Latintos

Contrived acronym in computer science and web development: Captcha

2012-02-22T19:01:00.001-08:00

The term “captcha” was coined in 2000 by Luis von Ahn, Manuel Blum, Nicholas Hopper and John Langford of Carnegie Mellon University to denote a webpage element that is designed to tell humans and robots automatically apart: Captcha stands for Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart [1]. A captcha image, consisting of randomly generated characters squiggling inside a rectangle, is often encountered as a required-to-do field within a submit form. Misrecognizing certain letters or symbols, a user may get the interrogation vibe when asked if she would mind to do it again (and again …). In a recent TechnoFile contribution, David Pogue highlights the functioning of captchas as efficiency barriers and suggests the following meaning: Computers Annoying People with Time-wasting Challenges that Howl for Alternatives [2].

In case you haven't found an alternative yet or are going to argue that captchas are nevertheless pretty good in capturing—or should I write captcharing—machines employed by misconducting humans, then some interesting websites and JavaScript code will be helpful. Client side as well as server side scripting has been explained and demonstrated [3,4]. Further, dynamic generation of webpages that include forms with captcha images can be achieved with various programming languages such as PHP, ASP, JSP, Perl, Python and Ruby [5].

What about identifying and appreciating the honest human being, who is interacting with your site; instead of targeting potential spambots all the time? Ben Hunt discusses a promising approach [6]. Invisibility is not only the strategy of spammers and spies, but can be derived by user-friendly technology, implemented as a backstage wizard that lets humans submit, sign in and hack as long as they employ finger work. Open creativity instead of captchability!

References and resources to explore
[1] www.captcha.net and www.google.com/recaptcha/captcha.
[2] TechnoFiles by David Pogue: Time to Kill Off Captchas. How the bot-proofing of the Internet in bringing humans down. Sci. Am. March 2012, 306 (3), page 23 [www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=time-to-kill-off-captchas].
[3] Simple JavaScript CAPTCHA Generator: typicalwhiner.com/190/simple-javascript-captcha-generator/.
[4] Implementation of Captcha in JavaScript: www.codeproject.com/Articles/42842/Implementation-of-Captcha-in-Javascript.
[5] Free CAPTCHA-Service: captchas.net.
[6] Ben Hunt: CAPTCHA Alternative? Try this Invisible Human Check for Web Form Validation [www.webdesignfromscratch.com/javascript/human-form-validation-check-trick].

Case sensitive URL distinction? Don't rely on it!

2012-02-14T18:41:00.000-08:00

A Uniform Resource Locator (URL) should not be case sensitive. At least, the domain-name part of the URL string is not interpreted with respect to case sensitivity [1]. Of course, you can type a URL into the provided field of your browser anyway you want. The same applies to the href attribute in an anchor tag of your HTML page. But the server that is hosting the targeted website may interpret file paths differently, depending on the occurrence of upper- and lower-case letters in an otherwise identical character sequence [2]. Unless you know exactly the set-up and configuration (Apache/Linux or other hosting software) of the server you are trying to access, you do not want to rely on either a case or non-case sensitive interpretation of your query.

Obviously, the common concern is to locate a website by not caring for upper- or lower-case letter typing and by avoiding to end up with a “404 Error File Not Found” page [3,4]. Here, I like to emphasize the “mirror problem:” let us assume the server presence of multiple files, whose names vary only by selective capitalization. This problem is not restricted to website location, but is a general issue of targeted search and annotation. For example, in fields such as chemistry, case-sensitive presentation can be critical to distinguish between different materials: the symbols/formulae Co and CO represent the chemical element cobalt and carbon monoxide; CsI and CSi represent cesium iodide and silicon carbide. Within each pair, notations differ by case only. Two files, named Co.htm and CO.htm, may not correctly be addressed or resolved as separate files, when located in the same directory. Such ambiguities are avoided—although generating overhead—by employing a more distinctive naming scheme. In our ThermoML file repository for molecular-composition-based open access of thermodynamic data and chemical publication hyperlinks, we choose a host-independent system of file names. For cobalt and carbon monoxide the files happen to be Co_aaa.htm and CO_aax.htm, respectively. The x is making the difference.

Keywords: name disambiguation, formula disambiguation, file names, identifiers, web hosting, Windows, Linux, UNIX, case standardization

References and more on URL case sensitivity
[1] Bin-Blog: www.bin-co.com/blog/2007/10/case-sensitivity-in-urls/.
[2] wiseGEEK: www.wisegeek.com/are-urls-case-sensitive.htm.
[3] Ted Kuik: Case Sensitive URLs. Does capitalization matter? [www.coolnotions.com/Articles/Article_02.htm].
[4] Case-Sensitive URL's: www.infocellar.com/networks/internet/URL-case-sensitive.htm.

HTML5 microdata markup validation

2012-01-20T19:32:00.000-08:00

HTML5 introduces the microdata concept to web page design: HTML elements can semantically be annotated by using item attributes such as itemscope, itemtype and itemprop. Typically, I am using the W3C Markup Validation Service at validator.w3.org to test my HTML5 pages and have experienced good results in checking markup validity. The good news is the bad news: the W3C validator is rather strict and—unfortunately—is too picky when it comes to microdata. For example, it reports errors detected in the shown code snippet, although this code has correct HTML5 syntax.

The code example illustrates annotation of a short text about a chemical substance. This code employs microdata (property/value pairs) according to the vocabulary defined at www.axeleratio.com/voc/chemid. The W3C validator complains about the item attributes, declaring that their use is not allowed on the selected elements at this point. In contrast, the (X)HTML5 Validator at html5.validator.nu declares that this code is valid HTML5, after submitting a page containing this code snippet. The NU Markup Validation Service at qa-dev.w3.org:8888/html5 came up with the same result. The latter validator—according to the statement on its site—checks the markup validity like the current W3C validation service, but instead uses the backend of the Validator.nu engine, which provides non-DTD-based validation support for a number of markup languages. Currently, this latter service is a potentially unstable pilot version, provided for demonstration and testing purposes only.

Suggested sites for microdata digging:
W3C: www.w3.org/TR/microdata/
Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microdata_%28HTML%29
Tutorials Point: www.tutorialspoint.com/html5/html5_microdata.htm
Google: support.google.com/webmasters/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=176035

Gale crater on Mars named after Australian banker and astronomer Walter Frederick Gale

2011-12-29T12:40:00.000-08:00

The Gale crater on Mars was named in 1991 after Australian banker and astronomer Walter Frederick Gale (1865-1945) [1-3]. This 150-kilometer-wide hollow emerged as the front-runner for the landing site of NASA's Curiosity rover and finally was picked for the $2.5 billion rover mission, successfully launched at the end of November in 2011 [3-5].

The leaders of the Curiosity mission chose the Gale crater as landing spot, because it promises to be the scene for exciting studies of Martian sedimentary patterns by using rock-vaporizing lasers, gas chromatography, mass spectrometry and X-ray diffraction instruments for chemical analysis as well as high-resolution digital cameras from Malin Space Science Systems (MSSS) [6]. Channels (probably carved by flowing water) in the crater wall and mid-crater mound have been found during previous orbit-based studies: the mound in the center of the five-kilometer-deep impact crater contains layered materials including clay and other minerals [7].

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, areography, Martian topography, geology, terminology.

References and more to explore
[1] Google Mars Lab: www.google.com/mars/.
[2] Harley Wood: Gale, Walter Frederick (1865-1945). Australian Dictionary of Biography [adb.anu.edu.au/biography/gale-walter-frederick-6269].
[3] Space News: NASA Picks Gale Crater for Mars Science Lab Landing. July 25, 2011 [www.spacenews.com/civil/110725-nasa-picks-gale-crater-msl.html].
[4] Nancy Atkinson: Gale crater reported front-runner for MSL landing site. June 24, 2011 [www.physorg.com/news/2011-06-gale-crater-front-runner-msl-site.html].
[5] James Holloway: Mars Curiosity Rover successfully launched. November 27, 2011 [http://www.gizmag.com/mars-curiosity-launch-nasa/20627/].
[6] Eric Hand: The Mars Observer. Nature, November 24, 2011, 479 (7374), pp. 460-463 [www.nature.com/news/mike-malin-the-mars-observer-1.9402].
[7] NASA Mars Science Laboratory > Gale Crater: mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/mission/timeline/prelaunch/landingsiteselection/galecrater2/.

Martian locality inside the Gusev Crater: Columbia Hills named to honor the crew of the space shuttle Columbia

2011-12-19T16:18:00.000-08:00

The Columbia hills inside Crater Gusev on Mars are named to honor the crew of the space shuttle Columbia, which disintegrated over Texas after re-entry into Earth's atmosphere in February 2003 [1,2].

The Columbia Hills are a range of low hills inside Gusev Crater that were visited in 2004 by Mars rover Spirit, equipped with alpha particle X-ray spectrometer (APXS) as well as infrared and Mössbauer spectrometer [3]. With this technology on board, at least ten different types of rocks were identified at the Columbia site, which is exposing rock formations that are different and older than the lava-flooded surroundings of olevine-bearing basalts [1,4]: layered granular deposits were discovered in the Columbia Hills and have been interpreted to be volcanic ash and/or impact ejecta deposits that have been modified by aqueous fluids.

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, areography, Martian topography, geology, space shuttle Columbia disaster, terminology.

References and more to explore
[1] Ulf von Rauchhaupt: Der Neunte Kontinent - Die wissenschaftliche Eroberung des Mars. Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, November 2010; pages 181.
[2] Joseph Lorenzo Hall: Columbia and Challenger: organizational failure at NASA. Space Policy 2003, 19, pp. 239-247 [josephhall.org/papers/nasa.pdf].
[3] mindat.org > Columbia Hills, Gusev Crater, Aeolis quadrangle, Mars: www.mindat.org/loc-189893.html.
[4] R. E. Arvidson et al.: Overview of the Spirit Mars Exploration Rover Mission to Gusev Crater: Landing Site to Backstay Rock in the Columbia Hills. J. Geophys. Res. 2006, 111, E02S01 [si-pddr.si.edu/jspui/bitstream/10088/3547/1/200640.pdf].

Eberswalde Crater on Mars named after the City of Eberswalde in the German State of Brandenburg

2011-12-18T19:04:00.000-08:00

The Eberswalde Crater on Mars is named after the German town with the same name (in accordance with the rules for planetary nomenclature of the International Astronomical Union), located about 50 km northeast of Berlin in the German Federal State (Bundesland) of Brandenburg [1,2]. The 65-km-diameter crater (centered at 24.3°S, 33.5°W, just north of the Holden Crater) contains a distributary fan, which is supposed to be an ancient delta in which a river deposited sediments, now hardened to sandstone [3]. The delta structure is (so far) the most convincing sign that a Martian river once flowed into a standing body of water [4,5]: possible streambed features, which are now higher than the surrounding terrain due to sediment hardening and erosion resistance, are assumed to be remaining parts that formed when the Eberswalde streams carved new channels.

The Eberswalde Crater and its interesting geology came into focus in 2003 during the Mars Global Surveyor exploration program [6]. Based on images taken during this remote expedition, Michael Malin and Kenneth Edgett of Malin Space Science Systems discovered the Eberswalde delta with a surface are of 115 km² [7].

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, areography, Martian topography, impact crater, Margaritifer Terra, history, terminology.

References and more to explore
[1] Ulf von Rauchhaupt: Der Neunte Kontinent - Die wissenschaftliche Eroberung des Mars. Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, November 2010; pages 174 and 175.
[2] Mahalo > Eberswalde (crater): www.mahalo.com/eberswalde-crater/.
[3] David Pratt: Life on Mars: from microbes to monuments. December 2011 [davidpratt.info/mars-life.htm].
[4] NASA Mars Science Laboratory > Possible MSL Landing Site: Eberwalde Crater: hmars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/mission/timeline/prelaunch/landingsiteselection/eberswalde2/.
[5] M. Pondrelli, A. P. Rossi, L. Marianangeli, E. Hauber, K. Gewinner, A. Baliva and S. di Lorenzo: Evolution and depositional environments of the Eberswalde fan delta, Mars. Icarus October 2008, 197 (2), pp. 429-451.
doi: 10.1016/j.icarus.2008.05.018.
[6] NASA Solar System Exploration > Mars Global Surveyor: solarsystem.nasa.gov/missions/profile.cfm?MCode=MGS.
[7] slashtheseats.com/rrpedia/Eberswalde_%28crater%29.

Valles Marineris, a Martian rift zone named to honor the scientific team of the Mariner 9 program

2011-12-14T18:42:00.000-08:00

The Valles Marineris got their name in 1973 to honor the scientific team of the Mariner 9 program [1]. The term “Valles Marineris” is the latinized form of the phrase “Mariner Valleys.” “Valles” is the plural form of the Latin noun “vallis.” The plural form in “Valles Marineris” indicates that this vast Martian surface feature is a system of multiple valleys or canyons.

Valles Marineris was discovered in 1972 by the Mariner 9 spacecraft [3]: Its length matches the distance between New York City and Los Angeles. This valley system, commonly referred to as the Valles Marineris trough system, is located close to the Martian equator, where it trends east-west from longitude 40°W to 110°W with a depth reaching 10 km [4]. During NASA's Global Surveyor Mission, the deepest point was found by laser measurements within the valleys in the Coprates Chasma region [5,6]: Valles Marineris does not exhibit the typical features of a river bed or canyon formed by water flowing down from source to delta. A complete understanding of how the Valles Marineris system originated and evolved by combination of water flow, magmatic processes, tensional fracturing and/or other forces is still far away.

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, areography, Martian topography, Latin, vallis, valles, terminology.

References and more to explore
[1] Google Mars Lab: www.google.com/mars.
[2] Glossary of Latin Words > V: www.bible-history.com/latin/latin_v.html.
[3] Valles Marineris, a Martian Rift Zone: themis.asu.edu/feature/16.
[4] Géomorphologie > New insight on genetic links between outflows and chasmata on Valles Marineris plateau, Mars (January 2009): geomorphologie.revues.org/7485.
[5] ESA Mars Express > Coprates Chasma and Coprates Catena: www.esa.int/esaMI/Mars_Express/SEMIRE1DU8E_0.html.
[6] Ulf von Rauchhaupt: Der Neunte Kontinent - Die wissenschaftliche Eroberung des Mars. Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, November 2010; pages 114 to 119.

The Latin nouns “planitia” and “planum” both mean “plain”—in astronomy “low plain” and “high plain,” respectively

2011-12-12T20:35:00.000-08:00

The Latin nouns planitia and planum both mean flat surface, plain or level ground [1,2]. Their plural forms are planitiae and plana, respectively. In astronomy, the meaning of these words have a significance of distinguishing topographical areas: planitia stands for low plain and planum for high plain [1-3].

Triggered by new data on Martian topography delivered by the Mariner 9 mission, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) decided in 1973 on a nomenclature in which the term planitia refers to a plain below the zero-elevation level and the term planum refers to an elevated plain (plateau) [3].

This terminology is now applied to various celestial objects. For example, planitiae of different size are known on planets Mars and Venus as well as on moons in the solar system [4]. Similarly, a large number of plana have been described on Mars, Venus, Neptun moon Triton and Jupiter moon Io [5]. Of course, their are planitiae and plana on Earth (with the standard sea level as zero elevation), but typically their names are derived without incorporating these two Latin nouns.

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, areography, geological features, Latin, terminology.

References and more to explore
[1] Wiktionary > planitia [en.wiktionary.org/wiki/planitia] and planum [en.wiktionary.org/wiki/planum].
[2] MyEtymology > Etymology of the Latin word planitia [www.myetymology.com/latin/planitia.html] and Etymology of the Latin word planum [www.myetymology.com/latin/planum.html].
[3] Ulf von Rauchhaupt: Der Neunte Kontinent - Die wissenschaftliche Eroberung des Mars. Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, November 2010; page 107. (Tiefebene und Hochebene are the German words for planitia and planum).
[4] FindTheData > Astrogeology > Planitia, planitiae: astrogeology.findthedata.org/d/d/Europe/Planitia,-planitiae.
[5] FindTheData > Astrogeology > Planum, plana: astrogeology.findthedata.org/d/d/Europe/Planum,-plana.

Craters Airy and Airy-0 on Mars named after Greenwich astronomer Sir George Biddell Airy

2011-12-11T13:54:00.001-08:00

The craters Airy and Airy-0 on Mars were named to commemorate the Greenwich astronomer Sir George Biddell Airy (1801-1892) [1]: Airy-0, a small impact crater with a diameter of 500 meter, is located inside the 40-kilometer-wide Airy crater in the east-west stretching Sinus Meridiani feature just south of the Martian equator.

The center of Airy-0 was chosen to define the Martian prime meridian, the zero point of longitude. On Earth the prime meridian was defined by international agreement in 1881 based on the location of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich near London, England, where Sir Airy was employed as the seventh Astronomer Royal [1,2].

Pinpointing the zero point onto Airy-0 became possible in 1972, when Mariner 9 mapped the surface of Mars at about 1 kilometer resolution [2]: Merton Davies of the RAND Corporation, who computed an extensive 'control net' of locations, designated Airy-0 as the reference point for the Martian spherical coordinate system. Planet Mars, however, is not exactly a sphere. Like Earth, Mars is flattened at its poles. The overall shape of Mars may be described as a pear, which is further deformed by structures such as the Tharsis Bulge, an uplifted continent about the size of North America [1,3].

George Biddell Airy was born at Alnwick in Northumberland on July 27,1801. In 1823, he took his B. A. Degree at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he was appointed Plumian Professor of Astronomy at the Cambridge Observatory in 1828. From 1835 until his retirement in 1881 he was Astronomer Royal at the national observatory in Greenwich, where—during his long career and succession of accomplishments in physics, in particular planetary science— he established the prime meridian in the early 1850s [4,5].

Keywords: astronomy, mathematics, geometry, planetary science, areology (science of Mars), areography (geology of Mars), terminology.

References and more to explore
[1] Ulf von Rauchhaupt: Der Neunte Kontinent - Die wissenschaftliche Eroberung des Mars. Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, November 2010; pages 104 and 105.
[2] NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration > Mars Atlas: mars.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/atlas/PIA03207.html.
[3] The Tharsis Bulge on Mars: http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/solar/marsthar.html.
[4] George Biddell Airy: Autobiography of Sir George Biddell Airy (edited by Wilfrid Airy in 1896, produced by Joseph Myers and PG Distributed Proofreaders and released on January 9, 2004) [www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/10655/pg10655.html].
[5] Sir George Biddell Airy K.C.B., M.A., LL.D., D.C.L., F.R.S., F.R.A.S.: wwp.greenwich2000.com/heritage/vip/astronomers/airy.htm.

Crater Gusev on Mars named after Russian astronomer Matwei Matwejewitsch Gusev

2011-12-07T15:17:00.001-08:00

Crater Gusev on Mars was named for the Russian astronomer Matwei Matwejewitsch Gusev (1826-1866) [1]. In English, his first name is commonly spelled Matvei.

The Gusev crater was discovered in 1976 on images taken by the Viking Orbiter [2,3]. This crater is a four-billion-year-old meteor impact basin near the Martian equator at 14.6S and 175.4E [4]. Mars Exploration Rover Spirit landed in the basin in 2004. This site was chosen because it had the appearance of a lakebed: the bottom of the crater may contain sedimentary deposits laid down in a submarine environment, assuming that Gusev was once filled with water [5]. Although the Spirit rover found mainly basaltic rock, it also detected some mineral salts such as magnesium and calcium sulfate and amorphous silicon dioxid, giving a hint of a possible presence of thermal water and hot springs in the past [1].

Matvei Gusev was born in 1826 in Vyatka, Russia, and died in 1866 in Berlin, Germany. He is known for proving the non-sphericity of Earth's moon and concluding that it is elongated in the direction towards Earth [6].

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, areology (science of Mars), areography (geology of Mars), terminology.

References and more to explore
[1] Ulf von Rauchhaupt: Der Neunte Kontinent - Die wissenschaftliche Eroberung des Mars. Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, November 2010; pages 71, 176, 181 and 182.
[2] Malin Space Science Systems > Mars Global Surveyor - Gusev Crater and Ma'adim Vallis: www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/7_17_98_gusev_rel/.
[3] NASA Images > Gusev Crater and Ma'adam Vallis: www.nasaimages.org/luna/servlet/detail/nasaNAS~4~4~14757~117390:Moon-Mars-Landing-Commemorative-Rel.
[4] Google Mars Lab: www.google.com/mars/.
[5] NASA National Space Science Data Center > Spirit: nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc./spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2003-027A.
[6] Matvei Gusev: www.music.us/education/M/Matvei-Gusev.htm.

Crater Mie on Mars named after German physicist Gustav Mie

2011-12-06T14:57:00.001-08:00

Crater Mie on Mars was named in 1973 (approved by the International Astronomical Union) for the German physicist Gustav Mie (1868-1957). This Martian impact crater in Utopia Planitia on the northern hemisphere is about 100 km (65 mi) in diameter and located at 48.1N and 139.6E [1,2]. An image, taken by the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) and released by NASA in December 2003, shows clouds and dust to the east of Mie [3]. Viking 2 landed near Mie in September 1976 [4].

Gustav Mie was born in 1868 in Rostock in northeast Germany and died in 1957 in Freiburg in southwest Germany [5,6]. His contributions to physics include optical studies of colloidal gold suspensions and the analysis of light scattering. His name is primarily associated with the terms Mie scattering and Mie effect, honoring his work on the scattering of electromagnetic radiation by a homogeneous spherical particle that exceeds the size (above 100 nm) of Raleigh scattering conditions [7]. Gustav Mie's three-letter last name may look like a shorthand or a wrongly spelled Greek letter, but Mie theory has a prominent place in physics today as well as in the atmospheric sciences of Earth and other planets [8].

Mie is pronounced like the English personal pronoun me.

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, areology (science of Mars), areography (geology of Mars), polarimetry, Mie solution, terminology.

References and more to explore
[1] Ulf von Rauchhaupt: Der Neunte Kontinent - Die wissenschaftliche Eroberung des Mars. Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, November 2010; page 71.
[2] Google Mars Lab: www.google.com/mars/.
[3] NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems: www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/2003/12/12/.
[4] NASA Goddard Space Flight Center > Viking 2 - Utopia Planitia: http://mola.gsfc.nasa.gov/viking2.html.
[5] Pedro Lilienfeld: Gustav Mie: the person. Applied Optics 20 November 1991, 30 (33), pp. 4696-4698 [www.ugr.es/~aquiran/ciencia/mie/mie_the_person.pdf].
[6] Gustav Mie: diogenes.iwt.uni-bremen.de/vt/laser/wriedt/Mie_Type_Codes/Gustav_Mie/body_gustav_mie.html.
[7] Gerald Brezesinki and Hans-Jörg Mögel: Grenzflächen und Kolloide. Spektrum Akademischer Verlag, Heidelberg, Berlin und Oxford, 1993; pages 129-131.
[8] Michael I. Mishchenko and Larry D. Travid: Gustav Mie and the Evolving Discipline of Electromagnetic Scattering by Particles. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc. 2008, 89, pp. 1853-1861 [journals.ametsoc.org/doi/abs/10.1175/2008BAMS2632.1].

