Slang and Jargon
Jargon
Jargon is the specialised vocabulary of a profession or of some other activity to which a group of people dedicate significant parts of their lives (for instance, hobbies ). Technical terminology exists in a continuum of "formality." Precise technical terms and their definitions are formally recognised, documented, and taught by educators in the field, and are similar to slang . The boundaries between formal and slang jargon, as in general English, are quite fluid, with terms sliding in and out of recognition.
Technical terminology evolves due to the need for experts in a field to communicate with precision and brevity, and is thus unavoidable and desirable, but this often has the (usually) undesired effect of excluding those who are unfamiliar with the particular specialized language of the group. This can cause difficulties as, for example, when a patient is unable to follow the discussions of medical practitioners, and thus cannot understand their own condition and treatment. However the terms of technical terminology are used to express a great deal of information in a compact form. This makes it possible for professionals to speak to each other without having to exhaustively describe each concept; they can simply use the terms whose defintions are already known in the profession.
Slang
Slang is the non-standard use of words in a language and sometimes the creation of new words or importation of words from another language. Slang terms are often particular to a certain subculture - such as skate boarders, surfers, musicians of particular types, or drug users. Slang is sometimes confused with jargon which is the collection of vocabulary specific to a profession: medical terminology for example. "Slang" generally implies playful, informal speech. Slang is often used to discuss taboo or semi-taboo subjects, such as drunkenness, sexual organs and activities (human sexuality), elimination and bodily wastes, recreational drugs, and illicit or criminal activities.