Daisy chain

The elementary meaning of daisy chain is a garland created from the daisy flower, generally as a children's game. Daisies are picked and a hole is made towards the base of the stem, generally by piercing with fingernails.The stem of the next flower can be threaded through until stopped by the head of the flower. By repeating this with many daisies, it is possible to build up long chains and to form them into simple, floral bracelets and necklaces. It is likely that the technical meanings given below, associated with various pursuits, stemmed from this simple, bucolic pursuit.

Computer Engineering

Within computer engineering daisy chain is a bus wiring scheme in which, for example, device A is wired to device B, device B is wired to device C, device C to device D etc. The last device is normally wired to a resistor called a terminator. All devices may receive identical signals or, in contrast to a simple bus, each device in the chain may modify one or more signals before passing them on.

Daisy chaining was a characteristic of RS-485, of Apple Computers LocalTalk, and of various industrial control networks; also often used to describe Thinwire Ethernet (10base2).

Electrical Engineering

Within electrical engineering daisy chain is the same thing as a series wiring scheme where each power consuming unit is placed after the other, as opposed to parallel wiring.

Sexuality

'Daisy chain' is used in a sexual context either as formation involving multiple participants lying in a circle, with each person putting their mouth to the genitals of the next person in the chain or a group of men penetrating each other anally in a chain formation.

Rock climbing

In rock climbing, a daisy chain is a ladder made from nylon tape, originally made by chaining together several loops of nylon tape. It is used in aid climbing.