The “canali” intermezzo in the history of Martian exploration

2011-12-05T14:33:00.001-08:00

In 1869 the word canali (Italian for channels) was introduced into areography by Pietro Angelo Secchi (1818-1878), a Jesuit monk and director of the Roman College Observatory, who had produced the first color sketches of Mars in 1863. The term canali referred to dark streaks seen on the Martian surface. They already appeared (unnamed) on drawings by the German amateur astronomer Johann Hieronymus Schroeter (1745-1816) and the English astronomer William Dawes (1799-1868). When Pater Secchi came up with the term canali, he was probably inspired by the construction of the Suez Canal, happening during that time [1,2].

Eventually, the canali on Mars became associated with Giovanni Schiaparelli (1835-1910), who thought he had spotted double canali in 1879 and, two years later, revised his Mars maps by adding even more canali [1]. Schiaparelli is responsible for various areographic names of Martian structures. With the beginning of high resolution mapping and spacecraft exploration of Mars, the canali turned out to be an optical illusion.

The Italian noun canali (plural of canale) happened to be mistranslated in English-speaking countries into “canal,” typically referring to an artificially constructed waterway or irrigation structure. The correct translation is “channel” [3]. The canal association resulted into those familiar speculations fantasizing about an agriculturally active population on our neighbor planet.

Making headlines of all kinds, the canali affair is an excellent example of naming and mistranslating something that does not even exist. Much ado about nothing.

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, areology (science of Mars), areography (geology of Mars), history, linguistics, Italian-English translation.

References and more to explore
[1] Planet Mars Chronology: www.astro.virginia.edu/class/oconnell/astr121/Mars-Chronology-Catling.html.
[2] Ulf von Rauchhaupt: Der Neunte Kontinent - Die wissenschaftliche Eroberung des Mars. Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, November 2010; page 37.
[3] Exploring Mars - What we know about the red planet: www.spacetoday.org/SolSys/Mars/MarsThePlanet/MarsCanals.html.

Early areology: mapping the surface of Mars and naming features

2011-12-04T18:29:00.001-08:00

The first detailed map of Mars was created in 1877 by Italian astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli (1835-1910), who—in Milan—observed the Martian surface through a telescope and determined 62 clearly recognizable features by latitude and longitude. Schiaparelli replaced the terms of those few Martian structures, which the Englishman Richard Antony Proctor had compiled ten years earlier from observations made by William Rutter Dawes. These structures had preferably been named after British astronomers. Schiaparelli, instead, named Martian locations and “landmarks” after the geography of the Mediterranean. He was also inspired by terms from the Bible and ancient mythology [1-4].

Schiaparellis name inventions include Elysium (“Home of the blessed” in Greek mythology), Tharsis (after the biblical Tarshis, referring to the land at the western extremity of the world) and Syrtis Major (after the Gulf of Sirte, Libya). At Google Mars (www.google.com/mars/) you can explore these foreign territories. Schiaparelli's canali cannot be found on Google's Mars maps, since they do not exist: Eugène Michael Antoniade observed the planet in 1909 with the “Grande Lunette” (Europe's largest telescope at that time) at the observatory in Meudon near Paris and convinced himself of the non-existence of the canali. His (negative) findings were soon to be confirmed by observations with the refractory telescope on Mt. Wilson, California [1].

With the advancing exploration of Mars, some of Schiaparelli's names seem misleading and have been changed slightly. For example, “Nix Olympica” (snow of Mount Olympus, Greece) is now named Olympus Mons, since it is not a snow-covered mountain, but the highest volcano in the solar system. In 1990, Sierra Leone in Africa issued two stamps sketching this gigantic volcano to salute the ongoing exploration of Mars: one stamp with the name Nix Olympica printed on it, the other with the name Olympus Mons [5].

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, areology (science of Mars), areography (geology of Mars), history, philately.

References and more to explore
[1] Ulf von Rauchhaupt: Der Neunte Kontinent - Die wissenschaftliche Eroberung des Mars. Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, November 2010; pages 35 and 43.
[2] The Encyclopedia of Science > Schiaparelli, Giovanni Virgino (1835-1910): http://www.daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/S/Schiaparelli.html.
[3] Encyclopedia. com > Giovanni Virgino Schiaparelli: www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Giovanni_Virginio_Schiaparelli.aspx.
[4] Library Index > Science Encyclopedia > Mars - Giovanni Schiaparelli [www.libraryindex.com/pages/2845/Mars-GIOVANNI-SCHIAPARELLI.html].
[5] www.iomoon.com/olympus.htm (scroll to the bottom to see the two stamps).

A new verb is making its orbit: to pluto

2011-11-29T15:34:00.001-08:00

The phrase to pluto someone means “to downgrade, demote or remove altogether from a prestigious group or list, like what was done to the planet of the same name” [1]. Pluto's demotion took place in 2006, when the International Astronomical Union (IAU) (re)defined the term “planet,” putting Pluto on dwarf planet status [2].

While considered to be planet after its discovery by the American astronomer Clyde Tombaugh in 1930, Pluto was named by Venetia Burney, an eleven-year-old schoolgirl in Oxford, England. Thereafter, planet enthusiasts had a prestigious list of nine planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. If you want to see all nine orbiting around the sun, there are animations and tours available [3]. By the way, the laws of (astro)physics do not change by shuffling classification schemes and conventions—and no tears, Pluto is still a planet, just a minor one along with the asteroid Ceres and trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs) such as Eris (which is 27 percent more massive than Pluto), Haumea, Ixion, Makemake, Orcus, Quaoar, Sedna, Varuna and other fascinating objects.

Let's put it together in a limerick (Axel Drefahl, November 2011 ):

Once upon a time,
planets there were nine.
But Pluto lacks in weight:
now there are only eight.

In case you are looking for more than a summarizing rhyme: there is no better way to learn about highlights, details and the downfall of Pluto by reading Neil deGrasse Tyson's book The Pluto Files [2]. Therein, I also found the link to the American Dialect Society, voting for “plutoed” as the word of the year in 2006, in a run-off against “climate canary” and in competition with the noun murse (for man's purse, getting zero votes) [4].

Although Pluto has been plutoed, this dwarf planet will get increasing attention: NASA's New Horizons Spacecraft is currently halfway between Earth and Pluto, approaching the icy little planet and its moons for a flyby in July 2015 [5].

Keywords: astronomy, solar system, minor planet, verb, grammar, linguistics.

References and more to explore
[1] Urban dictionary > pluto www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=pluto.
[2] Neil deGrasse Tyson: The Pluto Files. W. W. Norton & Company, New York and London, 2009.
[3] Nine Planets nineplanets.org/.
[4] “Plutoed” Voted 2006 Word of the Year by American Dialect Society [www.americandialect.org/Word-of-the-Year_2006.pdf].
[5] NASA > Missions > New Horizons www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/newhorizons/main/index.html.

Official labeling scheme for newly discovered minor planets

2011-11-25T11:56:00.001-08:00

A newly discovered minor planet is named by a label (designation) that indicates the date of its discoveries in relation to recently (during the same semi-month period) made discoveries. The standard designation consists of a sequence of three parts, describing and ordering the date of the first observation of a new object [1,2]:

four-digit number indicating the year,
an uppercase letter identifying the half-month (also called semi-month),
an uppercase letter identifying the numerical sequence of discovery, followed by one or more digits (representing a counter) if more than 25 previous discoveries were made within the same half-month.

The half-month designations are listed in the right-side table below. For a given month, the first letter refers to days 1 to 15 and the second letter to any of the remaining days of that month. Letters I and Z are not used.

Within any half-month, a discovery is ordered by the 25 letters of the alphabet, excluding letter I. From the 26th discovery onward, the letters are recycled and a numeral, counting recycling repetition, is appended—when possible as subscript [1]. For example, D₂ represents 54th; 50 + 4, since 2 repetitions formally consume 2⋅25 = 50 letters and D is the 4th letter of the alphabet.

The four digits for the year are separated from the following parts by small white space.

Let's look at some complete designations:

1992 QB₁ is the 27th (1⋅25 + 2) object discovered in the second half of August in the year 1992: this was the first trans-Neptunian object (TNO) to be discovered after Pluto and Charon [3];
2003 UB₃₁₃ is the 7,827th (313⋅25 + 2) object discovered in the second half of October in 2003: this object is now called Eris, a TNO and a Kuiper belt object (KBO) in particular;
2005 YU₅₅ is the 1,395th (55⋅25 + 20) object discovered in the second half of December in 2005: an asteroid as big as an aircraft carrier recently zipping by Earth [4], narrowly avoiding collision.

Such designations are systematic, but often provisional: as the example of Eris shows, objects may later be named by figures or spirits from mythology as shown for TNOs named after creation deities.

Designations of minor bodies and natural satellites in the solar system are managed by the Minor Planet Center (MPC) in conjunction with the Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams (CBAT). The MPC is also responsible for the efficient collection, computation, checking and dissemination of astrometricobservations and orbits for minor planets and comets by issuing various types of circulars [5].

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, asteroids, dwarf planets, trojans, centaurs, nomenclature.

References with further details
[1] IAU Minor Planet Center > New- and Old-Style Minor Planet Designation: www.minorplanetcenter.net/iau/info/OldDesDoc.html.
[2] Neil deGrasse Tyson: The Pluto Files. W. W. Norton & Company, New York and London, 2009; fottnote on page 53.
[3] NASA Science News > What Lurks In The Outer Solar System?: science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2001/ast13sep_1/.
[4] Alice Chang: Big asteroid passes Earth. Reno Gazette-Journal November 9, 2011, page 5C.
[5] IAU Minor Planet Center: www.minorplanetcenter.net/iau/mpc.html.

Dysnomia, a moon of the Kuiper belt object Eris, named after the spirit of lawlessness

2011-11-23T13:58:00.001-08:00

Dysnomia is a moon of the Kuiper belt object (KBO) Eris. Dysnomia's discovery in 2005 significantly contributes to our understanding of the history and evolution of the solar system. By measuring the complete orbit of Dysnomia, going around Eris in about 16 days, it was possible to calculate that Eris has a mass 27 percent higher than that of Pluto [1-5].

In Greek mythology, Eris is the mother of Dysnomia, who represents the spirit (daimona) of lawlessness and poor civil constitution [6]. Considering that Eris is named after the Greek goddess of strife, discord, contention and rivalry (see second paragraph in KBO article), Neil deGrasse Tyson underlines the complicated social lives of classical gods and explains [3]:

One of Eris's pastimes was to instill jealousy and envy among men, driving them to battle. At the wedding of Peleus and Thetis, all the gods were invited with the exception of Eris. Angered by her exclusion, she vengefully instigated a quarrel among the goddesses that precipitated the Trojan War.
Brown [Mike Brown (Caltech), co-discoverer of Eris, who precisely calculated Eris to be 27 percent more massive than Pluto [2]] had indeed done his classical homework and dutifully captured Eris's destabilizing influence on the Pluto problem, causing a war of its own.

The latter war ended with the demotion of Pluto to the status of dwarf planet in 2006. Back to Dysnomia: with a mother like this, it should not come as a surprise that the offspring of dwarf planet Eris inherited ill spirits and soap-opera qualities. Astrophysically, the idea is favored that Dysnomia was born out of a collison between Eris and another KBO [5].

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, solar system, celestial bodies, nomenclature, mythology, intrigue.

References, notes and more to explore
[1] M. E. Brown, M. A. van Dam, A. H. Bouchez, D. le Mignant, R. D. Campbell, J. C. Y. Chin, A. Conrad, S. K. Hartman, E. M. Johansson, R. E. Lafon, D. L. Rabinowitz, P. J. Stomski, Jr., D. M. Summers, C. A. Trujillo and P. L. Wizinowich: Satellites of the Largest Kuiper Belt Objects. The Astrophysical Journal March 1, 2006, 639, L43-L46 [www.gps.caltech.edu/%7Embrown/papers/ps/gab.pdf].
Notice that in this publication Eris is stilled named by its original designation 2003 UB313 (see the second paragraph in my KBO post).
[2] NASA > Solar System Exploration > Eris and Dysnomia: sse.jpl.nasa.gov/multimedia/display.cfm?Category=Historical&IM_ID=10803.
[3] Neil deGrasse Tyson: The Pluto Files. W. W. Norton & Company, New York and London, 2009; pages 92 and 93.
[4] Dysnomia, the moon of Eris: web.gps.caltech.edu/~mbrown/planetlila/moon/.
[5] Space Ref > Astronomers Measure Mass of Eris: www.spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=22844.
[6] Theoi Greek Mythology > Dysnomia: www.theoi.com/Daimon/Dysnomia.html.

Acronym in astronomy: KBO for Kuiper belt object

2011-11-22T09:53:00.001-08:00

In astronomy, KBO stands for Kuiper belt object. A KBO is an icy object beyond the orbit of Neptune. The KBOs form a disc-shaped ring—named Kuiper belt—billions of kilometers away from the sun [1]. The Kuiper belt is named after the Dutch-born astronomer Gerard Peter Kuiper (1905-1973), who proposed the existence of such a belt in 1951 [2]. The discovery in 1992 of object 1992 QB₁, moving beyond the orbit of Neptune [3], marks the beginning of ongoing discoveries and studies of KBOs.

Along with objects of the Oort Cloud, KBOs are trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs). Some of them resemble Pluto and became to be called Plutinos, rivaling Pluto in mass, size and other properties [4]: In 2003, Brown, Trujillo and Rabinowitz photographed a KBO that they later revealed as the ninth largest solar system body with a mass 27 percent larger than that of Pluto. This objects, officialy designated 2003 UB313, was first named Xena after a fictional warrior princess [5], but was named Eris (Greek goddess of strife, discord, contention and rivalry [6]) in 2006 by the International Astronomical Union (IAU), following the convention of naming TNOs after creation deities.

Occasionally, the term Edgeworth-Kuiper belt is used instead of simply Kuiper belt to also honor Kenneth Essex Edgeworth (1880-1972), who wrote an early paper on the evolution of the planetary system and reasoned (speculated) that a reservoir of objects must exist beyond the planets, which, on their trajectory, enter the inner solar system and appear as comets [7]. Synonymously for KBO, EKBO is used as an acronym for Edgeworth-Kuiper belt object.

If on schedule, NASA's New Horizon spacecraft, which started its journey in January 2006, will visit the Edgeworth-Kuiper belt in 2015, after flying by dwarf planet Pluto [1].

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, solar system, celestial bodies, terminology.

References and more to explore
[1] NASA > Solar System Exploration > Kuiper Belt & Oort Cloud: Overview: solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/profile.cfm?Object=KBOs.
[2] The New Netherland Institute > Kuiper, Gerard Peter (1905-1973): www.nnp.org/nni/Publications/Dutch-American/kuiper.html.
[3] David Jewitt and Jane Luu: Discovery of the candidate Kuiper belt object 1992 QB₁. Nature April 22, 1993, 362, pp. 730-732. doi: 10.1038/362730a0.
[4] Neil deGrasse Tyson: The Pluto Files. W. W. Norton & Company, New York and London, 2009; page 89 to 93.
[5] Andy Lloyd: Xena (Eris) and other Extraordinary EKBOs [www.darkstar1.co.uk/xena.html].
[6] Theoi Greek Mythology > Eris: www.theoi.com/Daimon/Eris.html.
[7] Andrew Hollis: Kenneth Essex Edgeworth - A biographical note. J. Brit. Astron. Assoc. 1996, 106 (6), p. 354 [www.britastro.org/jbaa/archive/edgewort.htm].

Trans-Neptunian Objects (TNOs) named after creation deities

2011-11-21T15:20:00.001-08:00

By international agreement, trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs) are named after creation deities [1,2].

Quaoar (also known as 2002 LM60), a TNO that was discovered on June 4, 2002 by astronomers Chad Trujillo and Michael Brown at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), is named after a creation deity of the Native American Tongva people, native to the area in which Caltech is located. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) has officially approved the name Quaoar [1-3].

The following list shows a few other TNOs with their name-giving gods and godesses. This list has been extracted from a page by Denis Moskowitz, who has designed beautiful, magically inspiring symbols for some TNOs based on the “life” or a characteristic attribute of the name-giving deity [4].

Eris (2003), named after the Greek goddess Eris (also worshipped in modern Discordianism)
Ixion (2001), named after the Greek mythological figure Ixion
Haumeaon (2005), named after the Hawaiian goddess of childbirth
Makemake (2005), named after the Rapanui fertility god Makemake
Orcus (2004), named after the Roman god Orcus (god of the dead)
Sedna (2003), named after the Inuit goddess Sedna
Varuna (2000), named after Hindu god Varuna

The number, enclosed in parentheses and following a TNO name, is the year of that TNO's discovery.

I am wondering, if the world's cultural and spiritual heritage will provide enough deities for all the TNO discoveries to come with future advances in space observation and voyaging.

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, solar system, mythology, nomenclature.

References and more to explore
[1] Neil deGrasse Tyson: The Pluto Files. W. W. Norton & Company, New York and London, 2009; see footnote on page 90.
[2] Universe - Galaxies and Stars > Quaoar is a Trans-Neptunian object orbiting the Sun: www.universe-galaxies-stars.com/50000_Quaoar.html.
[3] NASA > A Cold New World: science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2002/07oct_newworld/.
[4] Denis Moskowitz: Symbols for large trans-Neptunian objects [www.suberic.net/~dmm/astro/tno.html].

Acronym in astronomy: TNO for trans-Neptunion object

2011-11-20T16:07:00.001-08:00

Since the deomotion of Pluto to dwarf planet status, Neptune is the outermost planet of our solar system. A body orbiting the sun beyond Neptune's orbit is called a trans-Neptunian object, TNO for short. For example, Eris, Pluto (!), 2005 FY₉, 2003 EL₆₁, Sedna, Orcus, Quaoar and Varuna are TNOs (shown to scale and in reference to the size of Earth in Figure 4.9 in [1]). Many more are known—classified, numbered, but often without a common name [2,3].

Often, TNOs come in pairs, called binaries: two bodies with similar masses that orbit each other [4]. Pluto and its moon Charon are such a couple [5].

TNOs are not planets. Three TNOs are called dwarf planets: Pluto, Eris, and Makemake [6]. Ceres also is a dwarf planet, but not a TNO. Ceres belongs to the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

The use of the prefix trans (typically meaning through) in the term trans-Neptunian has occasionally been critized, since, what really is meant is ultra in the sense of beyond. However, then we would get the term ultra-Neptunian object and the acronym UNO. The latter stands for United Nations Organization, concerned primarily with one object—our home planet.

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, solar system, celestial bodies, terminology.

References and more to explore
[1] Neil deGrasse Tyson: The Pluto Files. W. W. Norton & Company, New York and London, 2009; pages 67, 91 and others.
[2] IAU Minor Planet Center > List Of Transneptunian Objects: www.minorplanetcenter.org/iau/lists/TNOs.html.
[3] List of Known Trans-Neptunian Objects: www.johnstonsarchive.net/astro/tnoslist.html.
[4] The Planetary Society > Explore > Space Topics -Trans-Neptunian Objects: http://planetary.org/explore/topics/trans_neptunian_objects/.
[5] 30 Years Since Charon Reveals Pluto To Be A Binary Planet System: http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Thirty_Years_Since_Plutoid_Revolution_Began_999.html.
[6] IAU > Fourth dwarf planet named Makemake: http://www.iau.org/public_press/news/detail/iau0806/.

Two Pluto moons discovered in June 2005 named Nix and Hydra by IAU

2011-11-19T17:28:00.001-08:00

The International Astronomical Union (IAU) officially named two small Pluto moons, discovered in June 2005, Nix (the inner of the two) and Hydra (the outer of the two) [1-3]. The discovery was made by the Pluto Companion Search Team, led by Hal Weaver and Alan Stern, using the high-resolution capabilities of the Hubble Space Telescope. Nix and Hydra are roughly 5,000 times fainter than dwarf planet Pluto itself.

Pluto was discovered in 1930. The first discovery of a Pluto moon, Charon, happened in 1978. The two Pluto satellites spotted in 2005 were originally designated S/2005 P 2 and S/2005 P 1 and then named Nyx and Hydra, respectively, by the discovery team [1,2]. But the Greek name Nyx had already been taken as an identifier for asteroid 3908 and the IAU changed Nyx to its Egyptian equivalent, Nix [1].

Pluto was named after the god of the underworld. Mythologically, Nix and Hydra fit right in there: Nix is the goddess of darkness and night [4]. Hydra is a terrifying monster with the body of a serpent and nine heads [5].

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, solar system, celestial bodies, discovery, nomenclature, mythology

References and more to explore
[1] Michael Buckley and Maria Martinez: Pluto's Two Small Moons Christened Nix and Hydra [www.jhuapl.edu/newscenter/pressreleases/2006/060622.asp].
[2] Richard A. Lovett: Pluto's New Moons Named Nix, Hydra [news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/06/060623-pluto.html].
[3] Neil deGrasse Tyson: The Pluto Files. W. W. Norton & Company, New York and London, 2009; pages 44 and 45.
[4] Greek goddess Nyx was the personification of the Night: www.greek-gods.info/ancient-greek-gods/nyx/.
[5] Ron Leadbetter in Encyclopedia Mythica: Hydra [www.pantheon.org/articles/h/hydra.html].

Mars moons Deimos and Phobos named after the Greek god of fear and his twin-brother

2011-11-18T15:41:00.001-08:00

Our neighbor planet Mars has two small moons. They were discovered in 1877 by the American astronomer Asaph Hall using the giant 26-inch refractor of the U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington, D. C. [1,2]. The moons were named Deimos and Phobos: Deimos after the Greek god of fear, dread and terror; Phobos after Deimos' twin-brother, who is associated with panic fear, flight and battlefield rout [3]. Both are sons of the Greek god of war, Ares, namesake of their parent planet. Summa summarum, a scary family!

Who came up with the names? According to a NASA site, discoverer Asaph Hall himself named the Mars satellites based on Homer's Illiad. But other sources indicate that the names were suggested by Henry Madan, a science master of Eaton [4,5]. Interestingly, Henry was the brother of Falconer Madan, whose granddaughter Venetia Burney suggested the name Pluto for an object, which at that time was referred to as Planet X. Neil deGrasse Tyson remarks that naming of cosmic objects was already in Venetia's bloodline [5]. Apparently, you need to grow up in a family fluent in mythology and observant of the latest planet and moon detections.

Keywords: physics, astronomy, planetary science, solar system, discovery, history, Greek mythology, nomenclature

References and more to explore
[1] NASA > Exploration > Under the Moons of Mars (by Steven J. Dick): www.nasa.gov/exploration/whyweexplore/Why_We_27.html.
[2] Ulf von Rauchhaupt: Der Neunte Kontinent - Die wissenschaftliche Eroberung des Mars. Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag, Frankfurt am Main, 2009; page 26.
[3] Theoi Greek Mythology >Deimos & Phobos: www.theoi.com/Daimon/Deimos.html.
[4] Planet Facts > Phobos and Deimos - Moons of Mars: planetfacts.org/phobos-and-deimos-moons-of-mars/.
[5] Neil deGrasse Tyson: The Pluto Files. W. W. Norton & Company, New York and London, 2009; page 10.

