I've been reading a JavaScript book recently and they used a term I hadn't heard before. They referred to a block of sophisticated code as "technobabble." This appears to be a way to describe anything highly technical and complex. I'd like to stretch the use of the word to also include technical terms specific to an industry. For example, "rasterize" is a word that pertains to the design and digital photography industry. "Potentiometer" is a term specific to electrical engineering.

These are clear examples of technical terms, but there are many more that float closer to the middle of the road. Occasionally I remind my wife of some of her technical term uses that don't seem out of the ordinary to her. Just last night she said "passing meds" as something that is done in the health care profession. We all know what "passing" means, and many of us are familiar with "meds," but the combination of these terms introduces an application that is specific to health care. Though these are second nature to my wife and her colleagues, use of these terms in this way is not publicly-recognized language regardless of one's ability to interpret the intended meaning.

The reason I bring this up is that I believe far too many of us use technical terms from our work in everyday conversation when we shouldn't. For some, talking about your work is an opportunity to flaunt your intelligence. For example:

"Hi, grandma."
"Hi, Bobby. What are you doing for a job these days?"
"I'm a sysadmin for MS SQL databases."

And there goes grandma into a black hole. What should you tell grandma (depending on the grandma, of course)? Probably something like, "I work with computers." Let her ask additional questions. Don't provide all the answers without being solicited first.

For others, talking about work and using its terminology inappropriately for the audience is inadvertent. I think this is how it is for my wife. She doesn't mean to say "psychotropics" and "trach" (tracheostomy) with the intent to confuse anyone, that's just what she's used to.

The goal here, then, is to be more self-aware. Our word choice when discussing our professions with a layperson should be simple and unpretentious. Sounding smart as you introduce your work may provide a temporary buzz, but we don't benefit anyone but ourselves by doing so. Here's to reducing the amount of technobabble in the world, especially so we techies can improve our social reputation.