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Facts on Scientific Names of Organisms
Ant writes "From my ant message board thread (trying to pick names related to ants for World of Warcraft), Myrmecos mentioned Curiosities of Biological Nomenclature that lists scientific names of organisms are not usually known for their entertainment value. They are indispensable for clarity in communication, but most people skip over them with barely a glance. Mark Isaak, the author, collected those names that are worth a second look. Some names are interesting for what they are named after (for example, Arthurdactylus conandoylensis, Godzillius), some are puns (La cucaracha, Phthiria relativitae), and some show other kinds of wordplay (such as the palindromic Orizabus subaziro). Some have achieved notability through accident of history, and many show the sense of humor of taxonomists."
Firstus Postus
Slashdotius Nerdilius: A fat hairy creature known for rabid outburts of "OPEN SOURCE!!!" and
OMG M$ IS THE SUX ROFL!!1!". Also know for its foul stench, aversion to women, and long greasy beard.
My favourite one is on the site:
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Surely you meant "Strategus Longihornus" - the still evolving pacific north-east dung beetle with overgrown greed glands.
See that long UID - that's what you get for lurking too long
Surely you meant "Strategus Longihornus" - the still evolving pacific north-east dung beetle with overgrown greed glands.
Nope.
The dangers of knowledge trigger emotional distress in human beings.
Its really cool.
My personal favourite is commingtonite... A perfect example how even strict naming conventions can lead to funny results...
HI O WISE PRINCE. WHT TOOK U SO DAM LONG?
Wasn't really doubting correctness of your post - read my previous comment with humour filters on - ........ :)
the "pacific northeast dung beetle with overgrown greed glands" uses Longhorn in its strategy of world dominance
See that long UID - that's what you get for lurking too long
I do geological engineering so I am forced to learn all sorts of terrible rock and mineral names. The rock names are much better.. they usually adhere to a couple of "accepted" standards (e.g. the igneous rock triangle). There is no standard for mineral naming, whoever found it can name it, or its just been something carried over through the years. No sense at all. The funny one I know is buried in the amphiboles (garbage rock, lots of substituition going on) theres a particulary amphibole called "Cummingtonite". Who knows what was going on when that one was named.. but I wouldn't want to touch the doorknobs.
Wasn't really doubting correctness of your post - read my previous comment with humour filters on -
D'oh!! (quietly goes back to CMS standards evaluation)
The dangers of knowledge trigger emotional distress in human beings.
A bug (a real one - actually a Flower Fly) was named after Bill Gates.
I'm truly torn. I'm either jealous that the son of a bitch got a fly named after him, or I'm rather pleased that there's some lowly, disease-ridden swarm of flies sitting atop some dung-heap in Costa Rica bearing his name.
Come to think of it, that's quite similar to his connection with Windows. One could really go either way on that.
Is it blue and randomly crash into things?
Even as an anonymous coward, I wouldn't insult someone who collects disease names for amusement. The image of an overeducated effeminate yuppie was quickly replaced in my mind as a Hannibal Lector type cooking fava beans. Yes Clarissse... I just found a new friend on Slashdot who shares my interest in viruses, No damnit not Virii, VIRUSES
Although it is not a scientific name, my favorite is Venus's flytrap -- named for its resemblance to a certain part of the female anatomy that most of us here haven't seen yet.
Don't waste your vote! Vote for whoever you want, unless you live in a swing state it won't matter anyways
Of course, my favorite is Homo sapiens.
Windowpane
Windowpane C9H12 gets its name from its resemblance to a set of windows, [it forms a 2x2 grid, reminiscent of a certain OS logo] but unfortunately it has never been synthesised. But the version with a corner carbon missing C8H12 has been made, and goes by the name 'broken windowpane', or more accurately fenestrane.... or more popularly, Microsoft Windowpane.
http://alternatives.rzero.com/