Arlo,
Yes. What got me about this was the fact that the idea of gas as a chaotic state of matter goes WAY back. I am reading the Norton History of Chemistry (despite knowing nothing about Chemistry) and the manner in which the same ideas appear, thrive, and then are beaten into oblivion only to reappear a few years later is astounding. I dunno. I just think that kind of stuff is NEAT! n Nicholas S. Thompson Emeritus Professor of Psychology and Biology Clark University <http://home.earthlink.net/~nickthompson/naturaldesigns/> http://home.earthlink.net/~nickthompson/naturaldesigns/ From: Friam [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Arlo Barnes Sent: Sunday, November 30, 2014 8:45 PM To: The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group Subject: Re: [FRIAM] GAS For convenience: Etymonline <http://etymonline.com/index.php?allowed_in_frame=0&search=gas&searchmode=none> says 1650s, from Dutch gas, probably from Greek khaos "empty space" (see chaos). The sound of Dutch "g" is roughly equivalent to that of Greek "kh." First used by Flemish chemist J.B. van Helmont (1577-1644), probably influenced by Paracelsus, who used khaos in an occult sense of "proper elements of spirits" or "ultra-rarified water," which was van Helmont's definition of gas. Modern scientific sense began 1779, with later specialization to "combustible mix of vapors" (1794, originally coal gas); "anesthetic" (1894, originally nitrous oxide); and "poison gas" (1900). Meaning "intestinal vapors" is from 1882. "The success of this artificial word is unique" [Weekley]. Slang sense of "empty talk" is from 1847; slang meaning "something exciting or excellent" first attested 1953, from earlier hepster slang gasser in the same sense (1944). Gas also meant "fun, a joke" in Anglo-Irish and was used so by Joyce (1914). As short for gasoline, it is American English, first recorded 1905. -Arlo James Barnes
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