*Some of these glossary definitions have been adapted and reproduced by permission of The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Many computer and Web-related definitions have been contributed by Jason Snart, College of DuPage.

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effect Something brought about by a cause or agent; a result.

effectiveness The degree to which something produces an intended or expected effect.

effect-to-cause experiment A form of reasoning employing the controlled experimental design in which the experimenter works backward from an existing effect to a suspected cause.

e-mail An electronic message; a system for sending and receiving messages electronically over a computer network or via the Internet, as between personal computers.

empirical generalization A form of inductive reasoning in which a general statement is made about an entire group (the target population) based on observing some members of the group (the sample population).

endorsement The act of giving approval of or support to.

euphemism The act or an example of substituting a mild, indirect, or vague term for one considered harsh, blunt, or offensive.

evaluate To examine and judge carefully, based on specified criteria.

evidence A thing or things helpful in forming a conclusion or judgment.

external constraints Limits to one’s freedom that come from outside oneself.