Pluto named by an 11-year-old schoolgirl after the god of the underworld

2011-11-17T16:08:00.001-08:00

Pluto was discovered in 1930 by a 24-year-old “amateur” astronomer from Illinois, Clyde Tombaugh (1906-1997) [1-4]. He found Pluto photographically as a faint, slowly moving spot while working at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff (Arizona) searching for a mysterious Planet X, whose existence had been proposed to account for perturbations in the motions of Neptune.

The newly discovered Planet X was then taken for the ninth planet and needed a name that followed the Roman nomenclature, which “identifies” planets as Roman gods and godesses—planet Earth is an exception. Neil deGrasse Tyson describes how Venetia Burney, an 11-year-old schoolgirl and granddaughter of Falconer Madan (a retired librarian of Oxford University), suggested the name Pluto over breakfast, after her grandfather had read to her the news story about the discovered planet [4]. From mythology she knew that Pluto was the god of the dead and underworld. What better name for an object orbiting in near darkness far away from the sun? Oxford professor and astronomer royal Herbert Hall Turner, a friend of Madan and known in physics for coining the term parsec as a unit of astronomical distance, forwarded Venetia's suggestion to fellow astronomers at the Lowell Observatory: although there were other suggestions, Pluto made it. Use the old boy network, young girl!

In 2006 the Internatioal Astronomical Union (IAU) voted for Pluto's demotion to the status of dwarf planet [4]. Considering that Pluto indeed is a dwarf planet makes its discovery in the pre-space-telescope and pre-spacecraft era even greater. And what does size and status of an object matter when an 11-year old girl came up with a powerful name for it.

Keywords: physics, astronomy, planetary science, solar system, discovery, history, nomenclature

References and more to explore
[1] Academy of Achievement > Clyde Tombaugh Biography: www.achievement.org/autodoc/page/tom0bio-1.
[2] Clyde Tombaugh, 1906-1997: www.oarval.org/tombaughen.htm.
[3] Kansapedia > Clyde Tombaugh: www.kshs.org/kansapedia/clyde-tombaugh/12222.
[4] Neil deGrasse Tyson: The Pluto Files. W. W. Norton & Company, New York and London, 2009; pages 7 to 9 and others.

The term parsec, coined by Oxford professor Herbert Hall Turner

2011-11-16T20:00:00.001-08:00

A parsec is a unit of length used to express astronomical distance. According to the Oxford Dictionary of Physics, a parsec is the distance at which the mean radius of the earth's orbit subtends an angle of one second of arc [1]. A more illustrative definition is given by Neil deGrasse Tyson in a footnote [2]:

A unit of distance in astronomy equal to 3.26 light-years, itself equal to about 19 trillion miles and derived from the distance a star would have to be for it to exhibit a parallax angle of 1 second of arc (hence par-sec) against the background stars as Earth orbits from one side of the Sun to the other [text coloring by post author].

Tyson further tells us that the Oxford professor and former astronomer royal Herbert Hall Turner coined the term parsec. In 1930, Turner also played his part in promoting the name Pluto for a cosmic object discovered by Clyde Tombaugh and at first referred to as Planet X.

The Google calculator result for 1 parsec:

1 Parsec = 3.08568025 × 10¹⁶ meters

Still not satisfied? Find some nice video animations and lectures at wn.com/Parsec (for example Parsec definition and What is a Parsec?).

Keywords: physics, astronomy, units, history

References and more to explore
[1] Alan Isaacs: Oxford Dictionary of Physics. Oxford University Press, Oxford and New York, 2003 (reissued fourth edition).
[2] Neil deGrasse Tyson: The Pluto Files. W. W. Norton & Company, New York and London, 2009; page 9, 11.

Uranus moons named after characters in Shakespearean plays

2011-11-15T11:40:00.001-08:00

Planet Uranus has an interesting naming history itself and so do have its moons. They are named for characters in plays written by William Shakespeare and also for characters in Alexander Pope's “Rape of the Lock” [1,2]:

A Midsummer Night's Dream: Oberon, Puck (originally designated S/1985 U1), Titania;
As You Like It: Rosalind (originally designated S/1986 U4);
Hamlet: Ophelia (originally designated S/1986 U8);
King Lear: Cordelia (originally designated S/1986 U7);
Much Ado About Nothing: Margaret (originally designated S/2003 U3);
Othello, the Moor of Venice: Desdemona (originally designated S/1986 U6);
Romeo and Juliet: Juliet (originally designated S/1986 U2);
The Merchant of Venice: Portia (originally designated S/1986 U1);
The Taming of the Shrew: Bianca (originally designated S/1986 U9);
The Tempest: Ariel, Caliban (originally designated S/1997 U1), Ferdinand (originally designated S/2001 U2), Francisco (originally designated S/2001 U3), Miranda, Prospero (originally designated S/1999 U3), Setebos (originally designated S/1999 U1), Stephano (originally designated S/1999 U2), Sycorax (originally designated S/1997 U2), Trinculo (originally designated S/2001 U1);
The Winter's Tale: Perdita (originally designated S/1986 U10);
Timon of Athens: Cupid (originally designated S/2003 U2);
Troilus and Cressida: Cressida (originally designated S/1986 U3);
Rape of the Lock: Belinda (originally designated S/1986 U5), Mab (originally designated S/2003 U1), Umbriel.

The Tempest caused a storm of ten moon names.

The two largest Uranian moons, Oberon and Titania, were discovered in 1787 by William Herschel [2], who discovered Uranus itself. Ariel and Umbriel were discovered in 1851 by William Lassell [2]. Almost a century later, Gerard Kuiper discovered Miranda in 1948 [2]. The remaining moons, having a systematic original designation, were discovered at the Palomar Observatory (California), at observatories on the island of Hawaii, at the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory (Victoria, British Columbia) and at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (Chile) as well as remotely via the the Hubble Space Telescope and the Voyager 2 spacescraft.

The following is an alphabetical list of the 27 Uranian moons, each linked to a NASA page with details on discovery and (re)naming:

Ariel, Belinda, Bianca, Caliban, Cordelia, Cressida, Cupid, Desdemona, Ferdinand, Francisco, Juliet, Mab, Margaret, Miranda, Oberon, Ophelia, Perdita, Portia, Prospero, Puck, Rosalind, Setebos, Stephano, Sycorax, Titania, Trinculo, Umbriel.

Often, more is known about the eponymous character of the fictional work than about the actual moon.

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, nomenclature, dramatic literature

References and more to explore
[1] Neil deGrasse Tyson: The Pluto Files. W. W. Norton & Company, New York and London, 2009; page 9.
[2] National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) > Solar System Exploration > Uranus: Moons [solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/profile.cfm?Display=Moons&Object=Uranus].

A planet named George

2011-11-15T09:42:00.001-08:00

Georgium Sidus was one of the early names of planet Uranus. The name was given to the planet by its discoverer Sir William Herschel to honor George III., who was King of England when the planet was discovered by Herschel in 1781 [1]. Georgium Sidus means the star of George III. of England. The planet was also called Herschel after its discoverer.

Neil deGrasse Tyson writes that he finds “something unsettling about a planet named George, even if he is a king” [2]. Others must have felt the same way and George was eventually named Uranus, after a god known from Greek and Roman mythology. In Greek mythology Uranus was the son or husband of Gaia (Earth) and father of Chronos (Time) and the Titans [1]. There are differing and confusing versions of the sex-life of Uranus. Somehow, he ended up being castrated: Uranus (the sky) separated from Gaia (Mother Earth) [3]. In Roman mythology Uranus is the god of the sky. In modern astronomy Uranus is the seventh of the eight planets (after Pluto's fall from planet status) of the solar system, orbiting the sun between the orbits of his outer-planet companions Saturn and Neptun.

Keywords: astronomy, planetary science, nomenclature

References and more to explore
[1] Uranus, Georgium Sidus. Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [dictionary.die.net/georgium%20sidus].
[2] Neil deGrasse Tyson: The Pluto Files. W. W. Norton & Company, New York and London, 2009; page 8.
[3] Uranus - God of the Heavens: www.crystalinks.com/uranusrome.html.

Acronym in virology: XMRV for xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus

2011-11-12T16:32:00.001-08:00

XMRV stands for xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus. XMRV is a gammaretrovirus that has been linked to prostate cancer and chronic fatigue syndrome. But such links are still hotly debated or ruled out [1-3].

Indicated by its name, XMRV belongs to the group of murine leukemia viruses (MLVs). XMRV is called MLV-related, since, when it was first found in samples of prostate cancer tumors from human patients, it seemed to be a cousin of MLVs known to cause cancer in murine (mouse) host. Wouldn't an acronym like XMLVRV or xMLVrV fit better? The adjective xenotropic indicates that XMRV is an oncornavirus (a virus containing single-stranded RNA) that does not produce disease in its natural host and replicates only in tissue culture cells derived from a different species [4].

Taxonomically, XMRV falls into class VI of the Baltimore Classification System.

Keywords: retrovirology, mysterious diseases, virus nomenclature, taxon short notation

References and more to explore
[1] O. Hohn et al.: Lack of evidence for xenotropic leukemia virus-related virus (XMRV) in German prostate cancer patients. Retrovirology 2009, 6, 92.
doi: 10.1186/1742-4690-6-92.
[2] J. Cohen and M. Enserink: False Posi±ive. Science September 23, 2011, 333 (6050), pp. 1694-1701.
doi: 10.1126/science.333.6050.1694.
[3] G. Simmins et al.: Failure to Confirm XMRV/MLVs in the Blood of Patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Multi-Laboratory Study. Science November 11, 2011, 334 (6057), pp. 814-817.doi: 10.1126/science.1213841.
[4] Xenotropic virus: medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/xenotropic+virus.

Acronym in earth science: LIP for large igneous province

2011-11-11T14:59:00.001-08:00

In earth science, LIP stands for large igneous province. LIPs are deposits of igneous rocks with impressive dimensions that often are hundred of meters thick and may cover over thousands of square kilometers [1]. A LIP is connected to a hotspot [2,3]: examples include the Dekkan/Réunion Traps (India and Indian Ocean), the Columbia River Basin Flood Basalt with source at Yellowstone (North America) and the Permo-Triassic Siberian Traps (hotspot cooled down or relocated?). LIP eruptions are catastrophic, environmentally devastating, and humans have never witnessed one [4]. They probably never will, or if, will not have much time to talk and twitter about it.

Recent research on the Siberian Traps (built by a gigantic eruption or series of eruptions about 250 million years ago) suggests that its magma source contained a significant amount of recycled oceanic crust [4,5]. This may explain the following mass extinction, which may have been triggered by massive degassing of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and hydrogen chloride (HCl), probably already at the onset of the eruption. The amount of gas can roughly be estimated from volume data measured during modern basalt-lava eruptions, which allow scale-up to a LIP event.

Keywords: geology, volcanism, magma production, flood-basalt, lithosphere

References and more to explore
[1] David Bressan: Large Igneous Provinces and Mass Extinctions. September 16, 2011 [blogs.scientificamerican.com/history-of-geology/2011/09/16/large-igneous-provinces-and-mass-extinctions/].
[2] World map of igneous provinces and hotspots: blogs.scientificamerican.com/history-of-geology/files/2011/09/BRESSAN_LIP_map1.jpg.
[3] Flood Basalt Map of the World: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Flood_Basalt_Map.jpg.
[4] Paul B. Wignall: Lethal volcanism. Nature September 15, 2011, 477 (7364), pp. 285-286 [www.nature.com/nature/journal/v477/n7364/full/477285a.html].
[5] Stephan V. Sobolov et al.: Linking mantle plumes, large igneous provinces and environmental catastrophes. Nature September 15, 2011, 477 (7364), pp. 312-316. doi: 10.1038/nature10385.

Old English mierce, meaning “frontier people”

2011-11-07T18:44:00.000-08:00

The Old English word mierce means “frontier people” [1] or “people of the marches (boundaries)” [2]. From this word the name Mercia derived. In the seventh century Mercia was a Anglo-Saxon kingdom in England [1-3], surrounded by Welsh Land (west), Northumbria (north) , East Anglia (east) and Essex and Wessex (south).

The Kingdom of Mercia (Mierce) lost its independency in the eighth century, when Wessex became the dominant power. In later centuries the Mercians had to share their land with Danes—until the Norman Conquest in 1066. Mercia “disappeared” from the map. But the discovery of 3,500 pieces of treasure, unearthed on a Staffordshire farm in 2009, brought Mercia and its time back on the map [1]: What is now called the Staffordshire Hoard, a cache of military hardware and a few holy relics, was buried in the second half of the seventh century amidst Mercian settlements.

The Mercian's frontier was the border to Wales. Mercians and their Welsh neighbors were fighting battles and one only can speculate whether the richly ornamented weapons were buried for safekeeping, ritual reasons or in fulfillment of a disarmament agreement.

Keywords: geography, history, Britain, Anglo-Saxon authority, weaponry, gold and garnets

References and more to explore
[1] Caroline Alexander: Magical Mystery Hoard. National Geographic November 2011, 220 (5), pp. 38-60 [ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/11/gold-hoard/alexander-text].
[2] Mercia [www.dot-domesday.me.uk/mercia.htm].
[3] Historical map (800 A. D.): Kingdom of Mercia (Mierce) [www.euratlas.net/history/europe/800/entity_1352.html].

Lippia palmeri, a Central American shrub now called “Mexican oregano”

2011-11-06T13:39:00.000-08:00

Many plants of the genus Lippia (Verbenaceae) show beneficial activities assumed to be based on oils and phenolic compounds, such as flavonoids, that have been extracted from samples of Lippia species. Antimalarial, spasmolitic, sedative, hypotensive and anti-inflammatory activities have been reported and reviewed [1]. Leaves of the species Lippia palmeri have a tradition as food seasoning. Russell Magnaghi writes in a review on the agricultural history of Baja California that the Jesuits, who had a presence on this Mexican peninsula from 1697 until 1768, replaced oregano (also named marjoram, brought along from Mediterranean countries) by Lippia palmeri [2]. Hence, the name “Mexican Oregano.”

Ask your waiter or waitress, what kind of oregano they use, during your next dinner or lunch at a Mexican restaurant—unless you already figured out by tasting.

Keywords: ethnopharmacology, botany, herbs, cooking, American Indians, Jesuit missions

References, notes and more to explore
[1] M. E. Pascual, K. Slowing, E. Carretero, D. Sánchez Mata and A. Villar: Lippia: traditional uses, chemistry and pharmacology: a review. J. Ethnopharm. August 2011, 76 (3), pp. 201-214.
doi: 10.1016/S0378-8741(01)00234-3
[2] Russell M. Magnaghi: Mission Fruit. Natural History October 2011, 119 (9), pp. 22-29.
[3] See herbarium samples at plants.jstor.org/search?plantName=Lippia%20palmeri.

Not a misspelling: sea momster

2011-11-06T11:15:00.000-08:00

For several Mesozoic aquatic reptiles, evidence for life birth had been found, but, until recently, not including plesiosaurs. Now, viviparity for a Late Cretaceous plesiosaur, a 78-million-year-old Polycotylus latippinus, has been reported [1]. A fossil sample of this “sea monster” has been discovered, including an adult female plesiosaur with a mess of small bones nestled in its abdominal area: “Since those bones show no sign of having been ingested by the adult, the adult specimen is the only known pregnant plesiosaur fossil,” writes Adam Hadhazy in a recent Natural History samplings column with the title Sea Momster [2].

The fossil, which was discovered in 1987, remained in storage at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County for a long time, but is now on display in the museum's Dinosaur Hall [2-4].

Keywords: paleobiology, dinosaurs, carnivorous reptile, pregnancy, fossil embryo

References and more to explore
[1] F. R. O'Keefe and L. M. Chiappe: Vivparity and K-selected Life History in a Mesozoic Marine Plesiosaur (Reptilia, Sauropterygia). Science August 12, 2011, 333 (6044), pp. 870-873.
doi: 10.1126/science.1205689.
[2] Adam: Hadhazy: Sea Momster. Natural History October 2011, 119 (9), page 6.
[3] Jennifer Welsh: Oh baby! Ancient 'sea monster' was pregnant. LiveScience 8/11/2011
[www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44113293/ns/technology_and_science-science/t/oh-baby-ancient-sea-monster-was-pregnant/#.TrbR-HJ1qjI].
[4] Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County > Dinosaur Hall Is Open http://www.nhm.org/site/explore-exhibits/permanent-exhibits/dinosaur-hall.

Acronym pair in geography and conservation biology: HCP/NCCP

2011-11-05T22:01:00.000-07:00

In the term HCP/NCCP the acronym HCP stands for Habitat Conservation Plan and the acronym NCCP stands for Natural Community Conservation Plan [1-3]. Two plans for a unifying concept. These plans provide a framework to protect natural resources in eastern Contra Costa County and eastern Almeda County in California. The promise is the coexistence of endangered species, wetlands and ecosystems next to urban landscapes. The goal is interconnected open space, accounting for the island extinction principle of conservation biology teaching that large preserves help species more than small ones, linked preserves better than separated ones, and broad preserves better than skinny ones [1].

Interconnected open space also makes parks, preserves, study areas, landmarks and trails better accessible for people by providing entry points close to their neighborhoods. It offers diverse routing options and less motorized activity to reach recreation hot-spots or serene and tranquil retreats. The envisioned parkland east of the buzzling Bay Area will fuse wilderness areas, newly acquired acres and existing parks such as the Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve, Mt. Diablo State Park, Los Vaqueros Reservoir and the Sunol/Ohlone Regional Wilderness. Open space networking does not have to stop there, but may continue south to Henry W. Coe State Park—maybe even to Pinnacles National Monument one day. HCP/NCCP is an exciting and pioneering showcase of wilderness planning and regrowth.

Keywords: natural habitats, ecology, recreation, East Bay Regional Parks

References and more to explore
[1] John Hart: Planned Wilderness. A Big Deal for East Bay Open Space. Bay Nature October-December 2011, 11 (4), pp. 16-19, 28 [baynature.org/articles/oct-dec-2011/planned-wilderness].
[2] East Contra Costa County Habitat Conservancy: www.co.contra-costa.ca.us/depart/cd/water/HCP/.
[3] NCCP Plan Summary - East Contra Costa County: http://www.dfg.ca.gov/habcon/nccp/status/EastContraCosta/.

Polygynandry: many-to-many marriage or relationship

2011-11-05T19:01:00.000-07:00

The term polygynandry refers to a relationship between a group of females with a group of males. Group marriages are only found within a few vertebrate species. For example, in clans of acorn woodpeckers (Melanerpes formicivorus), which form reproductive arrangements of breeding females, breeding males and a few non-breeding adult off-spring helping their parents for up to five years (inspite of reaching sexual maturity at one year of age). Each breeding bird attempts to mate with all opposite-gender breeders in the clan [1,2].

Combined polyandrous (having two or more male partners, husbands) and polygynous (having two or more female partners, wives) patterns of mating have also been observed in populations of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) [3], the Neotropical frog Allobates femoralis [4], the dusky pipefish (Syngnathus floridae) [5] and the sea spider (Ammothea hilgendorfi) [6]; just to name a few other species exhibiting polygynandrous “life style.”

Keywords: biology, sex, reproduction, breeding, marital community

References and more to explore
[1] Kate Marianchild: Acorn Woodpeckers, So Happy Together. Bay Nature October-December 2011, 11, (4), page 7 [baynature.org/articles/oct-dec-2011/acorn-woodpeckers-so-happy-together].
[2] Joseph Haydock and Walter D. Koenig: Reproductive skew in the polygynandrous acorn woodpecker. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA May 14, 2002, 99 (10), pp. 7178-7183 [www.pnas.org/content/99/10/7178.full].
[3] Philip J. Baker, Stephan M. Funk, Michael W. Bruford and Stephen Harris: Polygynandry in a red fox population: implications for the evolution of group living in canids? Behavioral Ecology 2004, 15 (5), pp. 766-778.
doi: 10.1093/beheco/arh077.
[4] Eva Ursprung, Max Ringler, Robert Jehle and Walter Hödl: Strong male/male competition allows nonchoosy females: high levels of polygynandry in territorial frog with paternal care. Mol. Ecol. 2011, 20 (8), pp. 1759-1771 [onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-294X.2011.05056.x/abstract].
[5] Adam G. Jones and John C. Avise: Polygynandry in the dusky pipefish (Syngnathus floridae) revealed by microsatellite DNA markers. Evolution 1997, 51 (5), pp. 1611-1622 [www.jstor.org/pss/2411213].
[6] F. S. Barreto and J. C. Avise: Polygynandry and sexual size dimorphism in the sea spider Ammothea hilgendorfi (Pycnogonida: Ammotheidae), a marine arthropod with brood-carrying meals. Mol. Ecol. 2008, 17 (18), pp. 4164-4175 [www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18684134].

German-English: classification of articles in the journal “Angewandte Chemie” and its International Edition

2011-11-04T12:31:00.000-07:00

Journal articles are often labeled by type- and/or content-specifying words appearing in the article header. Here are examples of type labels in German, seen in the chemistry journal Angewandte Chemie (Angew. Chem.), and their English counterparts in the International Edition (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl.):

Aufsatz (m.)	Review
Berichtigung (f.)	Corrigendum
Buchbesprechung (f.)	Book Review
Kurzaufsatz (m.)	Minireview
Nachrichten (f.)	News
Nachruf (m.)	Obituary
Vorschau (f.)	Preview
Zuschrift (f.)	Communication

The grammatical genders masculine (m.) and feminine (f.) are given for the German terms. Some labels such as essay and highlight are used to classify articles in both the German and English editions. The word “highlight” is an anglicism. It could be translated as Rampenlichtaufsatz (too long and very odd) or as Höhepunkt (literally meaning high point or climax), but often is not—highlighting the frequent takeover and use of certain English words by German speakers and writers, as if they were part of their mother tongue.

Keywords: bilingual publication, editing, translation, labeling, classification, linguistics.

English- and German-language articles in “Angewandte Chemie” via DOI

2011-11-03T15:49:00.000-07:00

Angewandte Chemie means Applied Chemistry in German. This is the title of a chemistry journal, published under this name since 1947. Precursor titles were Die Chemie (The Chemistry), Zeitschrift für Angewandte Chemie (Journal of Applied Chemistry) and Zeitschrift für die Chemische Industrie (Journal for the Chemical Industry) [1]. Under the last mentioned title, the journal was founded in 1887 by Ferdinand Fischer. Articles can be accessed online now (usually not for free) back to that year [2-4].

