is known as an effect or a result. the architecture. ASTM - American Society for Testing and Materials. Arithmetic mean - The sum of all the values of a set Asynchronous - Not at the same time - refers to of measurements divided by the number of values in communications from a computer to some other the set; a measure of central tendency. See Measure computer or peripheral device where the timing of of central tendency. the two devices may be different. Aroclor - Polychlorinated biphenyl (also called ATA - See SATA. PCB). Attribute - Textual or numeric information Aromatics - Organic compounds that contain associated with a graphic object such as a well or a structures of six carbon rings, such as creosote, block in a drawing. toluene, and phenol. Auger - A tool used to drill a hole in the ground Array- Set of values arranged in rows and columns. using a rotary drilling rig. Also used for a line or grid of sensors, such as geophysical devices. Audit - A systematic evaluation to determine the conformance to quantitative specifications