static

Statics are a feature introduced in C and then expanded in C++. C introduced static local variables, which are allocated on the global heap but can only be accessed by one function. C++ then introduced static member data, which is also allocated on the global heap and even has to be declared separately of the class declaration, as well as static methods, which are not passed the "this" pointer but otherwise are the same as normal methods.

general definition: unchanging, constant. a contrasting meaning of static is representative of noise as in telephone line noise, wireless communication such as analog cellular telephones and radio transmission interference by frequency modulation or amplitude modulation.

The static keyword has a slightly different meaning in Java than in C or C++. Since Java is a purely Object-Oriented Language, static variables are always members of a class, and never local variables of a method. Static objects are still created on the global heap and are not associated with any particular instance of the class.

You can also define a static block of code that will initialize your static objects the first time the class is instantiated. This can save some typing if you have several constructors.

Static means stagnation, unchanging, or not moving.

It is also a form of electricity which we are frequently reminded of during cold weather; upon reaching for a grounded metal object, we can experience several thousand volts of static electricity (fortunately the amperage is too low to do any damage).

Static friction is the friction which must be overcome to put an object into initial motion. Static friction (such as that on a book lying flat on a table) makes the initial movment of the object require more energy than what is required to overcome the object's dynamic friction (after the book is already in motion).

static type definitions in C serve 2 somewhat different purposes. In all cases, they define an item of data which is global in the sense that only one copy exists for the entire runtime of the program. It can be viewed as setting a peculiar "local" scope for a global variable or function.

The scope of an object defined static follows the usual scoping rules for C: for a variable, till the end of the block (typically the function) in which it is defined, or till the end of the file, if defined outside any functions; for a function, merely till the end of the file (in C, functions cannot be defined inside functions). This aspect of staticness refers to the visibility of the object. For a function definition (or declaration), this is the only effect -- functions don't have storage types.

The storage type of a variable defined static is global, even in an inner block scope rather than file scope. This means that the variable retains its value between calls to the function. This behaviour is very different from the default automatic status of variables defined in a block, which only exist inside the block. In particular, you may freely return a pointer to (or into) a static variable's storage from a function, but you cannot do so for an automatic variable.

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The radio, slightly off station,
had been on, for who knows how long
I had not noticed

A low roar, louder than a hiss
filled the bedroom
the way untended faucets spill water

The alarm had gone off a few days ago
I told my neighbor, who had knocked on my door,
I was not sure what day it was, but guessed Tuesday

The grimace on his face told me
I had guessed wrong and had lost track of time
lost track of mornings and nights

Oblivious to the movement of the sun
deaf to the stale static

"Static" is the 20th episode of the second season of The Twilight Zone, and was first broadcast in March of 1961. It starred Dean Jagger and Carmen Mathews as boarding house residents Ed Lindsay and Vinnie, and included a bit part for child actor and later documentary filmmaker Stephen Talbot, and a voice role for Bob Crane, who would later become a famous actor. The episode, like several others in the second season was shot on video tape, and much like the other episodes that were so shot, the grainy quality of the footage adds an antiquated atmosphere. The story was written by frequent Twilight Zone contributor Charles Beaumont, although interestingly, several elements of the story resemble the novel and movie Somewhere In Time, written by another frequent Twilight Zone contributor, Richard Matheson.

Ed Lindsay and his estranged lover Vinnie (no last name given) live together at a boarding house, along with several other stock characters, including his friend "The Professor" and his antagonist Roscoe. Tired of his fellow lodgers habit of constantly watching television, Lindsay finds an old cabinet radio in the basement, and carries it up to his room. When scanning for a station, he finds Tommy Dorsey and his orchestra, as well as several other older programs. The other residents of the boarding house are surprised when he talks about hearing live broadcasts from performers who are dead, especially since the radio only broadcasts static when anyone but Lindsay is listening. Is Lindsay's hearing of old broadcasts anything but a delusion, and will any good come of it?

In my last review of a Twilight Zone episode, I worried that the series was getting too gimmicky, a fear that was quickly laid to rest with this episode. Not that this is the best Twilight Zone episode, but it certainly is filling viewing. One of the most obvious issues is how the Twilight Zone zig-zags in respect to technology. "A Thing About Machines" had a protagonist who was derided for his refusal to adopt to modern technology, while in this episode, the protagonist is celebrated for the exact same reason. This episode also continued the theme of The Sixteen-Millimeter Shrine and The Trouble with Templeton (amongst others) of not giving a good answer to whether nostalgia was a good thing. It also was an early example of media awareness, giving a critique of television viewing (which of course, is interesting since it itself is a television show). And, in the middle of this, it also contains meaningful dialog and character development, something that has been lacking for a while. It is a good sign that while the show can be funny, it hasn't forgotten how to be profound.

Stat"ic (?), Stat"ic*al (?), a. [Gr. causing to stand, skilled in weighing, fr. to cause to stand: cf. F. statique. See Stand, and cf. Stage.]

1.

Resting; acting by mere weight without motion; as, statical pressure; static objects.

2.

Pertaining to bodies at rest or in equilibrium.

Statical electricity. See Note under Electricity, 1. -- Statical moment. See under Moment.

 

© Webster 1913.