An associated English-language edition was launched in 1962 under the title Angewandte Chemie International Edition in English, abbreviated as Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl. Recently published articles are conveniently located “bilingually” by the consistent use of the Document Object Identifier (DOI). For example, the links to the biochemistry-history essay by Will and Hamprecht “Everything Now Seemed So Simple to Me ...”: Feodor Lynen (1911-1979), a Hero of Biochemistry and its German-language version “Mir erschien jetzt alles so einfach ...” - Feodor Lynen (1911-1979), ein Großer der Biochemie are mutually associated by exchange of ie for ge, or vice versa, in the DOI string:

dx.doi.org/10.1002/anie.201106003 (article in Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl.),

dx.doi.org/10.1002/ange.201106003 (associated article in Angew. Chem.).

Unfortunalely, this does not work for “older” publications. I couldn't find a detailed description of the German vs. English DOI format policy. But I assume that articles are always published in the same order and that one can systematically find German-English pairs by looking through corresponding same-year, same-issue listings. Notice the difference in volume numbers:

V_ie = V_ge + 75,

where V_ie and V_ge are the volume numbers of the International and German edition, respectively.

Keywords: library, search, translation, bilingual education, bilingual publication, multi-language bibliography

References and browsing hints
[1] ChemEurope > Encyclopedia > Angewandte_Chemie: www.chemeurope.com/en/encyclopedia/Angewandte_Chemie.html#Publication_History.
[2] International Edition Overview: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/%28ISSN%291521-3773/homepage/ProductInformation.html.
[3] Browse all issues of the International Edition: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/%28ISSN%291521-3773/issues.
[4] Browse all issues of the German-language edition: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/%28ISSN%291521-3757/issues.

A term in biochemistry: anammox for anaerobic ammonium oxidation

2011-10-31T17:05:00.000-07:00

Anammox stands for anaerobic ammonium oxidation, a biochemical reaction that combines ammonium and nitrite (or nitrate) to form dinitrogen (N₂) gas and water [1-5]. This reaction is performed by aquatic anammox bacteria belonging to the planctomycete group. Using the bacterium Kuenenia stuttgartiensis, it has been shown recently that the reaction pathway involves nitric oxide and hydrazine as intermediates [1,2]: hydrazine is formed via a hydrazine synthase complex and then converted to N₂by a hydrazine dehydragenase enzyme.

The anammox reaction is one of the key biogeochemical processes that leads to the release of geochemically fixed nitrogen as N₂ into the atmosphere. Bacteria growth and study of the anammox reaction is typically performed in bioreactors and lab or industrial environments, but evidence for its natural occurrence below the oxic zone of oceans, such as the anoxic deep water in the Black Sea (the world's largest anoxic basin), has been provided [5].

Keywords: chemistry, biogeochemistry, bioreaction, reaction mechanism, cellular organisms, order Planctomycetales, oceanic nitrogen cycle

References and more to explore
[1] J. Kemsley: Making Dinitrogen. Chem & Eng. News, October 10, 2011, 89 (41), page10.
[2] B. Kartal et al.: Molecular mechanism of anaerobic ammonium oxidation. Nature, 2011, published online October 2, 2011. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature10453.
[3] J. G. Kuenen: Anammox bacteria: from discovery to application. Nat. Rev. Microbiol. April 2008, 6 (4), pp. 320-326 [www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18340342].
[4] N. Shivaraman and G. Shivaraman: Anammox - A novel microbial process for ammonium removal. Current Science June 25, 2003, 84 (12), pp. 1507-1508 [www.ias.ac.in/currsci/jun252003/1507.pdf].
[5] M. M. M. Kuypers et al.: Anaerobic ammonium oxidation by anammox bacteria in the Black Sea. Nature April 10, 2003, 422, pp. 608-611.
doi: 10.1038/nature01472.

HTML5

2011-10-30T19:44:00.000-07:00

HTML5 includes the canvas element for display of graphics. Canvas markup is implemented by inserting a <canvas> tag in the desired spot of your HTML document and associating JavaScript code that specifies what to draw and paint [1].
The latest versions of browsers such as Firefox, Opera, Safari, Google Chrome, Konqueror and Internet Explorer support canvas markup.

Markup should contain alternative content for users of older browser versions or canvas-incompatible browsers; as illustrated with the following syntax:

In those cases where the drawing is going to fail, the animated note of file canvsup_600x490.jpg (shown to the right) would display. If the browser is not image-compatible either, a plain text string with that note would appear.

An image element expects an external source to be uploaded and displayed, while a canvas element uses page-internal instructions (or supplementing js files) to create an image within the capabilities of the client browser.

Canvas-based two-dimensional drawing, for example, is implemented by fetching the canvas element via methods of the JavaScript document object:

var canvas = document.getElementById("my-canvas");

var artist = canvas.getContext("2d");

Drawing instructions are then implemented with methods of the artist object (or whatever variable name you are coming up with for the context object). Tutorials and examples that explain and show how to use these methods are available online; for example see www.w3schools, basics/opera, developer/mozilla, wikipedia, updates to standard.

References
[1] Thomas A. Powell: HTML & CSS: The Complete Reference. Fifth Edition. McGraw Hill, New York, 2010.; pages 82 to 101.

[2] Image example: www.axeleratio.com/sideways/jpg/canvsup_600x490.jpg.

A premodifying noun in retail: artisan for hand-crafted—not mass-produced

2011-10-28T17:57:00.000-07:00

An artisan is a skilled worker or craftsman [1]. The word has Latin roots: the verb artire means “to instruct in the arts” [2]. Artesanos were craftsmen in Renaissance Italy. With minor transformations the word—and some artesanos, too—made it into France, England and other countries.

Today, retailers of specialty food like to offer their products artisan-style. These days you get artisan sandwiches and bakery items at Starbucks and—in California—at Peet's coffeeshops. And you'll find artisan chocolate, chips, ice cream, pastry, pies, pizza and salads all around. Tom Vierhile, innovation insights director at Datamonitor, says, that the word suggests less likely mass-produced, less processed and perhaps better tasting food [3].

Maybe customers are willing to pay a somewhat higher price for artisan-labeled goods and meals. But is the artisanship always present in the chef's recipe and execution, not just in the word? At your next artisanery visit, make sure that the products, which you get offered or served, are worth the label. Otherwise argue for a rebate and a premodifier drop.

References
[1] YourDictionary: www.yourdictionary.com/artisan.
[2] Online Etymology Dictionary: www.etymonline.com/index.php?allowed_in_frame=0&search=artisan&searchmode=none.
[3] Bruce Horowitz: But is it Art(isan)? Reno-Gazette Journal October 28, 2011, 9A [www.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011110280394].

A term in computer science and website programming: weblet for individual web page

2011-10-27T18:40:00.000-07:00

A weblet was defined by Al Globus and Chris Beaumont at the NASA Ames Research Center as “a highly interconnected portion of the World Wide Web devoted to a particular end, usually maintained by a single individual or organization and located at a single site” [1]. Globus and Beaumont were primarily concerned with educational materials and their access via Internet. For example, the Annotated Scientific Visualization Weblet Bibliography is a listing of weblets maintained by universities, government laboratories, military and commercial sites, providing data, pictures, animations and movies in specific domains of interest [2]. (Remember, this was more than ten years before the YouTube take-off).

Netlingo describes weblet as a techie-speak term that refers to a set of documents accessible via hyperlinks from a starting page [3]. One common feature of a weblet is that it assists site users with in-depth information or demonstrations in connection with a specialized topic. The word microsite may qualify as a synomym for weblet [4]. I guess, my CurlySMILES cluster of pages and subpages present a weblet example—confined to the cheminformatics domain.

References and notes
[1] Al Globus and Chris Beaumont: Spinning a Useful Weblet, 1994 [alglobus.net/NASAwork/papers/RNR-94-017/RNR-94-017.html].
[2] Al Globus: Annotated Scientific Visualization Weblet Bibliography, 1994 [www.pitt.edu/~pwm/visbiblio.html].
[3] netlingo: Weblet [www.netlingo.com/word/weblet.php].
[4] For comparison and further details see Wikipedia sites about weblet, microsite and minisite.

A misnomer in chemistry and materials science: β-alumina

2011-10-20T18:33:00.000-07:00

Alumina is aluminum(III) oxide (or aluminium(III) oxide) with the formula Al₂O₃. Alumina occurs in different crystalline forms, for example, α- and γ-alumina [1]. β-Alumina, however, is not another form or polymorph of alumina, as one would assume from the term with a greek-letter prefix. Its name is a misnomer: β-alumina is a ternary oxide of formula xNa₂O · nAl₂O₃, having typical compositions with x between 1.25 and 1.4 and n about 11 [2].

The term β-alumina has also been used to describe a family of compounds of general formula M₂O · nX₂O₃, where n can have values from 5 to 11, M is a monovalent cation and X is a trivalent cation [3] . With M = Na⁺ and X = Al³⁺, the most important member of this family is obtained: sodium β-alumina (compare with formula above). Compositions with other alkali, silver, thallium and ammonium ions for M and gallium(III) and iron(III) ions for X make further members of the β-alumina family [3].

Keywords: solid-state ionics, material structure and composition, ternary oxides, non-stoichiometric compounds

References and more to explore
[1] Alumina: www.infoplease.com/ce6/sci/A0803541.html.
[2] Beta-alumina: authors.library.caltech.edu/5456/1/hrst.mit.edu/hrs/materials/public/Beta-alumina.htm.
[3] Anthony R. West: Solid State Chemistry and its Applications. John Wiley & Sons, Chichester, 1984; page 467.

Fossil turtle Kallokibotion bajazidi named by Franz Nopcsa after his Albanian secretary Bajazid Elmaz Doda

2011-10-20T14:11:00.000-07:00

The scientific name Kallokibotion bajazidi refers to a 70-million-year-old fossil turtle that was found in the 1920s in Eastern Hungary (Transylvania), now part of Romania [1-3]. In 1923, openly homosexual Franz Nopcsa, nicknamed the “Dinosaur Baron,” named the “Transylvanian turtle” in honor of his Albanian secretary and lover Bajazid Elmaz Doda [3]. Franz Nopsca loved fossils and is known for pioneering techniques for fossil analysis and formulating theories about dinosaur evolution and dispersal. To the best of my knowledge, Kallokibotion bajazidi is the only reptile species owing its name to a gay relationship.

Keywords: natural history, paleontology, Uppermost Cretaceous, Austria-Hungary, Romania, Reptilia, Testudines, taxon

References
[1] Baron Francis Nopsca: On the Geological Importance of the Primitive Reptilian Fauna of the Uppermost Cretaceous of Hungary; with a Description of a New Tortoise (Kallokibotion). Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society 1923, 74, pp. 100-116 [jgslegacy.lyellcollection.org/content/79/1-4/100.abstract].
[2] Paleobiology Database: Kalokibotion bajazidi Nopsca 1923 (turtle): paleodb.org/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?a=basicTaxonInfo&taxon_no=168584.
[3] Gareth Dyke: The Dinosaur Baron of Transylvania. Scientific American October 2011, 305 (4), pp. 80-83 [www.nature.com/scientificamerican/journal/v305/n4/full/scientificamerican1011-80.html].

Synonymous terms in solid-state chemistry: “solid electrolyte,” “fast ion conductor” and “superionic conductor”

2011-10-19T19:15:00.000-07:00

Chapter 13 with the title “Ionic Conductivity and Solid Electrolytes” in the Solid State Chemistry textbook by Anthony West [1] is a good introduction to the named subject. I found the three terms solid electrolyte, fast ion conductor and superionic conductor mentioned there. Such materials are special salts, composed of ions, with one set of ions able to move around easily. West describes the materials as having a special crystal structure with open tunnels or layers through which mobile ions may move.

Typical electrical conductivity values of solid electrolytes are between 10^-3 and 10¹ S cm^-1, about the range found for common molten salts. The conductivity of solid electrolytes is higher than that of “normal” ionic crystals with values from below 10^-18 up to 10^-4 S cm^-1[1]. In contrast to metals (typical conductivity range: 10¹ to 10⁵ S cm^-1), the conductivity of solid electrolytes and ionic crystals increases with increasing temperature. Solid electrolytes are a special class of ionic crystals and—to highlight this relation— the term superionic crystal is used in addition to the above given phrases [2].

Notice that these terms and distinctions refer to phases at low and ambient temperatures—often not well defined. Some materials become appreciable solid electrolytes at elevated temperatures, such as the high temperature oxide ion conductor zirconia (ZrO₂, above ~600 °C). However, all salts—unless they evaporate—transform into electrically conductive ionic liquids above their melting point.

Keywords: physics, materials science, solid-state ionics, ionic conductivity, electrical conductivity, temperature dependence

References
[1] Anthony R. West: Solid State Chemistry and its Applications. John Wiley & Sons, Chichester, 1984; page 453 and others.
[2] Angus Gray-Weale's Research - Superionic conductors: www.gusgw.info/superionics/.

Acronym in mineralogy: CNMMN for Commission on New Minerals and Mineral Names

2011-10-12T17:52:00.000-07:00

The Commission on New Minerals and Mineral Names (CNMMN) is part of the International Mineralogical Association (IMA). It was established in 1959 with the task of controlling the introduction of new minerals and mineral names and dealing with nomenclature matters in mineralogy [1]. In July 2006, the CNMMN was merged with the Commission on Classification of Minerals to form the Commission on New Minerals and Mineral Names (CNMMN) [2].

The acronym CNMMN is found in various articles published before the merger. For example, a paper of 1987 discusses the procedure for the submission of a mineral name proposal and provides criteria for selecting a new name based on chemical composition and crystallographic properties, particularly dealing with polymorphs, polytypes, regular interstratifications, adjectival modifiers as well as group and varietal names [3]. Examples of name decision making are provided.

There are mineral classes and subgroups and, accordingly, there are subcommittees for the revision and approval of the nomenclature of material classes. What about the classification and naming of chain silicates such as amphiboles? Yes, there is (or was) a subcommittee on it; and changing nomenclature they did [4]: alkali amphiboles became sodic amphiboles, names like tremolitic horblende (now magnesiohornblende), crossite (now glaucophane or ferroglaucophane or magnesioriebeckite or riebeckite), tirodite (now manganocummingtonite) and dannemorite (now manganogrunerite) were abolished and new amphibole names such as nyböite, leakeite, kornite, ungarettiite, sandanagaite and cannilloite were approved.

Keywords: history of organizations, nomenclature, terms in mineralogy, crystallography, solid state chemistry

References
[1] Commission on New Minerals and Mineral Names (CNMMN): www.ima-mineralogy.org/com-wg/CNMNC/1CNMNCpages/1CNMNC.html.
[2] Objectives and officers: www.ima-mineralogy.org/com-wg/CNMNC/3CNMMNpages/CNMMN.html.
[3] E. H. Nickel and J. A. Mandarino: Procedures involving the IMA Commission on New Minerals and Mineral Names and guidelines on mineral nomenclature. American Mineralogist 1987, 72, 1031-1042 [rruff.info/uploads/AM72_1031.pdf].
[4] B. L. Leake et al.: Nomenclature of Amphiboles: Report of the Subcommittee on Amphiboles of the International Mineralogical Association, Commission on New Minerals and Mineral Names. The Canadian Mineralogist 1997, 35, 219-246 [www.minsocam.org/MSA/IMA/ima98%2811%29.pdf].

Dr. Mises, pseudonym of the German psychologist and philosopher Gustav Theodor Fechner

2011-10-09T22:24:00.000-07:00

The German psychologist and philosopher Gustav Theodor Fechner (1801-1887) published satirical and other essays as well as books under the pseudonym, Dr. Mises [1]: Starting out as a physician at the University of Leipzig (where he stayed anchored) in Germany, he developed an aversion to medicine and became interested in subjects of diverse fields including psychology, philosopy, physics and mathematics. He is often referred to as an experimental psychologist and the founder of psychophysics [2]. Hans G. Fellner and William F. Lindgren point us to Fechner's interest in the fourth dimension [1]: The essays Der Schatten ist lebendig (“The Shadow is Alive”) and Der Raum hat vier Dimensionen (“Space has four Dimensions”) are probably the earliest popular, animating writings going beyond the perception of a three-dimensional world. Both essays have been translated and are printed in [1]. Fechner's writings are original, filled with parodic flair. The world looks flat, if you can't see the higher dimensions!

Keywords: philosophy, mathematics, fourth dimension, physical space, parody, psychology, history

References and more to explore
[1] Hans G. Fellner and William F. Lindgren: Gustav Theodor Fechner: Pioneer of the Fourth Dimension. Mathematical Intelligencer Fall 2011, 33 (3), 126-137.
DOI: 10.1007/s00283-011-9214-7.
[2] Encyclopedia of World Biography on Gustav Theodor Fechner: www.bookrags.com/biography/gustav-theodor-fechner/.

A term in mathematics: Meissner body named after Swiss mathematician Ernst Meissner

2011-10-08T19:51:00.000-07:00

A Meissner body is a three-dimensional body of constant width, which is generated by rotating the Reuleaux triangle around its axis of symmetry. Bernd Kawohl and Christof Weber recently presented an excellent account on the history and recent developments of “Meissner's Mysterious Bodies” [1]. They show drawings and plaster models of Meissner bodies and refer to mathematical models produced by the publisher Martin Schilling in 1911, of which Ernst Meissner described said body that became named after him.

Ernst Meissner (also spelled Meißner) was born on September 1, 1883, in Zofingen and died on March 17, 1939 in Zollikon, Switzerland [1,3]. He studied mathematics and physics at the Swiss Polytechnic (Polytechnikum Zürich), later to become the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich. For two semesters he studied with Klein, Hilbert and Minkowski at the University of Göttingen, Germany, and qualified as a professor (Habilitation) in 1909, after returning to the ETH. Kawohl and Weber describe Meissner's achievements as extraordinarily diverse (see “curriculum vitae of Ernst Meissner” in Appendix of [1]). Meissner's publications cover fields in pure and applied mathematics (number theory, algebra, geometry, Fourier analysis) as well as mechanics (geophysics, seismology, theory of oscillations).

Keywords: geometry, spheroforms, history

References and more to explore
[1] Bernd Kawohl and Christof Weber: Meissner's Mysterious Bodies. Mathematical Intelligencer Fall 2011, 33 (3), 94-101.
DOI: 10.1007/s00283-011-9239-y, PDF: www.mi.uni-koeln.de/mi/Forschung/Kawohl/kawohl/pub100.pdf.
[2] Models: did.mathematik.uni-halle.de/modell/modell.php?Nr=Dg-003 and www.grand-illusions.com/acatalog/Solids_of_Constant_Width.html.
[3] Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz - Meissner, Ernst: http://www.hls-dhs-dss.ch/textes/d/D31517.php.

Climbing terms for descending on a rope: abseil and abseiling

2011-10-04T18:55:00.000-07:00

Abseil is a climbing term that means “descending on a rope.” The word “abseil” also occurs in names of canyon wall locations that require abseiling to get down to the canyon creek. In a recent National Geographic article, author Mark Jenkins and photographer Carsten Peter Mark feature the exciting world (underworld) of slot canyons in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney, Australia [1]. They illustrate the waterfall Danae Falls, which drops and cascades down into Danae Brook Canyon. Along the down-cascading path, you see various pitches with names such as First waterfall (pitch length of 98 ft), Narrow cleft (92 ft) and multiple abseils including Chockstone abseil (92 ft), Waterfall abseil (89 ft), Danae direct abseil (102 ft) and Slippery log abseil (66 ft, without slipping, I assume). You probably get the idea that it needs some climbing techniques [2,3] and lots of experience—beyond linguistics skills—to manage such abseils.

The noun “abseil” is derived from German Seil. The noun Seil (masculine) translates into rope in English. The German verb seilen means to rope. The prefix ab adds the meaning of down. Abseilen means literally to rope down, but also has the meaning of to disappear or to escape one's duties. Interestingly, the word Abseil does not exist by itself as a German-language noun (not in the Duden anyway), but may occur in composed words, for example Abseilstelle (abseil location) oder Abseilfieber (abseil fever).

Keywords: rock climbing, canyoneering skills, waterfalls, geography, topology, etymology, German-English translation

References and more to explore
[1] Mark Jenkins: Lost in Slot Canyons. National Geographic October 2011, 220 (4), 60-81 [ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/10/australia-canyons/jenkins-text and ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/10/australia-canyons/peter-photography].
[2] Climbing Techniques - Abseiling: www.abc-of-rockclimbing.com/howto/abseiling.asp.
[3] Backing Up An Abseil: www.chockstone.org/TechTips/RapBackup.htm.

The origin of the words barbecue, canoe, hammock, hurricane and tobacco

2011-09-30T12:21:00.000-07:00

The words barbecue, canoe, hammock, hurricane and tobacco are said to have their roots in the culture of Taíno people, who spoke an Arawakan language named after them. Robert M. Poole is tracing the Taíno culture, of which one can still find elements in the current architecture, craftsmanship, farming, fishing and healing practice on Caribbean islands including Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola (now Haiti and Dominican Republic), Puerto Rico and the Bahamas [1-4].

The Taíno evolved as a distinct people only after centuries of traveling and merging with other populations in the Antilles [1]. The Taíno almost disappeared after the Spaniards arrived and took hold in the Caribbean. Robert Poole refers to Jorge Estevez, a self-described Taíno from New York City, who describes the diverse ethnicity of the Taíno. Estevez says that his ancestors were from a plethora of different tribes. He makes an interesting comparison with the ethnicity of Christopher Columbus and his ship crew—a mixture of Spaniards, Moors, Sephardic Jews and Basques.

So, how do we identify indigenous Taíno people or those who have discovered their inner Taíno? Maybe by simply watching out for those who enjoy paddling a canoe, napping in a hammock, savoring a barbecue, smoking tobacco or tracking a hurricane.

A brief glossary based on entries in the Online Etymology Dictionary
barbecue: from Arawakan (Haiti) barbakoa, meaning “framework of sticks,”
canoe: from Arawakan (Haiti) canaoua, meaning “rough-made or dugout boat,”
hammock: from the Taíno word amaca, apparently meaning “fish nets,”
hurricane: from an Arawakan word that appeared as furacan and furacão in 16th-century Spanish and Portuguese texts, respectively;
tobacco: probably from the Taíno word tabaco, said to mean “a roll of tobacco leaves,” but some scholars argue for the origin from the Arabic word tabbaq referring to medicinal herbs.

Keywords: linguistics, Arawakan language, Caribbean islands, etymology, anthropology.

References and more to explore
[1] Robert M. Poole: What Became of the Taíno? Smithsonian Magazine October 2011, 42 (6), 58-70 [Smithsonian.com/taino].
[2] New World Encyclopedia: Taino: www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Taino.
[3] Welcome to Puerto Rico! - Taino Indians Culture: www.topuertorico.org/reference/taino.shtml.
[4] The Taino Indians - Native Americans of the Caribbean: www.healing-arts.org/spider/tainoindians.htm.

