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Carpal Tunnel
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This definition goofed in not mentioning that the "form-" refers to ants. formication For`mi`ca´tion Noun 1. formication - hallucinated sensation that insects or snakes are crawling over the skin; a common side-effect of extensive use of cocaine or amphetamines
And defintion also goofed in saying it is "hallucination". It is usually an illusion, a misinterpretation of itching from contact dermatitis, etc.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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And the connection with formica is?
Bingley
Bingley
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Carpal Tunnel
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Methyl alcohol has an aldehyde,commonly called formalin. Oxidize that and you get formic acid, which was originally gotten from destructive distillation of ants. Maybe formic acid is what makes ant bites hurt. (a guess). From the internet: * The limitations of celluloid led to the next major advance, known as "phenolic" or "phenol-formaldehyde" plastics. A chemist named Leo Hendrik Baekelund, a Belgian-born American living in New York state, was searching for an insulating shellac to coat wires in electric motors and generators. Baekelund found that mixtures of phenol (C6H5OH) and formaldehyde (HCOH) formed a sticky mass when mixed together and heated, and the mass became extremely hard if allowed to cool and dry. Apparently demand for formica has dropped drastically. I found a site that said principal producer is in Chap.11/
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veteran
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veteran
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Thanks, Doc. I always assumed that Formica was connected to ants somehow, but now I know.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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connected to ants
formerly known as etaoin...
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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And I'd just assumed the reverse.
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Pooh-Bah
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A chemist named Leo Hendrik Baekelund, a Belgian-born American living in New York state, was searching for an insulating shellac to coat wires in electric motors and generators. Baekelund found that mixtures of phenol (C6H5OH) and formaldehyde (HCOH) formed a sticky mass when mixed together and heated, and the mass became extremely hard if allowed to cool and dry.I'd never thought about the etymology of bakelite plastic before, but as soon as you mentioned Baekelund, I suspected that bakelike was his creation. This site : http://adams.allwords.com/word-Bakelite.htmlsays that bakelite is indeed named after Baekelund. Cool.
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addict
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but..but..but, aren't ants called Formica something or the other in Latin?
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Yes, formica is ant in Latin, but I meant how Formica (tm) the product came to be named.
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Carpal Tunnel
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From an online Latin dictionary: formica formic.a N 1 1 NOM S F formic.a N 1 1 ABL S F formica, formicae N F ant; *
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