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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
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I have often wondered about the suffix "tron," having seen it in various words here and there, such as cyclotron, betatron, electronic, thyrotron, klystron, and mellotron (which was a cool instrument used by the Beatles that played tape loops of other instruments -- a sort of primitive sampler). There was also an animated film "Tron," which solidified in my mind the corny 1950's-science-fiction connotation of the word. I finally looked it up and discoverd that tron comes from the Greek for instrument.
Main Entry: -tron
Function: noun suffix
Etymology: Greek, suffix denoting an instrument; akin to Old English -thor, suffix denoting an instrument, Latin -trum
1 : vacuum tube <magnetron>
2 : device for the manipulation of subatomic particles <cyclotron>
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addict
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addict
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So why electron, neutron, positron etc?
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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And turtle or fencer's plastron.Except it is from Italian, not Greek.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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old hand
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old hand
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and what's with ladytron!?
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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dynatron
n.
5DYNA3 + (ELEC)TRON6 a four-electrode electron tube in which the anode functions as a dynode
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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That's cool, Alex. Thank you. Hey--any of you with Atomica, click it on balatron! Here's something about electrons, doc:
The word "elektron" in Greek means amber, the yellow fossilized resin of evergreen trees, a "natural plastic material" already known to the ancient Greeks. It was known that when amber was rubbed with dry cloth--producing what now one would call static electricity--it could attract light objects, such as bits of paper. http://www-spof.gsfc.nasa.gov/Education/whelect.html
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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What a wonderful way to wake up in the middle of the night:
Morning Becomes Electron!
I remember when we were going through all that cat, chicken tikka masala, amber rod, sheep's wool delightful nonsense here, we discussed the amber rods of the ancients. I wonder whether we hit up this electron angle in those all-over-the-map discussions?
If so, I'm glad it's come up again for a refresher; if not, I'm glad to learn more about amber rods and this derivation of electron. Jackie, thanks so much for providing that link! I've earmarked it because it has some other intriguing links on it.
And, Bingley, if you glance in on this thread, yes, this again is another reason why this board is such a gem. Long-nosed fish, papyrology, amber rods, and electrons--oh, joy!
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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why electron, neutron, positron etc?
The -on ending is just the Greek nominative/neuter case/gender marker. The -tr- is part of the root. It leaked over from the Greek word elektron into its extended use in much the same way the English -gate leaked over from Watergate to indicate any kind of government scandal with no thought as to its meaning. Don't go looking for any great meaning; there's no there there.
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old hand
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old hand
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> Don't go looking for any great meaning; there's no there there.
Gee, sounds like a lot of language; merely superimposing itself over a phenomenon, allowing us to feel comfortable. A certain sense of power and knowledge overcomes us when we know the word for something no matter how silly that word is. Our sense of pride and power is twofold if we can then recite some dodgy heresy etymology as well.
Reminds me of the little toddler in his cot/crib next to an open window who is suddenly confronted by an astounding looking self-guided thing that seems to defy gravity, hovering by the window looking in at the boy. The boy, awestruck by the dynamic fluttering sounds of the hovering creature turns to his mother and exclaims 'Wat'z dat!'. His mother turns briefly and offers 'A bird'. 'Oh!' says the boy turning away from the window.
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