Morse code, an alphabet of dots and dashes named after American painter and inventor Samuel Finley Breese Morse

2011-09-18T15:08:00.000-07:00

Samuel F. B. Morse (1791-1872) was an American history painter. After his hope, to be chosen to paint historic panels for the Rotunda of the Capitol in Washington, was disappointed, Morse eventually gave up painting entirely and focused on work with telecommunication devices, based on electrical signals, in his New York University studio apartment [1,2]. Together with mechanically skilled partners Leonard Gale and Alfred Vail, Morse developed telegraph models in 1837. At the same time he worked out his own system for transmitting letters of the alphabet by groups of dots and dashes: the Morse code (see International Morse Code).

Earlier used code system for tracking electronically transmitted letters: The first electromechanical telegraph had been constructed in 1833 by the German physics professor Wilhelm Weber and mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss in Göttingen, who used a plus-and-minus-sign code system to track signals [3]. The signals were sent over a wire between the Physics Institute and the Astronomical Observatory of the University of Göttingen. Plus and minus signs were recorded depending on left and right swings of a responding magnet bar. Weber and Gauss used strings of length two, three and four of plus and minus signs to encode letters, which they transmitted in their experiments to demonstrate the feasibility of electromagnetic telegraphy. “Man hat's probiert. Es funktioniert. [It has been tested. It works.] ” was the scientifically minded conclusion by Gauss [3]. Further developments were left to Samuel Morse, his partners and competitors.

Keywords: history of telecommunication, long distance communication, electronic messaging

References and more to explore
[1] David McCullough: Reversal of Fortune. Smithsonian September 2011, 42 (5), 80-88 [www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/Samuel-Morses-Reversal-of-Fortune.html].
[2] Internet Archive Wayback Machine: Samuel F. B. Morse [web.archive.org/web/20061212073521/http://www.morsehistoricsite.org/history/morse.html].
[3] Hubert Mania: Gauß • Eine Biographie. Rowohlt Taschenbuch Verlag, Reinbeck bei Hamburg, Juli 2009; pages 282 and 324.

Boxdyl: a moiety-in-the-box

2011-09-16T16:57:00.000-07:00

Chemical drawings conceptually capture molecular substructures as well as supramolecular structural parts often within a box, omitting compositional and configurational details. I call such a boxed structural part a boxdyl. Its purpose is to formally collapse the structure of certain moieties into a hypernode, hiding their details, but keeping the overall structural connectivity in place.

The chemical language CurlySMILES provides a format to map a molecular sketch, in which molecular-graph-based and boxed parts are present, into a linear notation. A typical boxdyl consists of a metaterm, categorizing the structural part or defining its role. This metaterm is framed by a rectangular, oval or otherwise shaped line. In a CurlySMILES notation the term is assigned as a value to the annotation dictionary key annotation dictionary key box, for example:

C{+Ybox=growth_hormone}c1ccc(cc1)C(C)=N \

O{-}CC{+n}O{__chc=ARX201}

This example illustrates the encoding of the modified growth hormone ARX201, as shown in the sketch. The framed term Growth hormone is the boxdyl. The structure of the potential drug ARX201 can formally be divided into three parts: (1) the growth hormone and (2) an oxime-functionalized derivative of an unnatural amino acid to which (3) a polyethylene glycol (PEG) chain is attached. The latter two parts take center stage here, since they are critical to the functionality of the drug, which would fail if PEG had to be attached to another amino acid and there interfer with the hormone's normal activity. To capture this concept, the CurlySMILES notation encodes the latter two parts—an alkoxyamine-functionalized PEG conjugated with the acetyl group of the unnatural amino acid p-acetylphenylalanine—in detail, while collapsing the complex growth hormon part into a boxdyl.

Keywords: cheminformatics, supramolecular drawings, linear notation, molecular graph, super-concepts, metaterms

Acronym in chemistry: BIBS for di-tert-butylisobutylsilyl, a protecting group

2011-09-13T12:22:00.000-07:00

Di-tert-butylisobutylsilyl, abbreviated as BIBS, is a sterically bulk trialkylsily protecting group. BIBS is useful for protecting acidic hydroxyl molecules such as those of trifluoromethanesulfonic acid (triflic acid, HTf), giving the silyl ether compound di-tert-butylisobutyl silyl triflate (BIBSOTf). The intermediate may then be deprotected with tetrabutylammonium fluoride. The BIBS protecting group offers new routes in synthetic chemistry by obtaining robust protected moieties via Si-O and Si-N bonds. BIBS' bulkiness retards or inhibits hydrolysis in comparison with other commonly employed protecting groups [1,2].

A CurlySMILES notation for BIBS:

CC(C)C[Si]{-}(C(C)(C)C)C(C)(C)C 

Keywords: organic chemistry, organic synthesis, trialkylsilyl group, structural unit, substructure

References
[1] Science & Technology Concentrates: A More Stable Silyl Ether. Chemical & Engineering News July 25, 2011, 89 (30), page 38.
[2 ] H. Liang, L. Hu and E. J. Corey: Di-tert-butylisobutylsilyl, Another Useful Protecting Group.Org. Lett. 2011, 13 (15), pp.4120-4123. DOI: 10.1021/ol201640y.

BrettPhos, an organic compound and ligand named after Brett Fors of MIT's Buchwald Lab

2011-09-12T17:36:00.000-07:00

BrettPhos is named after Brett Fors of Stephen L. Buchwald's lab at MIT [1]. Spelling and pronunciation of this chemical compound name resembles the spelling and pronunciation of the name of its designer. The word part Phos, substituting for Fors, hints at the phosphorus atom in the molecular structure of BrettPhos and its formal derivation from phosphane (phosphine). Systematic names for BrettPhos are 2-(dicyclohexylphosphino)-3,6-dimethoxy-2',4',6'-triisopropyl-1,1'-biphenyl and dicyclohexyl-[3,6-dimethoxy-2-(2,4,6-triisopropylphenyl)phenyl]phosphane. The molecular formula is C₃₅H₅₃O₂P.

BrettPhos is a promising and effective ligand in metal-catalyzed synthesis including palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions, Suzuki coupling, trifluormethylation reactions and fluorinations [1-3].

A SMILES notation for BrettPhos:

C1CCCCC1P(C2CCCCC2)c3c(OC)ccc(OC)c3-c4c(C(C)C)cc(C(C)C)cc4C(C)C

References
[1] Profiles from NOS: Brett Fors: The Guy With The Namesake Ligand. Chemical & Engineering News July 11, 2011, 89 (28), page 34 [pubs.acs.org/iapps/wld/cen/results.html?line3=brett+fors&x=0&y=0].
[2] B. P. Fors, D. A. Watson, M. R. Biscoe and S. L. Buchwald: A Highly Active Catalyst for Pd-Catalyzed Amination Reactions: Cross-Coupling Reactions Using Aryl Mesylates and the Highly Selective Monoarylation of Primary Amines Using Aryl Chlorides. J. Am. Chem. Soc. October 2008, 130 (41), 13552-13554 [www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2748321/].
[3] Patent application by S. L. Buchwald, D. A. Watson, M. Su and G. Teverovskiy: Metal-catalyzed Carbon-Fluorine Bond Formation [www.faqs.org/patents/app/20110015401].

Eponyms in ichthyology: Malacanthus plumieri, Sicydium plumieri, Haemulon plumieri

2011-09-09T23:01:00.000-07:00

The tilefish Malacanthus plumieri (Malacanthidae), the Sirajo goby Sicydium plumieri (Gobiidae), and the white grunt Haemulon plumieri (Haemulidae) are named after the seventeenth-century French monk Charles Plumier (1646-1704), who is known for his compilation of plant and animal records, including his artful and detailed drawings of fish species such as the European perch (Perca fluviatilis), the striated frogfish (Antennarius striatus, then known as “Rana piscatrix ”), the rudd (Scardinius erythrophthalmus) and a grayling (Thymallus thymallus) [1].

Charles Plumier was a traveler, naturalist, botanist and artist. Living and working before Carl Linnaeus was born and dying before he could publish most of his discoveries, Plumier was never given his rightful place among early naturalists [1]. Today, we encounter his name in the binomial nomenclature of the species listed above. The sand tilefish, Malacanthus plumieri, and the Sirajo goby, Sicydium plumieri, were named after him by German naturalist Marcus Bloch (1786) [2,3]; the white grunt, Haemulon plumieri, by French herpetologist and ichthyologist Bernard-Germain-Etienne Lacépède (1801) [5-7].

Keywords: natural history, ichthyology, scientific names.

References and more to explore
[1] Theodore W. Pietsch: Plumier's Passion. Natural History July/August 2011, 119 (7), pp.30-36.
[2] Latintos: Sand tilefish, Malacanthus plumieri, named by German naturalist Marcus E. Bloch after French monk Charles Plumier [golatintos.blogspot.com/2011/09/sand-tilefish-malacanthus-plumieri.html].
[3] Encyclopedia of Life: Sicydium plumieri (Bloch, 1786) [www.eol.org/pages/983550/entries/27936422/overview].
[4] Fish Index: White Grunt (Haemulon plumieri) [fishindex.blogspot.com/2010/04/white-grunt-haemulon-plumieri.html].
[5] Smithsonian Marine Station at Fort Pierce: Haemulon plumieri (Lacepede, 1801) [www.sms.si.edu/irlspec/Haemul_plumei.htm].
[6] Fishwise: Haemulon plumieri (Lacepede, 1801) [www.fishwise.co.za/Default.aspx?TabID=110&GenusSpecies=Haemulon_plumieri&SpecieConfigId=286417].
[7] Bernard-Germain-Etienne Lacépède (1756-1825) [www.nceas.ucsb.edu/~alroy/lefa/Lacepede.html].

Sand tilefish, Malacanthus plumieri, named by German naturalist Marcus E. Bloch after French monk Charles Plumier

2011-09-09T18:53:00.000-07:00

The Caribbean sand tilefish, Malacanthus plumieri (Malacanthidae), was in 1786 named by German naturalist Marcus E. Bloch after the French monk, traveler, biologist and artist Charles Plumier (1646-1704) [1-4]. A detailed drawing of the sand tilefish, made by Plumier during his stay in Martinique, can be admired—among other amazing drawings of fish species and their internal soft parts by Plumier—in a recent Natural History article by Theodore Pietsch [1]. A drawing footnote says that the sand tilefish grows as much as two feet long and makes a burrow in the sand in tropical and subtropical waters of the Western Atlantic.

Most sources refer to Charles Plumier as a botanist. He also deserves the attribute of an early ichthyologist or pioneering fish naturalist.

Keywords: ichthyology, order Perciformes, tilefishes, eponym.

References and more to explore
[1] Theodore W. Pietsch: Plumier's Passion. Natural History July/August 2011, 119 (7), pp.30-36.
[2] Theodore W. Pietsch: Charles Plumier (1646-1704) and his drawings of French and American fishes. Archives of Natural Historyatural History February 2001, 28 (1), pp. 1-57. DOI: 10.3366/anh.2001.28.1.1.
[3] World Register of Marine Species: Malacanthus plumieri (Bloch, 1786) [www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=277261].
[4] Pictures: Encyclopedia of Life | Caribbean Reefs | Caribbean Sea - Bonaire. Notice that Plumier's drawing contains more or different details (color patterns, shapes of body parts) than the photographies!

An acronym in environmental monitoring: NEON for National Ecological Observatory Network

2011-09-08T12:55:00.000-07:00

In ecology, NEON stands for National Ecological Observatory Network [1,2]. NEON is a public source (www.neoninc.org), that is going to acquire biological and physical data from plains, forests and lakes, representing different regions of vegetation, landforms, climate and ecosystem performance. The data will be collected and represented in computer spreadsheets, available to scientists, teachers, students, decision makers and the public in general to promote broad ecological literacy.

According to the Nature editorial preceding [1], NEON could be a powerful tool for investigating human pressure on the biosphere: “in an exceedingly difficult fiscal environment, the new ecological network represents a refreshingly forward-looking initiative. Ecologists (and headline writers) everywhere should welcome it.”

Notice the distinction between fiscal environment and ecological environment!

Further, notice that NEON is pronounced in the same way as is the name of the chemical element and rare gas neon. In writing and printing, the two meanings of this term can usually be distinguished by uppercase and lowercase letters.

References and details
[1] Jeff Tollefson: US launches eco-network. Nature 11. August 2011, 476 (7359), page 135 (also see editorial on page 125) [www.nature.com/news/2011/110809/full/476135a.html].
[2] National Science Foundation: Final National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) Environment Assessment: www.nsf.gov/bio/outreach/final_neon_ea_addendum_a_combined.pdf.

Lobb's buckwheat (Eriogonum lobbii) named after Cornish plant collector William Lobb

2011-09-06T22:16:00.000-07:00

The plant Lobb's buckwheat (Eriogonum lobbii) of the buckwheat family (Polygonaceae) is named after the Cornish plant collector William Lobb, who was born in Cornwall around 1809 and died in San Francisco in 1864 [1,2]. In the 1840s Lobb was collecting plants in South America. He came to North America in 1849, where he continued plant collection in California at the height of the Gold Rush. Lobb's buckwheat, sometimes named granite buckwheat, is found in northern California; for example, on rocky slopes at high elevation along the Sierra Nevada crest.

Keywords: botanist, history, nomenclature, scientific name

References
[1] Joseph Ewan: William Lobb, plant hunter for Veitch and messenger of the big tree. University of California Press, Berkely, 1973.
[2] Plant hunters - William Lobb [www.hatfield-herts.co.uk/features/gtree_lobb.html].

A term in biology: hyperphagia season

2011-09-02T17:18:00.000-07:00

In medical context, hyperphagia is defined as “an increased appetite for and consumption of food, thought to be associated with a lesion or injury in the hypothalamus.” In general, biological terms, hyperphagia simply means over-eating [1]. Hyperphagia season is the season of over-eating. This is the season during which hibernating animals prepare for the cold season by consuming excess food, gaining weight, and putting on fat to be ready for a period of inactivity.

For example, Cheryl Lyn Dybas illustrates the hyperphagia season of black bears (Ursus americanus) in Minnesota [2]: the bears build up their fat reserves for winter by eating their fills of acorns, hazelnuts, chokeberries and other treats. Dybas mentions that during this time bears are more likely to come near people and residential areas, especially if natural foods are scarce. Grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) also increase their food intake as the period of hibernation approaches [3].

References and more to explore
[1] The Free Dictionary: http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/hyperphagia.
[2] Cheryl Lyn Dybas: A Frenzy of Bears. Its “hyperphagia season” in Minnesota. Natural History July/August 2011, 119 (7), 22-29 [http://business.highbeam.com/61985/article-1G1-263992158/frenzy-bears-hyperphagia-season-minnesota].
[3] The Grizzly or Brown Bear [http://www.grizzlybear.org/bearbook/grizzly_or_brown_bear.htm].

Plagiarism: then and now and not

2011-08-05T09:22:00.000-07:00

Plagiarism has been defined as “the unauthorized use or close imitation of the language and thoughts of another author and the representation of them as one's own original work” [1]. Since this copied definition of plagiarism has been quoted and given a reference, it should not be considered as plagiarized. Here is another definition [2]: “a piece of writing that has been copied from someone else and is presented as being your own work.”

It may be difficult to prove that thoughts and ideas have been taken from somebody else. After all, we learn—and have been educated to learn—from books, articles, blog posts and other sources of written documents. Many of the words and ideas, put down by us, originate from such sources. When we start to get creative, formulating our own ideas, we typically still “borrow” read-before or used-elsewhere phrases and text snippets—sometimes by purpose, sometimes unknowingly. However, the longer a piece of text, the less likely it will be that two or more authors (unless they cooperated and are then called co-authors) came up with exactly the same text. Today, digitalized texts can easily be evaluated for plagiarism by using text matching software and plagiarism checkers [3,4].

Recently, plagiarism scandals have hit headline news. In Germany, for example, the Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg resigned after the University of Bayreuth revoked his doctoral title accusing him to have violated academic standards in his thesis by failing to sufficiently credit some of his sources [5]. Remember: unless you work for a secret service, you need to reveal your sources.

Other illustrating examples take us back in time to past centuries: In his biography of the Danish scientist Nicolaus Steno, Alan Cutler tells us about the arrogant London physician John Woodward, who had cribbed almost every important aspect from Steno's writings on fossils and strata, copying some passages almost word-for-word without crediting Steno and other researchers [6]. Cutler also provides an example of a false plagiarism claim: the German Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz and the English Sir Isaac Newton—both outstanding philosophers, scientists and mathematicians—are now known to have developed their methods of differential and integral calculus independently; although Leibniz had been attacked by Newton himself (and later by others) of plagiarizing Newton's work.

Keywords: politics, authoring, citation, copying, cheating

References and more to explore
[1] plagiarism [dictionary.reference.com/browse/plagiarism].
[2] plagiarism [www.audioenglish.net/dictionary/plagiarism.htm].
[3] Plagiarism Checker: www.plagiarismchecker.com.
[4] Avoid Plagiarism and Make Your Writing Shine: www.grammarly.com/?q=plagiarism&gclid=CKGx2ea7uKoCFQYr3wodHVW27Q.
[5] Huffpost World report with contributions by Juergen Baetz: Karl-Theodor Zu Guttenberg, German Defense Minister, Resigns Amid Plagiarism Scandal [www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/01/karltheodor-zu-guttenberg_n_829819.html].
[6] Alan Cutler: The Seashell on the Mountaintop. Dutton (Penguin Group), New York, 2003; pages 174-178 and 183-185.

Tertiary and quaternary strata in geology named by Italian mining expert Giovanni Arduino

2011-08-04T09:28:00.000-07:00

In 1760, the Italian mining expert Giovanni Arduino (1714-1795) laid out a scheme for classifying the strata of the Italian Alps, which he separated in the three main groups he called Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary [1,2]. A fourth strata, called Quaternary, was later added. Alan Cutler outlines Arduino's classification approach, following the stratigraphic principle formulated by Nicolaus Steno [2]:

The Primary strata, at the bottom of the pile, were tilted and lacked fossils. Next, were the Secondary strata, which were tilted but had fossils in them. On top were the Tertiary strata, which were horizontal and also contained fossils. He added a fourth class, Quaternary, for the sands and gravels that covered the bedrock in the nearby Po River Valley.

Today, scientists name the Primary and Secondary strata and the corresponding eras on the geologic time scale Paleozoic (about 540 to 250 million years ago) and Mesozoic (about 250 to 65 million years ago). Arduino's Tertiary and Quaternary divisions still stand [2]. The latter two are the main sub-divisions of the Cenozoic, spanning from the end of the Cretaceous (the last period in the Mesozoic) to the present [3].

Keywords: geology, stratigraphy, geologic time scale, natural history, terminology

References and more to explore
[1] Giovanni Arduino [www.strangescience.net/arduino.htm].
[2] Alan Cutler: The Seashell on the Mountaintop. Dutton (Penguin Group), New York, 2003; page 196.
[3] Introduction to the Cenozoic - 65 Million Years to the Present [www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/cenozoic/cenozoic.html].

Glossopetra, meaning tongue stone and referring to petrified tooth of shark

2011-08-04T08:05:00.000-07:00

The compositum glossopetra is derived from the Greek words glossa and petra for tongue and rock, respectively. The word glossopetra, also found in Latin texts, means tongue stone and refers to the petrified, somewhat tongue-shaped tooth of a shark [1-3]. The plural form is glossopetrae.

For centuries, glossopetrae had been found on the Island of Malta and many other places in the Mediterranean region. The Roman author and naturalist Pliny the Elder (Gaius Plinius Secundus, 23-79 AD) mentioned glossopetrae in his encyclopedic work Naturalis Historia [3]. Glossopetrae were thought to form in the ground or fall from the sky. It was not until the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries that natural philosophers made the connection between those distinctive stones and the teeth of sharks based on scientifically oriented comparison. Alan Cutler writes that the physician and naturalist Guillaume Rodelet of Montpellier noticed the similarity between tongue stones and the teeth of large sharks while he was lingering in Mediterranean fish markets: Rondelet published his shark-tooth theory in 1554, followed by a dissertation on tongue stones by Fabio Colonna in 1616 [2,4].

Fifty years later, the Danish anatomist and geologist Nicolaus Steno, who was well familiar with the ideas and findings of Rodelet and Colonna, draw his own conclusions. Steno, who had dissected the head of a huge shark brought to him at the Accademia del Cimento (Experimental Academy) in Florence, argued that tongue stones were the remains of once-living animals. Like his contemporaries Robert Hooke and John Ray, Steno related fossils to living organisms of the past [4]. Tongue stones appear to be the key stones in seeding and shaping early research and insight in paleontology.

Keywords: etymology, paleontology, natural history

References and more to explore
[1] Biology of Sharks and Rays: Glossopetrae and the Birth of Paleontology [www.elasmo-research.org/education/evolution/glossopetrae.htm].
[2] Alan Cutler: The Seashell on the Mountaintop. Dutton (Penguin Group), New York, 2003; pages 56-58.
[3] References to fossils by Pliny the Elder [gwydir.demon.co.uk/jo/fossils/pliny.htm].
[4] Nicholas Steno (1638-1686) [http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/history/steno.html].

Beautiful, more beautiful, most beautiful

2011-08-02T07:22:00.000-07:00

What is a better way to learn the use of comparative and superlative than in a little three-line limerick. Here is one for the adjective beautiful:

Beautiful is what we see.
More beautiful is what we understand.
Most beautiful is what we do not comprehend.

This is Steno's famous aphorism [1]: The Danish scientist Nicolaus Steno is well known for his studies in anatomy and geology, including the discovery of the parotid duct (ductus Stenonianus) and the formulation of the law of superposition. Steno was a sharp and independently minded observer living in the seventeenth century in various parts of Europe. The first two lines of the poem highlight the importance he gave to seeing and understanding, the latter as a result of the first. Steno also freely studied and reflected on philosophy and religion. Without confining his broad interest and intellectual activities in one domain by overspanning limitations from another domain, Steno showed strong appreciation for everything that is beyond the reach of the human mind, as the last line of the rhyme indicates. Truely beautiful!

Reference
[1] Alan Cutler: The Seashell on the Mountaintop. Dutton (Penguin Group), New York, 2003; page 146.

A term in anatomy: parotid duct, also known as Stenson's duct (ductus Stenonianus)

2011-08-01T07:54:00.000-07:00

The parotid duct is the duct of the parotid gland, which supplies saliva to the mouth. It passes lateral to the masseter muscle and enters the oral cavity through the buccal tissues adjacent to the maxillary first and second molar [1,2]. It is also named Stenson's duct (ductus Stenonianus), after its discoverer, the Danish anatomist and geologist Niels Stensen (1638-1686), today known as Nicolaus Steno.

The seventeenth-century scientist Steno discovered the parotid duct in the laboratory of Gerard Blaes, a physician in the city of Amsterdam: Steno brought a sheep's head into Blaes's lab, where he investigated the veins and arteries at the sheep's mouth [3]. Alan Cutler reports in his biography of Steno, that he repeated the dissection in the Dutch city of Leiden, where he showed the duct to his anatomy professor, who immediately confirmed that it was new to science. This was a significant discovery, since neither the source of saliva nor the function of the gland was known up to the point of Steno's finding.

