text: The term dross derives from the Old English word dros, meaning the scum produced when smelting metals (extracting them from their ores). By the 15th century it had come to refer to rubbish in general. Dregs, and the geological term druse are also thought to be etymologically related. Popular non-metalworking uses of the word are derogatory:
  *poorly written or plagiarized journalism - "a dross article"; "utter/complete/terrible dross" (adjective/noun), a stronger term than filler 
  *undesirable, unprofitable work - "lets hone in on the lions share and outsource the dross"; synonyms: corvée, hiding-to-nothing, and drudgery which are growing archaisms in business (noun); as strong a term as dogsbody work