By William Berstrom | Politico | May 30, 2012

A 2011 Department of Homeland Security reference binder for monitoring social media, released following a public-records request by the Electronic Privacy Information Center, includes a variety of terms that analysts should search for on the web. These terms — from strange to serious, vague to specific — can “provide situational awareness and establish a common operating picture,” according to the manual [pdf]. Here are the 10 weirdest terms:

1. Cloud: as in, a nuclear or “mushroom” cloud — assuming cloud computing and actual clouds aren’t threats, too.

2. Drill: a common term in military training, but even more common in carpentry.

3. Tamiflu: a drug that treats some forms of influenza. Not be confused with Theraflu.

4. Lightening: when combined with “hole,” it’s a civil engineering term. But the word was listed under “Weather/Disaster/Emergency,” so DHS probably meant “lightning.”

5. Mexicles: a nickname for the Partido Revolucionario Mexciano, a prison gang.

6. Exercise: comes highly recommended by doctors.

7. Plume: a column or band of smoke or gases. But also: a large or conspicuous feather.

8. Trojan: a malicious file or program that appears to be a legitimate file or program. Something elsemight come to mind.

9. Cain and Abel: a password recovery tool for MS Windows. Named, of course, after the Biblical brothers responsible for untold thousands of literary and cinematic motifs.

10: Pork: Yes, pork.