Keynotes: anatomy, medical term, eponym, salivary glands, history.

References and more to explore
[1] The Free Dictionary: Stensen's duct [medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Stensen%27s+duct].
[2] Pathology Outlines: Salivary Glands [www.pathologyoutlines.com/topic/salivaryglandsnormalanatomy.html].
[3] Alan Cutler: The Seashell on the Mountaintop. Dutton (Penguin Group), New York, 2003; page 37.

The term “fossil fuel,” a linguistic relic from the time when anything dug from the earth was a fossil

2011-07-31T08:59:00.000-07:00

The modern term “fossil fuel” is a linguistic relic from the sixteenth century and earlier times when any natural object or substance dug from underground was a fossil [1]. Famous for his masterpieces Opera Botanica (Work on Botanics) [2] and Historiae Animalium (History of Animals) [3], the naturalist Conrad Gesner (1516-1565) [4], with the latinized name Conradi Gesneri, published his book On Fossil Objects in 1565, in which the term “fossil” referred to any interesting object found in the ground [5].

In the seventeenth century, when the Dutch anatomist and geologist Nicolaus Steno formulated geologic principles on a scientific basis, the term “fossil” still had this broad meaning. But progress in geology, initiated in Steno's time, eventually changed the meaning to its modern use. Today the term “fossil” is typically confined to the preserved remains of ancient plants or animal life, including wood, bones, teeth and shells [1]. Fossil fuels are decomposition products of organisms living in the past. With recent progress in analytical chemistry and biochemistry, the word “fossil” is conquering nanoscience with terms such as “fossil molecule,” referring to chemical compounds originating from ancient life on earth (see, for example, crenarchaeol, derived from crenarchaea).

Keynotes: fossils, paleontology, natural history, historical books, bibliophily.

References and more to explore
[1] Alan Cutler: The Seashell on the Mountaintop. Dutton (Penguin Group), New York, 2003; page 31.
[2] Conradi Gesneri: Opera botanica [openlibrary.org/works/OL3096595W/Conradi_Gesneri_Opera_botanica].
[3] Virtually, turn the pages and see the illustrations in Conrad Gesner's Historiae Animalium [archive.nlm.nih.gov/proj/ttp/flash/gesner/gesner.html].
[4] Conrad Gesner Physician, Scholar, Scientist 1516-1565 [www.nlm.nih.gov/hmd/pdf/conrad.pdf].
[5] History of Science: Konrad Gesner, posted Jan. 18, 2011: historyofscience2011v1.blogspot.com/2011/01/konrad-gesner.html.

New philosophy, natural philosophy, mechanical philosophy, experimental philosophy

2011-07-29T07:44:00.000-07:00

New philosophy, natural philosophy, mechanical philosophy, experimental philosophy—these are all terms that describe the new science in the seventeenth century, when science did not exist in the form we know it today. Alan Cutler explains in his biography of the Dutch anatomist and geologist Nicolaus Steno, that during Steno's time most knowledge came from books [1]. Then, many universities confined learning to the writings of Aristotle and other scholars, did not encourage curiosity and kept students away from activities at which they might have dirtied their hands. Knowledge came from outside the academic walls [1]: “Potters learned about clay from the clay itself; miners and quarrymen learned about rocks from the rocks.”

Steno was a great exception and ahead of his time: he dissected (for example, a shark head), observed and deduced to derive knowledge and principles, such as his principle of superposition; rather than just gleaning information from texts. Sixty years after Galileo Galilei triumphed over Aristotle and Ptolemy by observing stars and planets through telescopes and shaping modern physics (including astronomy), Steno's approach to earth science slowly was recognized by academic institutions and obscure societies, which were still clinging to superstition, scorcery and alchemy as their “state-of-the-art.” The new philosophy became visible at the horizon and the diverse terms for it eventually merged into the terms natural history, natural science or— simply and universally—science.

Reference
[1] Alan Cutler: The Seashell on the Mountaintop. Dutton (Penguin Group), New York, 2003; page 19.

A term in geology: principle of superposition

2011-07-28T06:39:00.000-07:00

The principle that in a series of stratified sedimentary rocks the lowest stratum is the oldest, is known in geology as the principle of superposition [1].Sometimes referred to as law of superposition, this principle is part of a set of three principles in stratigraphy, which were formulated in the seventeenth century by the Danish anatomist and geologist Nicolaus Steno. Steno's insight derived from his experience as an anatomist as well as his observations and knowledge of the growth of crystals, erosion of land and exposure of marine fossils in the mountains surrounding Florence,Tuscany.

The stratigraphic principle is a feature of the geologic field trip Principles of Historical Geology, which beautifully demonstrates these principles in an online slide-show file. My favorite narrative, explaining the superposition principle, is that given by Alan Cutler in his book The Seashell on the Mountaintop [2]:

The backbone of his [Steno's] system was a simple but tremendously powerful idea. Recognizing that the layers of rock that entombed fossil shells were made by the gradual accumulation of sediment, he realized that each layer embodied a span of time in the past. He saw no way to measure the number of years or centuries involved, and was loathe to speculate, but it was clear that the layers on top of the other formed an unambiguous sequence. The lowest layer had been formed first, the highest last. Depending on their fossils and their sediments, the layers recorded the succession of seas, rivers, lakes, and soils that once had covered the land. Geologists call Steno's insight the “principle of superposition.” It means that, layer by layer, the history of the world is written in stone.

Cutler compares the significance of Steno's results with that of Galileo's breakthrough: while the latter opened up space by observation and discovery with a telescope, Steno provided an approach to study the past of planet earth—although only in relative terms of time until the invention of absolute dating methods such as techniques based on isotopes and radioactivity.

References
[1] The Free Dictionary Thesaurus: principle of superposition [www.thefreedictionary.com/principle+of+superposition].
[2] Alan Cutler: The Seashell on the Mountaintop. Dutton (Penguin Group), New York, 2003; page 14.

Niels Stensen, following academic custom and going by the name Nicolai Stenonis

2011-07-27T07:15:00.000-07:00

The Danish anatomist and geologist Niels Stensen started his career in the seventeenth century at the University of Copenhagen, where he followed academic custom and went by the name Nicolai Stenonis. Today he is known by the name Nicolaus Steno [1-3].

He was born in Copenhagen in January of 1638—Danemark was then at war with Sweden—and died in December of 1686 in Schwerin—today the capital of the German state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Most of his life, Steno worked, observed and researched at other places including Rostock, Amsterdam, Montpellier and Florence. In the book entitled The Seashell on the Mountaintop, Alan Cutler illuminates these locations in historical context, follows Steno's traveling and studies, and discusses his contributions to modern scientific thinking.

Steno had excellent observational skills, which he employed independently from what was known from books. Steno became a member of the Accademia del Cimento (Academy of Experiments) in Florence, Tuscany, funded by Prince Leopoldo and Grand Duke II de Medici. The academy welcomed Steno's ideas and his approach to science. Steno's findings in the hills and mountains surrounding Florence, rich in marine fossils, and his background in anatomy resulted in his celebrated formulation of the principles of stratigraphy: the law of superposition (layer-by-layer sedimentation), the principle of original horizontality and the principle of lateral continuity.

Steno was a darling of the Medici court, as Cutler writes in the prologue of his book. But today he is mostly overlooked: even visitors of the basilica of San Lorenzo in Florence, while admiring art work by Michelangelo and Brunelleschi, often miss the small chapel, where an inscription on the wall above the sacrophagus gives his name as Nicolai Stenonis. Tourists barely explore corners and layers beyond the authority of their travel guide.

Steno has been brought up in the Lutheran faith and later converted to Catholicism. Rare during his time as well as today, Steno had the ability to freely discuss scientific and religous topics without compromising one for the sake of the other.

References and suggested reading
[1] Alan Cutler: The Seashell on the Mountaintop. Dutton (Penguin Group), New York, 2003; page 18.
[2] Janice Busil: Nicolaus Steno: Getting to know the unheeded genius [www.iloilonewstoday.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3148:nicolaus-steno-getting-to-know-the-unheeded-genius&catid=161:miss-jane-doe&Itemid=510]
[3] Maria Hirsch: Urvater der modernen Geologie [Grandfather of modern geology] FOCUS Online, January 27, 2009. [www.focus.de/wissen/wissenschaft/wissenschaftlervoting/nicolaus-steno-urvater-der-modernen-geologie_aid_365215.html].

A term in chemistry and spintronics: half-metal for a material with an energy gap depending on electron spin direction

2011-07-23T08:45:00.000-07:00

Metals differ from other chemical elements of the periodic table by their electrical and magnetic properties. A typical metal is characterized by good or excellent electrical conductivity, while the spins of the delocalized electrons in the lattice structure of the metal atoms are oriented without preference for a certain, singular direction. In contrast, a half-metal is only conducting when the spins of all electrons are aligned in one direction. It is insulating when their alignment is in opposite orientation. A half-metal is characterized by the presence of an energy gap at the Fermi level for only one electron spin direction, while the energy band for the opposite spin direction is continuous [1].

Half-metallic behavior is found in alloys and metal compounds. Examples include Heusler alloys (ferromagnetic alloys with a Heusler phase), Fe₃O₄ (magnetite) and CrO₂ [1-4].

Keywords: electronic materials, ferromagnetic materials, electrical conductivity, magnetoresistance

References and more to explore
[1] D. V. Talapin, J.-S. Lee, M. V. Kovalenko and E. V. Shevchenko: Prospects of Colloidal Nanocrystals for Electronic and Optoelectronic Applications. Chem. Rev. 2010, 110, 389-458. DOI: 10.1021/cr900137k; see page 410 for discussion of half-metals.
[2] I. Galanakis and Ph. Mavropoulos: Spin-polarization and electronic properties of half-metallic Heusler alloys calculated from first principle. J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 2007, 19, 315213 (16pp) [www2.fz-juelich.de/iff/datapool/iffnews/2008_03_12_TOP_PAPER_2.pdf].
[3] J. Pierre and L. Ranno: Half Metallic Ferromagnets. Laboratoire Louis Neel, CNRS, Grenoble [www.tcd.ie/Physics/People/Michael.Coey/oxsen/newsletter/january98/halfmeta.htm].
[4] I. I. Mazin, D. J. Singh and C. Ambrosch-Draxl: Transport, optical, and electronic properties of the half-metal CrO2. Phys. Rev. B. 1999, 59, 411-418 [prb.aps.org/abstract/PRB/v59/i1/p411_1].

Synonymous terms in chemistry and materials science: “conducting polymer” and “conjugated polymer”

2011-07-22T08:31:00.000-07:00

Conducting polymers are often called conjugated polymers due to their macromolecular bond structure with alternating single and double bonds in the polymer chain: conducting polymers typically are organic materials possessing an extended conjugated π-electron system along a polymer backbone [1-3]. Such polymers become conducting polymers by providing unoccupied energy states for extra electrons or electron deficiencies (holes) and a macromolecular architecture for relatively unhindered charge carrier movement.

Polymeric materials with such structural characteristics are or are derived from, for example, polyacetylene, polypyrrole, polythiophene, polyaniline and poly(p-phenylene). Electrical properties and performance of conjugated-polymer materials can be enhanced by doping with either electron donors or electron acceptors. The doping process can also be employed to derive polymeric semiconductors (semiconducting polymers). Notice that the term “semiconjugated polymer” is not a synonym for “semiconducting polymer.”

Keywords: electronic materials, polymer chemistry, macromolecules, electrical conductivity

References and suggested reading
[1] Arno Kraft: Conducting Polymers; pages 341 to 377 in Organic Molecular Solids - Properties and Applications. Edited by William Jones, CRC Press, Boca Raton and New York, 1997.
[2] Steinke's Tutorial: Conducting Polymers [www.ch.ic.ac.uk/local/organic/tutorial/steinke/4yrPolyConduct2003.pdf].
[3] Mohd Hamzah Harun, Elias Saion, Anuar Kassim, Noorhana Yahya and Ekramul Mahmud: Conjugated Conducting Polymers: A brief Overview. JASA 2, January 2007 [www.ucsi.edu.my/cervie/ijasa/volume2/pdf/08I.pdf].

Google's “+1” for “plus one” is fun

2011-07-10T13:00:00.000-07:00

We know from arithmetics and computer science that “+1” means “plus one.” The Google+ project now introduces the +1 button as a new tool to share your resources with your circle of friends and colleagues [1-3]. And as people—excuse me, friends and colleagues—are plusone-ing your sites, this may help improve the site ranking.

Plus one buttons are easy to implement (see Google +1 your website). Pages render fine when using the code provided by Google. I wasn't the only one, however, who experienced problems, while validating my HTML5 pages. After updating them with +1 buttons and running them through the validator.w3.org site, complaints were returned. So, a validation error for the g:plusone tag can be expected [4]. Then, I successfully replaced this XML element (for example, on the page www.axeleratio.com) with the following code:

<div class="g-plusone" data-count="true" data-size="medium">

</div>

Further information is available on the Google code site: code.google.com/apis/+1button.

Keywords: HTML5 conformance, markup validation, social networking, professional networking, friend grouping, online sharing, bookmarking

References and resources
[1] The Official Google Blog: Introducing the Google+ project: Real-life sharing, rethought for the web [googleblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/introducing-google-project-real-life.html].
[2] Google: Recommendations when you want them [www.google.com/+1/button].
[3] Digital inspiration: The Google Plus One Bookmarklet [www.labnol.org/internet/google-plus-one-bookmarklet/19474/].
[4] Pixelflips: Google +1 Button Validation Error [www.pixelflips.com/blog/google-1-button-validation-error/].
[5] Drupal: Google Plus One HTML5 tag [drupal.org/node/1180396].

Acronym in microbiology and pathology: WNS for white-nose syndrome

2011-07-09T23:00:00.000-07:00

WNS stands for white-nose syndrome, a fungal infection found in various bat species. The white-nose syndrome fungus (Geomyces destructans) affects hibernating bats in Europe and, more recently, also in North America [1]. The disease was discovered in early 2007, when bats in upstate New York started behaving oddly, flying far away from their caves during icy-cold winter days [2]. Infected bats typically show white patches of fungal growth around their muzzle, ears and wing membranes. There is evidence that American bats are less immunologically resistant to WNS than their European counterparts. G. destructans may have wiped out many bats in Europe in the distant past and today's survivors can withstand the fungus.

It is not known how the fungus kills the bat, but it has been proposed that mortality is caused by wing damage [3]. The USGS National Wildlife Health Center, in partnership with various research groups, plays a vital role in WNS research in the United States [4] .

References and more to explore
[1] Gudrun Wibbelt et al.: White-Nose Syndrome Fungus (Geomyces destructans) in Bats, Europe. Emerging Infectious Diseases August 2010, 16 (8), 1237-1242. [www.cdc.gov/eid/content/16/8/pdfs/1237.pdf].
[2] Michelle Nijhuis: Crisis in the Caves. Smithsonian July/August 2011, 42 (4), 55-74. [www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/What-is-Killing-the-Bats.html].
[3] P. M. Cryan et al.: Wing pathology of white-nose syndrome in bats suggests life-threatening disruption of physiology. BMC Biology 2010, 8:135. DOI: 10.1186/1741-7007-8-135.
[4] National Wildlife Health Center: White-Nose Syndrome (WNS) [www.nwhc.usgs.gov/disease_information/white-nose_syndrome/].

Ug99, a virulent strain of stem rust first identified in Uganda in 1999

2011-07-04T18:13:00.000-07:00

Ug99 is a virulent and fast-mutating strain of stem rust, named after the location and year of its first identification: Uganda, 1999 [1-3]. The stem rust fungus, Puccinia graminis, is spreading across the globe. It is a feared disease of wheat, known for centuries and causing significant losses of crop yield. The Ug99 strain spread from Uganda through other parts of Africa, including Kenya, Ethiopia and Sudan, crossed the Red Sea into Yemen and jumped the Persian Gulf into Iran.

How can the Ug99 threat be contained or eliminated? This depends on the success in developing a Ug99-specific fungicide (keeping up with the pace of mutations) or—probably a better solution—to find and grow resistant wheat varieties.

References
[1] Charles Siebert: Food Ark. National Geographic July 2011, 220 (1), 108-131. [ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/07/food-ark/siebert-text].
[2] Ravi P. Singh et al.: Current status, likely migration and strategies to migrate the threat to wheat production from race Ug99 (TTKS) of stem rust pathogen. CAB Reviews: Perspective in Agriculture, Veterinary Science, Nutrition and Natural Resources 2006, 1 (054). [www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/ad_hoc/36400500Publications/YJ/PAV054.pdf].
[3] Tiffany Stecker: Stem Rust Ug99 - Agricultural Bully, June 20, 2011 [www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=stem-rust-ug99---the-agricultural-b-2011-06-20].

Ochroma pyramidale tree, commonly known as balsa tree

2011-07-03T20:17:00.000-07:00

The tree species Ochroma pyramidale is a flowering plant of the mallow family (Malvaceae). Its common name is Balsa tree [1-3]. Ochroma descends from the Greek meaning pale and Balsa is a Spanish word meaning raft. Other common names (Bois flot, Corkwood, Down-Tree, West Indian balsa) and binomial synonyms (Bombax pyramidal, Ochroma bicolor, O. Concolor, O. grandiflora, O. lagopus, O. obtusum) are also in use [1].

Some of the synonyms indicate the cork-like structure of the Balsa wood and its floating-on-water behavior. Natalie Angier writes that Balsa has a fifth the density of water, cork a fourth, and only the papaya-related Jacaratia has lighter wood [3].

In her interesting article, illustrated with photographs by Christian Ziegler, Angier reports that scientist have long assumed that the night-flowering tree is pollinated by bats, which are nocturnal and, many of them, nectarivores [3]. But in addition the Balsa night life attracts all kinds of species including Capuchin monkeys, olingos (distant relative of the racoon), opossums, geckos, honeybees, hummingbirds and snakes. While the snakes are looking for prey, most of the other arboreal guests act as pollinators by drinking the syrupy juice of the mature, cream-colored balsa flowers and then carrying pollen to the female parts of another balsa tree's flower.

Ochromas are among the fastest growing tropical forest trees thriving from southern Mexico over Panama to Bolivia [3].

References and more to explore
[1] Jungle Garden - Hardy Tropical Plants: Ochroma pyramidale: palmvrienden.net/junglegarden/not-hardy/ochroma-pyramidale/.
[2] Swartz: Ochroma pyramidale: www.cds.ed.cr/teachers/harmon/page21.html.
[3] Natalie Angier: Open all night. National Geographic May 2011, 219 (5), 130-143. [ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/05/panama-ochroma/angier-text].

The term “chemical genitalia” in insect biology

2011-06-30T22:01:00.000-07:00

The term “chemical genitalia” refers to natural chemical compounds (accessory proteins accompanying semen) that influence sperm persistence and egg fertilization in multiple mating events. Marlene Zuk describes how male insects use this strategy to kill the sperm of previous mates or to render females less receptive to future matings [1]. Those chemicals have been best studied in the fruit fly Drosophila. She also informs us that the phrase “chemical genitalia” was originally used by William G. Eberhard of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and his colleague Carlos Cordero from the National Autonomous University of Mexico to name the seminal products. Eberhard works in Panama and Costa Rica on a wide variety of spiders and insects.

The activity of chemical genitalia can be considered as a special form of sperm competition—or, more precise, as a post- or inter-coital “cryptic chemical attack,” eliminating or reducing the female choice over paternity.

Keywords: entomology, behavioral ecology, biochemistry, selective reproduction, sexual selection, evolution, competition among males, chemical activity

Reference
[1] Marlene Zuk: Sperm and Eggs on Six Legs. Natural History June 2011, 119 (6), 28-35.

The terms “sperm competition” and “cryptic female choice” in insect biology

2011-06-30T21:03:00.000-07:00

In a recent Natural History article, Marlene Zuk looks from a female perspective at the reproduction of insects [1]— an area of study that some see as overloaded with male-dominated thinking and terminology. A good example is the term “sperm competition,” which goes back to Geoffrey A. Parker at the University of Liverpool [2,3]. This phrase denotes the effort toward successful fathering in multiple mating events.

Who decides about the success and who controls of what happens in reproduction? The inseminating male or the receiving female? Different insect species, as Zuk illustrates, exhibit a zoo of genitalia including penises with spikes, scoops, hooks, knobs, kinks, coils—you name it—to enhance sexual interaction and sperm ejaculation. But it may be the female who finally controls paternity. The defining term is “cryptic female choice,” which was coined in 1983 by Randy Thornhill at the University of New Mexico [4,5]. This phrase refers to the postcopulatory ability of females to favor one male of her species over another: this ability includes the selection of sperms from various partners, stored in different parts of her reproduction tract, before fertilizing her eggs. For example, the female moth Utetheisa ornatrix—after mating many times—selects only the sperm of males with large spermatophores for fertilization [6].

Keywords: entomology, behavioral ecology, selective reproduction, sexual selection, evolution, competition among males, post-coital activity

References and more to explore
[1] Marlene Zuk: Sperm and Eggs on Six Legs. Natural History June 2011, 119 (6), 28-35.
[2] What is Sperm Competition? [faculty.vassar.edu/suter/1websites/bejohns/mateselection/files/sperm_comp.htm].
[3] Stuart Wigby and Tracey Chapman: Sperm competition. Magazine R100 [www.life.umd.edu/faculty/wilkinson/honr278c/PDF/Wigby04.pdf].
[4] Randy Thornhill, research and publications: biology.unm.edu/Thornhill/rthorn.htm.
[5] Elia T. Ben-Ari: Choosy Females. BioScience January 2000, 50 (1), 7-12. [euplotes.biology.uiowa.edu/web/sexpapers/2004/week12/choosyfemales.pdf].
[6] Female sperm choice of the moth Utetheisa ornatrix [faculty.vassar.edu/suter/1websites/bejohns/mateselection/files/female_choice.htm].

Acronym in science and publication: PLoS for Public Library of Science

2011-06-28T18:58:00.000-07:00

PLoS stands for Public Library of Science. PLoS is a nonprofit organization of scientists and physicians commited to making scientific and medical literature freely available online [1]: Every publication with PLoS is an open access publication that can be downloaded, copied, and (re)distributed.

The flagship journals of PLoS are PLoS Biology and PLoS Medicine [2-4]: PLoS Biology was the first to be launched in October 2003, followed by PLoS Medicine in October 2004. Further domain- and platform-specific journals have been added: PLoS Computational Biology, PLoS Genetics, PLoS Pathogens, PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases and PLoS One.

The PLoS publishing group was founded by Pat O. Brown, Mike Eisen and H. E. Varmus [4,5].

References
[1] Public Library of Science: www.plos.org.
[2] PLoS Biology: www.plosbiology.org/home.action.
[3] PLoS Medicine: www.plosmedicine.org/home.action.
[4] Harold Varmus: The Art and Politics of Science. W. W. Norton & Comany, New York and London, 2009; pages 146 and 161 to 165.
[5] P. O. Brown, M. B. Eisen and H. E. Varmus: Why PLoS Became a Publisher. PLoS Biology October 2003, 1(10): e36. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.0000036.

