The MultiMediaCard (MMC) is a memory card standard used for solid-state storage.
The term ex-ante (sometimes written ex ante or exante) is a phrase meaning before the event. Ex-ante is used most commonly in the commercial world, where results of a particular action, or series of actions, are forecast in advance (or intended). The opposite of ex-ante is ex-post (actual) (or ex post). Examples: 1  In the financial world, the ex-ante return is the expected return of an investment portfolio. 2  In the recruitment industry, ex-ante is often used when forecasting resource requirements on large future projects.
Upping the ante comes from betting games. The ante is the amount that all players must commit to the pot before the game begins. (The pot is what is won in the game, and will be the total of the ante plus all bets during the game.) Because a player must at minimum ante up, or pay the ante, in order to be allowed to play the game, upping the ante can quickly demonstrate how serious, committed, and solvent a player is. The significance of upping the ante is that it increases the overall cost of the game, hence the idiomatic meaning of increasing the cost or risk of something.