How the AIDS virus became to be named human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)

2011-06-27T22:19:00.000-07:00

Harold Varmus—Nobel Laureate in Medicine—describes in his book “The ART and POLITICS of SCIENCE” how the AIDS retrovirus got its name [1]. When the debate over the name of the AIDS virus was in full swing, Varmus was head of the Retrovirus Study Group of the International Committee on the Taxonomy of Viruses (ICVT) and was charged with resolving the debate. At that time, when much less was known about this virus, other naming options had been proposed:

Lympadenopathy virus (LAV). This name was given by Frenchman Luc Montagnier of the Pasteur Institute, following his observations with the electron microscope on cells from the swollen lymph glands of patients developing AIDS symptoms. However this term did not conform to the usual format that includes the species in which the virus was found and the resultant pathology.

Human T cell leukemia virus/III (HTLV-III). This name indicates species (human) and pathology (leukemia). But the AIDS virus did not appear to cause leukemia. The name-proposing scientist, Robert Gallo of the National Institute of Health (NIH), therefore, let the “L” stand for lymphotropic (a term meaning that the virus preferentially infected lymphoid cell, compare with “L” in LAV) to be in line with his previous discovery of HTLV viruses. Yet, the HTLV-AIDS similarity is too weak to justify name anology. As Varmus writes, their are significant differences with respect to genetic content, shape of the virus particle, disease spectrum, and even multiplication strategy.

HTLV-III/LAV. This designation was a compromise thought to satisfy both of the above mentioned proposals. But a slashed notation is often used to indicate a combination rather than an alternative, such that the term HTLV-III/LAV could be misinterpreted as a virus double pack.

Many more options were generated, typically by inserting some word(s) between human (H) and virus (V). Finally, in May 1986 agreement upon the name human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) was reached—a term and an acronym now globally recognized.

HIV belongs to Class VI in the Baltimore Classification system, the class of retroviruses relying on reverse transcription via a double-stranded DNA for replication.

Reference
[1] Harold Varmus: The Art and Politics of Science. W. W. Norton & Comany, New York and London, 2009; pages 128 to 130.

The Baltimore Classification System for viruses is named after David Baltimore, who proposed it

2011-06-27T22:11:00.000-07:00

The Baltimore Classification System for viruses is named after its developer David Baltimore. David Baltimore (born 1938 in New York) is an American biologist, who won the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine in 1975 together with co-recipients Renato Dulbecco and Howard Martin Temin for their discoveries concerning the interaction between tumor viruses and the genetic material of the cell [1].

The Baltimore classification accounts for the different mechanisms of viral genome replication. This system is schematically organized via the relationship between the viral genome and the messenger RNA (mRNA), which is critical in the translation during expression of the viral genome [2-4]. The following presentation of the Baltimore classification is based on the system and virus examples given in Bruce Voyles' book (first six classes) [4] and on web-based resources [2,3]:

Class I viruses, double-stranded DNA genomes: the genome is double-stranded DNA, so mRNA is synthesized in the normal fashion using negative-strand DNA as a template. Examples: adenovirus, hepatitis B virus, cauliflower mosaic virus.
Class II viruses, single-stranded DNA genones: the genome is single-stranded DNA. At the time this scheme was proposed, only positive-strand Class II viruses were known, but negative-stand viruses have since been found. They are now designated Class IIa and Class IIb, respectively. Examples: parvovirus, maize streak virus.
Class III viruses, double-stranded RNA genomes: the genome is double-stranded RNA, one strand of which is therefore equivalent to mRNA. These viruses have segmented genomes. Each genome is transcribed separately to produce monocistronic mRNAs. Examples: reovirus, rotavirus.
Class IV viruses, positive-strand RNA genomes: the genome is single-stranded RNA that can serve as mRNA directly, so these are positive-strand viruses. There are two subclasses (IVa and IVb) based on differences in mechanisms for expression and replication of the genome in these viruses. Examples: poliovirus, hepatitis A virus, coxsackievirus, tobacco mosaic virus.
Class V viruses, negative-strand RNA genomes: the genome is single-stranded RNA that cannot serve directly as mRNA, but is instead the template for the synthesis of viral mRNA. Since the genome is complementary to the viral mRNAs, these are negative-strand viruses. Class Va and Vb viruses are also distinguished by differences in the mechanism used in expression and replication of their genomes. Examples: rabies virus, mumps virus, measles virus, influenza A and B, Lassa virus.
Class VI viruses, retroviruses, also termed RNA-tumor viruses: the genome is positive-strand RNA but its expression and replication require synthesis of a double-stranded DNA molecule (reverse transcription). Example: human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).
Class VII viruses: double-stranded DNA with RNA intermediate: This group of viruses relies on reverse transcription, but unlike the Class VI retroviruses, the transcription occurs inside the virus particle on maturation. On infection of a new cell, the first event to occur is repair of gapped genome, followed by transcription. Example: hepadnaviruses.

References and suggested reading
[1] David Baltimore, 1975 Nobel Laureate in Medicine: nobelprizes.com/nobel/medicine/1975a.html.
[2] ViralZone: The Baltimore classification clusters viruses into families depending on their type of genome [expasy.org/viralzone/all_by_species/254.html].
[3] Virology Tutorial: Classification of Viruses [www.nlv.ch/Virologytutorials/Classification.htm].
[4] Bruce A. Voyles: The Biology of Viruses. WCB/McGraw-Hill, Salem, MA, 1993; pages 29-32.

Acronym in Virology and International Cooperation: ICTV for International Committee on the Taxonomy of Viruses

2011-06-25T21:49:00.000-07:00

ICTV stands for International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses. This organization takes on the task of developing, refining, and maintaining a universal virus taxonomy [1]. Many viruses are known by acronym such as ALV or RSV, which is easy to memorize and a good start to find more information by going to the ICTV database (ICTVdB). The ICTVdB Index of Viruses contains an alphabetically ordered list (including Greek letters and number prefixes) of virus acronyms. For example, for RSV the species name Rous sarcoma virus is given in italics and clickable to find details such as serotypes, strains and isolates. The virus name Rous sarcoma virus is shown in black, indicating that this is the accepted name. Browsing through the name list, you'll find names in various colors, indicating the taxonomic status.

The ICTV websites also include pages describing virus nomenclature, classification and provide access to taxonomy proposals. As an additional introduction to the virosphere and virus taxonomy, I like the sections How are Viruses Named? and The Baltimore Classification as well as What is a Virus? in the book by Bruce Voyles on Virus Biology [2].

References and suggested reading
[1] Vincent Racaniello: How viruses are classified. August 7, 2009 [www.virology.ws/2009/08/07/how-viruses-are-classified].
[2] Bruce A. Voyles: The Biology of Viruses. WCB/McGraw-Hill, Salem, MA, 1993; pages 27-32.

The sobriquet Brownstein

2011-06-23T21:08:00.000-07:00

The sobriquet Brownstein refers to the two medical scientists Michael Stuart Brown (born 1941, USA) and Joseph Leonard Goldstein (born 1940, USA), who are sharing the 1985 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine, awarded for their discoveries concerning the regulation of the cholesterol metabolism [1].

Another Nobel Laureate in Medicine, Harold Varmus presents the Brownstein Duo [my term] as one of those rare examples of two individuals, who are working closely together for over a decade without legal ties, yet collaborating productively and becoming famous together (Chapter 8: Partnership in Science in [2]). Varmus points out the very similar age and training of Goldstein and Brown and their shared passion for understanding cholesterol metabolism, blood lipids, and atherosclerosis. Although they differ in their personalities, accents (South Carolina and New York), social relationships and cultural interests, their scientific bond brought them success. The German word Stein means rock, often used as a metaphor for something difficult to break—like a jointly earned Nobel Prize.

References and further reading
[1] Harold Varmus: The Art and Politics of Science. W. W. Norton & Comany, New York and London, 2009; page 115.
[2] 1985 Nobel Laureates in Medicine: Michael S. Brown [almaz.com/nobel/medicine/1985a.html] and Joseph L. Goldstein [almaz.com/nobel/medicine/1985b.html].

Acronym in physics: BCS standing for three physicists, who theoretically explained superconductivity

2011-06-22T20:22:00.000-07:00

BCS stands for the physicists John Bardeen, Leon Cooper and Robert Schrieffer, who jointly developed a theory of superconductivity, what earned them the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1972 [1]. Their theory was originally published in 1957, giving an explanation of superconductivity, a phenomenon now known to occur in some 26 metallic elements and many compounds and alloys at (relatively) low temperatures [2]. The element, in which superconductivity was discovered in 1911, is mercury [3]: Heike Kammerlingh Onnes at Leiden University in the Netherlands cooled a sample of mercury to around 4 K and noticed that the electrical resistivity of the metal dropped to zero [4,5].

The BCS model is based on the two assumptions that (1) the superconducting particles are fermions [particles with half-integer spins: 1/2, 3/2, 5/2 … units of angular momentum, electron has spin 1/2] and that (2) they attract each other [5]. The key insight is that an electron moving through an elastic crystal lattice creates a slight distortion of the lattice, which, if persisting long enough, can affect a following electron. Cooper showed that this effect results in a current of bound electrons—the Cooper pairs—in superconductors [2,5]. Cooper pairing is a quantum effect.

BCS biographical notes [6]:
John Bardeen: American physicist, * May 23, 1908 in Madison (Wisconsin), † January 30, 1991 in Boston (Mass.), earned the Nobel Prize of Physics twice: first with Brattain and Shockley in 1956 for work on the transistor, second as mentioned above.
More at nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/1956/bardeen.html.
Leon N. Cooper: American physicist, * February 2, 1930 in New York.
More at nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/1972/cooper-bio.html.
John Robert Schrieffer: American physicist, * May 31, 1931 in Oak Park (Illinois).
More at nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/1972/schrieffer.html.

References and more to explore
[1] Thomas Burgner (2007): What is BCS Theory? see page 2 (and following pages) in katzgraber.org/teaching/SS07/files/burgener.pdf.
[2] Oxford Dictionary of Physics. Fourth and revised edition. Oxford University Press, New York, 2003.
[3] Hg, see solid state sniplink at www.axeleratio.com/csm/mm/mateval.php?matform=Hg.
[4] J. Stajic, R. Coontz and I. Osborne: Happy 100th, Superconductivity! Science April 8, 2011, 322 (6026), page 189. [www.sciencemag.org/content/332/6026/189].
[5] Adrian Cho: Superconductivity's Smorgasbord Of Insights: A Movable Feast. Science April 8, 2011, 322 (6026), pp. 190-192. [www.sciencemag.org/content/332/6026/190.short].
[6] Autorenkollektiv: Lexikon der Naturwissenschaftler. Spektrum Akademischer Verlag, Heidelberg•Berlin, 2000.

Acronym in virology: ALV for avian leukosis virus

2011-06-20T22:16:00.000-07:00

In the biology of viruses, the acronym ALV stands for avian leukosis virus [1]. The ALVs are closely related to RSV, the progenitor of which is assumed to have been an ALV [2]. In a chapter with the title “How Proto-oncogenes Participate in Cancer,” Harold Varmus explains the role that ALV played in cancer research. ALV is a retrovirus without viral oncogenes. Yet, ALV infects chickens, which can lead to cancer. Varmus tells us that the graduate student Greg Payne showed that—by studying chicken lymphomas—ALV proviruses could be found in cellular DNA on either sides of a proto-oncogene and in either orientation: a good starting point to “zoom in” and—at supramolecular level— investigate how proviruses affect expression of adjacent proto-oncogenes.

In a review on avian oncogenic viruses, Irit Davidson also connects avian tumor viruses and human tumor research [3]. He presents viral-induced tumors in poultry and discusses findings for avian oncogenic viruses including the retroviruses ALV, avian leucosis virus subgroup J (ALV-J), reticuloendotheliosis virus (REV) and lymphoproliferative disease virus (LPDV) as well as a herpesvirus named Marek's diseases virus (MDV).

Is there any virus without an acronym?

References and further reading
[1] Acronym Finder: www.acronymfinder.com/ALV.html.
[2] Harold Varmus: The Art and Politics of Science. W. W. Norton & Comany, New York and London, 2009; pages 93 to 95.
[3] Irit Davidson: The Knowledge that Human Tumor Virology can Gain from Studies on Avian Tumor Viruses. Advances in Tumor Virology 2009, 1, 9-19. [PDF file available at http://www.la-press.com].

Acronym in geology and climate science: PETM for Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum

2011-06-18T23:07:00.000-07:00

In earth science and climatology, PETM stands for Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum. This is a transient climate perturbation, associated with a brief, but intense, interval of global warming at the end of the Paleocene (65-56 mya) and the beginning of the Eocene (56-34 mya) [1,2]. Dissociation of oceanic methane hydrate has been hypothesized as a cause, but various other factors need to be considered [3].

The PETM as a global warming event is often compared with current global warming trends. Lee R. Kump illustrates that global temperature is rising much faster today (1 to 4 °C per 100 years) than it did during the PETM (0.025 °C per 100 years) [2]. He explains that, based on the fossil record, one can conclude that the speed of climate change has a much greater ecological impact than the extent of change, because adjusting to rapid climate change is very difficult for most biological species.

References and further reading
[1] U. Röhl, T. Westerhold, T. J. Bralower and J. C. Zachos: On the duration of the Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum (PETM). Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems December 2007, 8 (2), 13 pages [www.es.ucsc.edu/~jzachos/pubs/Roehl_etal_07.pdf].
[2] L. R. Kump: The Last Great Global Warming. Sci. Am. July 2011, 305 (1), 56-61 [www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=the-last-great-global-warming].
[3] J. A. Higgins and D. P. Schrag: Beyond methane: Towards a theory for the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 2006, 245, 523-537 [environment.harvard.edu/docs/faculty_pubs/schrag_beyond.pdf].

A short term in astronomy: H-R for Hertzsprung-Russell, naming the stellar luminosity/surface-temperature diagram

2011-06-18T21:32:00.000-07:00

The H-R diagram, short for Hertzsprung-Russell diagram, is named after the Danish astronomer Ejnar Hertzsprung (1873-1967) and the American astronomer Henry Norris Russell (1877-1957) [1]. This diagram is celebrating its centennial this year. Ken Croswell provides the detailed naming history of this diagram [2]:

Ejnar Hertzspung sketched his first luminosoty-color diagram of star clusters in 1908. German astronomer Hans Rosenberg, who likely knew of Hertzsprung's work, published such a diagram in 1910, and Hertzsprung himself published several in 1911. At the time, he was an unknown. In contrast, Henry Norris Russell was one of America's foremost astronomers. In 1913, unaware of Hertzsprung's work, he plotted his own diagram. Because of Russell's prestige, astronomers first called the plot the Russell diagram, then the Russell-Hertzsprung diagram and finally—getting the historical order right—the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram.

What a plot!

The H-R diagrams is a plot of the visual luminosity versus the surface temperature of stars including supergiants, white and brown dwarfs and, of course, our sun [2.1, 3]. The main groups of clustered or roughly lined-up stars in the diagram represent supergiants, giants, main sequence stars and white dwarfs. The H-R diagram is a vital pattern recognition tool to explore similarities and differences between stars and to compare some of their properties. With the help of the H-R diagram, for example, you can check your understanding of the life cycle of a star [4].

References
[1] Autorenkollektiv: Lexikon der Naturwissenschaftler. Spektrum Akademischer Verlag, Heidelberg•Berlin, 2000.
[2] Ken Croswell: The Periodic Table of the Cosmos. Sci. Am. July 2011, 305 (1), 44-49. DOI: dx.doi.org/10.1038/scientificamerican0711-44.
[2.1] A User's Guide to the H-R Diagram: www.nature.com/scientificamerican/journal/v305/n1/box/scientificamerican0711-44_BX1.html.
[3] Hertzsprung-Russel Diagram: cassfos02.ucsd.edu/public/tutorial/HR.html.
[4] Hertzsprung-Russel Diagram: aspire.cosmic-ray.org/labs/star_life/hr_diagram.html.

Acronym in virology: RSV denoting different viruses

2011-06-15T21:46:00.000-07:00

In the biology of viruses, the acronym RSV may stand for Rous sarcoma virus, respiratory syncytical virus, rice stripe virus and ragged stunt virus [1,2]. To distinguish the latter two viruses, which can infect rice plants, the ragged stunt virus is often referred to as rice ragged stunt virus with acronym RRSV [2]. The respiratory syncytial virus can infect humans, causing mild, cold-like symptoms in adults and older children, but may cause more serious problems in babies [3].

The Rous sarcoma virus is a chicken virus, belonging to the oncovirinae subfamily of retroviruses [4]. It was the first tumor virus to be described in the literature, discovered by Peyton Rous at the Rockefeller Institute in New York in 1911. The virus is now bearing his name. For his discovery of this tumorinducing virus, Peyton Rous was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine in 1966 (actually half the prize, Charles Brenton Huggins received the other half for his discovery concerning hormonal treatment of prostatic cancer) [5].

The Nobel Prize-winning cancer researcher Harold Varmus provides a brief history of the discovery of the Rous sarcoma virus and illuminates its significance in the context of later research and discoveries, including viral cancer genes, proto-oncogenes and multiplication strategies for retroviruses such as HIV [6]. Varmus notes, that Peyton Rous, ironically, became an opponent, rather than a proponent, of the genetic origins of cancer that his virus ultimately helped to reveal.

References and further reading
[1] Acronym Finder: www.acronymfinder.com/RSV.html.
[2] Research Team for Vector-Borne Diseases: Molecular detection of nine rice viruses by a reverse-transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay. J. Virol. Methods Dec. 2010, 170 (1-2), 90-93.[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20837064].
[3] MedlinePlus: Respiratory Syncytical Virus Infection [www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/respiratorysyncytialvirusinfections.html].
[4] Bruce A. Voyles: The Biology of Viruses. WCB/McGraw-Hill, Salem, MA, 1993; page 280.
[5] Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medine Winners 2010-1901: www.nobelprizes.com/nobel/medicine.
[6] Harold Varmus: The Art and Politics of Science. W. W. Norton & Comany, New York and London, 2009; pages 53 to 55.

A non-inviting name for an exciting place: Sperrgebiet National Park

2011-06-13T21:07:00.000-07:00

The masculine noun Sperrgebiet is a compositum derived from the German words sperren and Gebiet. The verb sperren means to close or to cordon off and the noun Gebiet means area or district. Thus, Sperrgebiet means prohibited area or forbidden area—forbidden for unauthorized persons. Such a word does not sound inviting, but in Namibia a National Park got this term in its name for historical reasons. In 1908, when present-day Namibia was South-West Africa, a German protectorate (colony), diamonds were found in its southwest corner, which was then declared Sperrgebiet and made accessible only to a diamond company and its miners [1].

Namibia, one of the world's first nations to write environmental protection into its constitution, set its entire Atlantic coast aside as a string of National Parks with the exception of a few towns and mining areas. Between Angola in the north and South Africa you'll find Iona National Park, Skeleton Coast Park (another non-inviting name!), Dorob National Park, Namib-Naukluft Park, Namibian Islands' Marine Protected Area and—last not least—Sperrgebiet National Park (see map on page 69 in [1]).

A Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET) concessionaire is needed to travel into Sperrgebiet National Park. Don't be surprised if you find other German names there such as Bogenfels, meaning arch-rock, for a colossal 55m tall rock arch (different languages, different word order) at the southern extremity of the park [2]. You shouldn't have problems with the translation of Diamantenmine to diamond mine. But what you are supposed to do, if you find a diamond, I don't know.

References and interesting links
[1] Alexandra Fuller: Africa's Super Park. National Geographic June 2011, 219 (6), 60-77. [ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/06/namibia-park/fuller-text].
[2] The Sperrbebiet National Park: http://www.namibian.org/travel/namibia/sperrgebiet.html.

Göbekli Tepe means Potbelly Hill

2011-06-12T21:28:00.000-07:00

Tepe means hill, mound or knoll in Turkish. In southeastern Turkey, north of the border of Syria and north (or within) the Fertile Crescent of the Neolithic, we find place names such as Ziyaret Tepe, Kenan Tepe and Göbekli Tepe on today's archaeological maps [1-5]. All these tepes and the surrounding areas are digging sites. Göbekli Tepe is located nine miles to the east of the Turkish town of Şanlıurfa, (also known by the shorter name Urfa). Göbekli Tepe means Potbelly Hill. Local people gave this name to the site, which is part of a ridge and has the shape of a rounded crest [5].

Being much older than Stonehenge, Göbekli Tepe has made a lot of headlines over recent years as the first temple and spiritual meeting place (sometimes with a question mark [4]). Among the mysteries and fascinating artworks of this neolithic architecture are the relief animals carved in its stone pillars. There also is a fierce-looking creature erupting from a limestone wall, similar to sculptures we find at gothic church buildings.

The archaeologist Klaus Schmidt of the German Archaeological Institue (DAI), who is researching this site for over ten years together with European and Turkish scientists, gives us hints that excavation results can be interpreted in various ways. Was this a spiritual locus or a Neolithic Tivoli Garden? Further, this place has a Trojan dimensions, at least in the vertical direction: Schmidt is not certain if the bottom layer has been uncovered yet. Göbekli Tepe may change our understanding of the history of civilization. Schmidt makes an interesting point that the common belief (twenty years ago) was, that civilization was driven by ecological forces, but that we are now learning that civilization is a product of the human mind [5]. Whatever the driving forces behind this site, we at least can agree in the spirit of Louis Armstrong and Fats Domino: I found my thrill on Potbelly Hill!

Keywords: geography, history, archeology, nomadic people, hunter-gatherers

References
[1] Ziyaret Tepe: www3.uakron.edu/ziyaret/.
[2] L. S. Dodd, J. Schnereger, M. Abraham and B. J. Parker: Analysis of Metallurgical Finds at Kenan Tepe, Turkey. 2001 [arcserver.usc.edu/reports/reports/asorslag.pdf]. Note: this paper contains illustrative pictures of sites and findings.
[3] Sandra Scham: The World's First Temple. Archaeology Nov./Dec. 2008, 61 (6) [www.archaeology.org/0811/abstracts/turkey.html].
[4] Andrew Curry: Gobekli Tepe: The World's First Temple? Smithsonian, November 2008 [www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/gobekli-tepe.html].
[5] Charkes C. Mann: The Birth of Religion. National Geographic June 2011, 219 (6), 34-59. [ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/06/gobekli-tepe/mann-text/1].

Acronym in materials science: TSA for thaumasite sulfate attack

2011-06-10T22:07:00.000-07:00

Thaumasite (for chemical composition see a short-hand cement chemistry-notation) is a naturally occurring mineral. However, its formation and transformation is of interest in the construction and repair of concrete-based structures including buildings, roads, bridges and tunnels. In a sulfate- and carbonate-rich environment, thaumasite sulfate attack (TSA) causes phase changes in construction materials. Its function in the destruction of concrete bodies is a subject of ongoing research: Milan Drábik argues in a recent article of materials chemistry, that the TSA role should not be overestimated[1]: the quantification of the TSA portion of overall deterioration caused by thaumasite/sulfate interaction remains the subject of discussion and further investigations.

Keywords: materials science, technology, engineering, safety of buildings, damage, corrosion, chemical decomposition

Reference
[1] Milan Drábik: Thaumasite: Its Relevance to Sulphate Corrosion in Concrete. Nachrichten aus der Chemie May 2011, 59, VIII-X.
DOI: 10.1002/nadc.201180415.

A short-hand cement chemistry notation: CS · Cs · Cc · H15 for thaumasite

2011-06-10T21:31:00.000-07:00

CS · Cs · Cc · H₁₅ is a widely used short-hand notation for the mineral thaumasite [1]. In this notation, symbols CS, Cs, Cc and H₁₅ represent the four components calcium silicate, calcium sulfate, calcium carbonate and hydrate (water), respectively, as they occur in the formula of thaumasite's chemical composition: CaSiO₃ · CaSO₃ · CaCO₃ · 15H₂O. Another common formula presentation is [Ca₃Si(OH)₆·12H₂O)](SO₄)(CO₃). Information snippets regarding thaumasite and various references can be found at Materials Matter! : Ca3Si(OH)6(CO3)(SO4)(H2O)12.

This special notation is for use within its domain of interest: chemistry and technology of building materials and composites. Notice that the symbols C, H, S and Cs conflict with their use to represent the chemical elements carbon, hydrogen, sulfur and cesium (caesium): non-supervised parsing software may run into problems encountering this string.

Thaumasite is a naturally occurring mineral, but most of the research and public interest derives from its role (along with ettringite) as a deterioration product of concrete and mortar in a sulfate- and carbonate-rich environment.

Keywords: materials science, mineralogy, engineering, safety of buildings, damage, nomenclature, material formula

Reference
[1] Milan Drábik: Thaumasite: Its Relevance to Sulphate Corrosion in Concrete. Nachrichten aus der Chemie May 2011, 59, VIII-X.
DOI: 10.1002/nadc.201180415.

DMSP for dimethylsulfoniopropionate (cont'd) and 35S-DMSP for 35S-labeled dimethylsufoniopropionate

2011-06-09T21:17:00.000-07:00

The acronym and molecular structure of the zwitterionic compound dimethylsulfoniopropionate (also spelled dimethylsulphoniopropionate) has been presented recently. In continuation of that post, I like to point to interesting links for DMSP at Materials Matter!: C5H10O2S. Further, there is a link (more being expected) for the ³⁵S-labeled compound, abbreviated as ³⁵S-DMSP: C5H10O2^35S.

Acronym in chemistry and materials science: BSA for bis(trimethylsilyl)acetamide

2011-06-05T19:25:00.000-07:00

In chemistry, BSA is short for bis(trimethylsilyl)acetamide. Structurally more precise is N,O-bis(trimethylsilyl)acetamide and more systematic, with regard to nomenclature rules, are the longer names N-trimethylsilyl-1-trimethylsilyloxyethanimine and trimethylsilyl N-(trimethylsilyl)ethanecarboximidate. (CH₃)₃SiOC(CH₃)=NSi(CH₃)₃ is a structural formula for BSA, from which the empirical formula C₈H₂₁NOSi₂ (molar mass: 203.43 g/mol) is derived. Further identifiers: CAS number 10416-59-8, ChemSpider ID 4523073 [trimethylsilyl (1E)-N-(trimethylsilyl)ethanimidioate], and Gelest Product Code SIB1846.0 [1].

BSA melts (freezes) at -24 °C. Its flash point is 42 °C and it can be distilled around 72°C under reduced pressure at 35 mm [1]. BSA has been applied, for example, to the derivatization (silylation) of alcohols, phenols, aldehydes and ketones and the formation of peptide bonds: find examples at Materials Matter! using matform C8H21NOSi2 or bookmark, share and link BSA properties and applications of your interest.

Reference
[1] Barry Arkles (Editor): Silicon, Germanium, Tin and Lead Compounds, Metal Alkoxides, Diketonates and Carboxylates - A Survey of Properties and Chemistry. 2nd edition, Gelest, Inc., 1998; SIB1846.0 on page 125.

Acronym in chemistry and materials science: HMDS for hexamethyldisilazane

2011-06-04T18:57:00.000-07:00

In chemistry, HMDS is short for hexamethyldisilazane or, structurally more precise, 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexamethyldisilazane. The acronym HMDZ has also been used to denote this reagent. The IUPAC name is bis(trimethylsilyl)amine for this compound with molecular structure (CH₃)₃SiNHSi(CH₃)₃ and empirical formula C₆H₁₉NSi₂ (molar mass: 161.39 g/mol). Further identifiers: CAS number 999-97-3, EC number 213-668-5, RTECS number JM9230000 and Gelest Product Code SIH6110.0 [1].

HMDS is a colorless liquid. Its flash point is 12 °C, its boiling point 126-7°C and its vapor pressure at 50°C is 50 mm [1]. HMDS is a versatile silylation reagent. Further properties and applications of HMDS can be found, for example, via Materials Matter! using matform C6H19NSi2.

Reference
[1] Barry Arkles (Editor): Silicon, Germanium, Tin and Lead Compounds, Metal Alkoxides, Diketonates and Carboxylates - A Survey of Properties and Chemistry. 2nd edition, Gelest, Inc., 1998; SIH6110.0 on page 177.

A nickname in biology: domino for whale shark

2011-05-21T22:23:00.000-07:00

We all know the game domino, consisting of tiles with their front side divided into faces that are dotted with spots to represent number values. Dot patterns are common in the world of human design as well as in the natural world. The whale shark, a polka-dotted gentle giant living in tropical and warm-temperate seas, is nicknamed domino for the spots on its back [1]. A Mexican conservation group, which works on studying and protecting whale sharks, is accordingly called Proyecto Dominó.

The whale shark (Rhincodon typus) is a filter feeder, living of plankton and small fish [2]. Divers often get near dominoes. A diver swimming next to a domino is a good measuring unit. Peter Klimley reports [3]: a whale shark was five times longer than a diver with long flippers, 8 feet total, suggesting a fish length of 40 feet. The whale-like appearance and feeding behavior makes a domino a peaceful diving fellow, but carnivorous sharks such as hammerheads and blacktip reef sharks can be nearby, as Peter Klimley experienced on a diving trip in the waters above the Gorda Seamount off the tip of the peninsula of Baja California.

Domino spots are variously described as white, yellow or blue. Most intriguing, the spot patterns are unique and allow scientists to identify an individual domino per computer program—kind of a natural bar code system. Certainly, these “dot codes” didn't evolve for human- or computer-based pattern recognition. But what kind of advantage do they provide? Better mutual recognition, greater sex appeal or camouflage?

References and suggested reading
[1] Juliet Eilperin: Swimming with Sharks. Smithsonian June 2011, 42 (3), pp. 34-40.
[2] National Geographic: Whale Shark (Rhinocodon typus) [animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/whale-shark/].
[3] A. Peter Klimley: The Secret Life of Sharks. Simon & Schuster, New York, 2003; pages 77 and 110.

A word in geography: char for a constantly changing floodplain island

2011-05-19T22:05:00.000-07:00

Char, a word that looks like shorthand for the word character or charcoal—and also is used that way—has a special meaning in geography and geomorphology: a constantly changing, vanishing and (re)appearing island on the floodplains of a river; in particular, of one of the three major rivers of Bangladesh—the Padma, Jamuna and Meghna [1]. A typical char is a sandbank island (channel bar), called island char, which is completely surrounded by water of a river channel. In addition, there are attached chars; as the name suggests, they are attached to a riverbank [2].

Chars can be dry or flooded depending on tide, season and rainfall. In Bangladesh, char dwellers have adapted their life to the river and char dynamics. They build movable houses (different from mobile homes) and grow crops on char ground and switch chars when water levels demand. Although vulnerable to erosion and flood hazards, chars have groundwater in addition to the river water and most chars provide grasslands for cattle grazing.

References and further reading
[1] Don Belt: Buoyant in Bangladesh. National Geographic May 2011, 219 (5), pp. 58-83 [ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/05/bangladesh/belt-text].
[2] Banglapedia: Char [www.banglapedia.org/httpdocs/HT/C_0135.HTM].

Acronym in materials science: NIB for neodymium-iron-boron

2011-05-17T21:52:00.000-07:00

In materials science and engineering, the acronym NIB stands for three chemical elements: neodymium-iron-boron. The reason for grouping these three elements together is that they can be alloyed into strong magnets with an energy product of about 470 kJ·m^-3 [1].

NIB-based alloys belong to a particular material class which is critical to the design of rare-earth magnets and named rare-earth iron alloys, typically referring to alloys with a composition of two rare earth atoms to 14 iron atoms and one boron atom [2].

In NIB the rare-earth element is neodymium, which may partially be substituted by dysprosium to obtain magnets for high-temperature applications, for example, in car engines.
Change of chemical composition, by including other element types and varying atomic ratios, results in alloys with different magnetic properties (see Table IV-1 in [2]). In addition to dysprosium, samarium and praseodymium are used.

Iron atoms in NIB-based alloys have been substituted by copper, cobalt, zirconium and hafnium atoms. Corresponding energy products range from 130 to 400 kJ·m^-3. But much higher values are desired for green technologies. A nanostructured, multilayered material composed of alternating Sm₂Fe₁₇N₃ and Fe₆₅Co₃₅ layers can theoretically reach an energy product close to 1 MJ·m^-3 [3]. But current technology has not yet reached the stage of fabrication to get magnets with energy products that come anywhere near this upper boundary.

References and detailed information
[1] Nicola Jones: The Pull of Stronger Magnets. Nature, April 7, 2011, 472 (7341), pp. 22-23. DOI: 10.1038/472022a.
[2] Magnetic Materials Producer Association: Standard Specifications for Permanent Magnet Materials [www.intl-magnetics.org/pdfs/0100-00.pdf].
[3] Ralph Skomski and J. M. D. Coey: Giant energy product in nanostructured two-phase magnets. Phys. Rev B. 1993, 48 (21), pp. 15812-15816. DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevB.48.15812.
.

An early mammal named Liaoconodon hui

2011-05-10T12:25:00.000-07:00

Liaoconodon hui is a Cretaceous eutriconodont mammal of the order Eutriconodonta, whose representatives are only known as fossils. The name indicates its geographic origin, anatomic signature and an honored researcher [1]:

Liao: short for the Liaoning Province in northeastern China, where the fossilized skeleton of the described species was found in the Jiufotang Formation,
conodon: a common, Latin-derived suffix for generic names in animal taxonomy, meaning cuspate tooth (tooth with a pointed or rounded projection on the chewing surface; the Latin word cuspis means point),
hui: after Yaoming Hu, a palaeontology student dedicated to the study of Mesozoic mammals.

The species is described as a medial-sized eutriconodont with a total body length (including the tail) of about 35 cm and with dental formula I3.CI.P2.M3/i2.c1.p2.m4 [1]; some knowledge you may want to impress your dentist with at your next visit.

This early mammal species is of interest in evolutionary biology: particularly in understanding the evolution of placental mammals and marsupials (Theria) and egg-laying mammals (monotremes) by studying the morphology and homologies of the middle ear [2].

Keywords: palaeontology, etymology, taxonomy, vertebrates, mammalia, cranium of mammals, ear ossicles

References and further reading
[1] J. Meng, Y. Wang and C. Li: Transitional mammalian middle ear from a new Cretaceous Jehol eutriconodont. Nature April 14, 2011, 472 (7342), pp. 181-185. DOI: 10.1038/nature09921.
[2] Posted by Taylor Reints: A newly Described Eutriconodont from the Early Cretaceous of Northeastern China possessing a Transitional Middle Ear [scienceasweknowit.blogspot.com/2011/04/newly-described-eutriconodont-from.html].

When potassium or sodium bicarbonate was used in baking powders: saleratus (Latin for “salt” and “aerated”)

2011-05-05T20:31:00.000-07:00

The word saleratus has its roots in New Latin: sal aeratus, meaning aerated salt [1]. Saleratus was the name for potassium bicarbonate (KHCO₃) or sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO₃), which was sold in the mid-19th century as baking powder (baking soda) in paper packets [2]: in North America, settlers heading west and Civil War soldiers looking for fast food used saleratus to make “lightnin‘bread” or “aerated bread” in skillets over campfire. Baking soda easily develops carbon dioxide gas on heating and contact with acidic substances such as vinegar, while yeast takes hours and some baking experience to achieve equally fluffy food.

Beyond baking: saleratus became a product of many uses including the treatment of burns, abrasions and indigestions as well as cleaning and odor elimination (such as sulfide odors) [3]. Although the name saleratus is rarely used today—other than in historical context—the ingredients of this “industrial revolution product” and their chemical reactivities are.

Keywords: chemical history, household products, baking, raising agent, alkali hydrogenecarbonates

References
[1] The Free Dictionary: saleratus [www.thefreedictionary.com/saleratus].
[2] Jane E. Boyd: Rise Up. Chemical Heritage Spring 2011, 29 (1), page 9.
[3] Buzzle.com: sodium bicarbonate uses [www.buzzle.com/articles/sodium-bicarbonate-uses.html].

Synonyms in mathematics and string theory: originally called octaves, now known as octonions or Cayley numbers

2011-04-28T21:34:00.000-07:00

Octonions build an eight-dimensional number system— the largest of the four sets of numbers of normed devision algebra [1,2]. Baez and Huerla (both with first name John) describe how they were discovered by John Graves (another John!), who called them octaves [3]. Graves communicated his findings to the Irish mathematician William Rowan Hamilton. Although Hamilton was not interested in these numbers, he reported them at the Irish Royal Society. Without any written publication, Arthur Cayley, one of the Invariant Twins [4], rediscovered the octonions and beat Graves to publication. Thus, octonions are also known as Cayley numbers—and not as Graves numbers.

Octonions are the elements in a Cayley algebra [5]. Like the multiplication of quaternions, the multiplication of octonions is noncommutative: order matters. Multiplication of octonions is not even associative. But they have two “very good properties” [2]: every nonzero octonion has a multiplicative inverse, and two nonzero octonions never multiply together to give zero. John Graves amateur interest (he was a lawyer) in algebra and his imagination of numbers with supernatural properties remains striking, especially, when considering their growing importance in explaining the universe and modeling the matter and forces therein.

Keywords: multidimensional systems, vector space, supersymmetry, spinors

References and further reading
[1] John C. Baez: The Octonions [math.ucr.edu/home/baez/octonions/].
[2] Timothy Gowers (Editor): The Princeton Companion to Mathematics. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, 2008; pp. 275 to 279.
[3] John C. Baez and John Huerta: The Strangest Numbers in String Theory. Sci. Am. May 2011, 304 (5), pp. 60-65 [www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=octonions-web-exclusive].
[4] Chapter 20 “Invariant Twins” in Men of Mathematics by E. T. Bell. Simon & Schuster, New York, 1937.
[5] Wolfram MathWorld: Octonion [mathworld.wolfram.com/Octonion.html].

The Indonesian mimic octopus (Thaumoctopus mimicus), named for its diverse mimicry displays

2011-04-23T19:17:00.000-07:00

The Indonesian mimic octopus (Thaumoctopus mimicus, Octopodidae family) is named for its ability to mimic various marine species including sea snakes, lionfish and flatfish [1,2]. The mimic octopus is relatively small in comparison to other octopus species. It normally shows dark and white stripes around its arms, but the pattern and depth of color changes depending on whether it attempts to blend in with its surroundings or mimic the appearance of other creatures.

In a recent ‘Natural History’ article in the journal Scientific American, Peter Forbes offers examples of animal mimicry, studied in butterfly and moth populations—and the mimic octopus [3]. He describes, how Thaumoctopus mimicus, in addition to its coloration tricks, mimics movement behavior of other species within its habitat. For example, it masquerades as a flounder by holding its arms together to copy the flounder's shape and to replicate the flounder's mode of swimming by undulating. Among humans, we call this impersonation. Considering octopus-flounder mimicry, my term of choice is flounderation. For an octopus, this means not fun or show time (or maybe it does, too), but irritation and deception of predators and probably also disguise of its own predating activity.

Keywords: marine biology, Cephalopoda, Octopoda, camouflage, tropical seas of South East Asia

References and more to explore
[1] The Indonesian Mimic Octopus (Thaumoctopus mimicus) Sulawesi [http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1888654667283528144#].
[2] Roger T. Hanlon, Lou-Anne Conroy and John W. Forsythe: Mimicry and foraging behavior of two tropical sand-flat octopus species off North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Biol. J. Linn. Soc. January 2008, 93 (1), 23-38. DOI: 10.1111/j.1095-8312.2007.00948.x.
[3] Peter Forbes: Masters of Disguise. Sci. Am. May 2011, 304 (5), pp.80-83 [www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=masters-of-disguise].

Lorquin's admiral, a Californian butterfly named after gold-seeker Pierre Lorquin

2011-04-22T19:43:00.000-07:00

Lorquin's admiral (Limenitis lorquini, Nymphalidae family) is a butterfly species named after Pierre Joseph Michel Lorquin, who came from France to California during the gold rush in the 1850s [1]. In search of gold, he found and got interested in butterflies instead [2]: No field notes (if any taken) or letters survived; but he is said to be California's first lepidopterist.

Lorquin's admiral resembles the California Sister (Adelpha bredowii) of the brushfoot family [2-4]: both species have upperwing patterns of white diagonals on a dark background and an orange spot on each tip of their forewings. But Lorquin's admiral is smaller and its orange spots extend to the forewing edges. The admiral is found in scrub and oak woodland and riparian habitat of the Coast Ranges and Sierran valleys up to 8000 feet, where Pierre may have observed and flirted with his namesake, forgetting about the gold nuggets.

Keywords: lepidopterology, history, taxonomy, North American West Coast

References and more to explore
[1] Arthur M. Shapiro: Field Guide to Butterflies of the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento Valley Region. UC Press [http://www.metroactive.com/metro/08.01.07/field-guide-to-butterflies-0731.html].
[2] Joe Eaton: The Color of Flight - Falling for Butterflies in the East Bay. Bay Nature April-June 2011, pp. 16-20 [http://baynature.org/articles/apr-jun-2011/the-color-of-flight].
[3] Peter Alden and Fred Heath: Field Guide to California. Chanticleer Press, Inc and Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., New York, Seventh Printing 2007; page 214.
[4] Art Shapiro's Butterfly Site: Limenitis lorquini [http://butterfly.ucdavis.edu/butterfly/Limenitis/lorquini].

Acronym in biodiversity and intellectual property context: MGR for marine genetic resource

2011-04-21T21:08:00.000-07:00

In the context of global genetic resource management, the acronym MGR stands for marine genetic resource [1]. MGRs are part of the most biodiverse habitat on Earth and include species of macro- and micro-organisms, many of which are living in complex symbiotic relationships [2]. Although the understanding of MGRs and their interrelationships is incomplete, knowledge of selected marine organisms and parts thereof is growing and available on various scales, often on molecular level. Marine molecules, for example thermostable enzymes from deep-sea, hydrothermal vent organisms, are of increasing interest in drug discovery and biotechnology. With respect to their potential market value, patent claims associated with MGRs are on the rise.

A raw natural material cannot be claimed per se, but isolated and purified extractions therefrom can. According to a recent article, ten countries account for 90% of patent claims associated with marine genes [1]. The authors of that article identify a broadening gap in oceanographic and biotechnological capacities among countries, discuss legal gaps concerning international waters and also weigh possibilities for a future governance framework for MGRs.

For those of us, who just want to learn what is there, the Census of Marine Life is a resourceful harbor, containing, among many other discovery gadgets, a Census Resources and Media Resources menu.

Keywords: oceanography, marine biology, bioprospecting, patentability, international consensus

References and resources
[1] S. Arnaud-Haond, J. M. Arrieta and C. M. Duarte: Marine Biodiversity and Gene Patents. Science March 25, 2011, 331 (6024), pp. 1521-1522.
DOI: 10.1126/science.1200783.
[2] L. Evens-Illidge: Towards a practical knowledgebase for marine genetic resources [http://www.un.org/Depts/los/consultative_process/documents/8_abstract_evans_illidge.pdf].

Three-letter atomic symbols for chemical elements

2011-04-11T18:38:00.000-07:00

Known chemical elements have one- or two-letter atomic symbols. Predicted chemical elements typically occur in the scientific literature with three-letter symbols until they receive a permanent name and symbol from the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC). The temporary designators for new chemical elements are systematically derived from their atomic number. For example, the element 114 is named ununquadium and its symbol is Uuq. The name is composed from the numerical roots un and quad for digits 1 and 4. The symbol is derived from the corresponding first letters of these roots. The element with atomic number 112 occurred in the literature as ununbium (bi for 2), having symbol Uub, before it was officially named copernicium (Cn).

In the context of data mining and cheminformatics applications, atoms, isotopes and nuclidic isomers of temporary-designator elements can be encoded in linear notation using the grammar and format options of the CurlySMILES language: an atomic node wild card with an MDAM annotation {!a} including a dictionary entry with key nuc and ila.

Lutetium, lutecium, cassiopeium—different names and spellings for the same chemical element

2011-04-11T16:09:00.000-07:00

Lutetium (pronounced ‘loo-tee-shi-uhm’) is a metallic chemical element—the last member of the lanthanide series. The name derives from Lutetia, the ancient name for Paris [1], where it was discovered (in not so ancient times) in 1907 by G. Urbain. Independently, it was discovered by C. James at the University of New Hampshire, USA [2] and by Carl Auer von Welsbach in Austria [3]. Lutecium is an older spelling, which was changes to lutetium in 1949.

The atomic number of lutetium is 71 and the atomic symbol is Lu. However, one may also find the symbol Cp in the (older) literature and table works. Cp derives from cassiopeium, the name given by von Welsbach in reference to the northern-sky star constellation Cassiopeia. The element was called cassiopeium by German-speaking chemists during the first half of the twentieth century and frequently occurs in its traditional German spelling: Kassiopeium.

The key isotopes of lutetium are ¹⁷⁵Lu and ¹⁷⁶Lu with natural abundance values of 97.4% and 2.59% [2], respectively. Compare these values with the relative abundance given in a German-language publication [4]: ¹⁷⁵Cp:¹⁷⁶Cp=100:2,58±0.07 (notice the use of symbol Cp and of a comma as decimal point).

Keywords: chemistry, history, nomenclature, rare-earth elements (German: Seltene Erden)

References and museum tour
[1] Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 88th Edition, 2007-2008; Section 4: the elements.
[2] John Emsley: The Elements. Third Edition. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK, 1998.
[3] Dr. Carl Freiherr Auer von Welsbach: www.althofen.at/AvW_Museum/Seiten_e/rundgang_e.html.
[4] J. Mattauch and H. Lichtblau: Ein bemerkenswertes Isotop des Cassiopeiums. Z. Phys. A 1938, 111 (7-8), pp. 514-521. DOI: 10.1007/BF01329513.