The third article of the “Naming game…” series presents the issues of naming elements discovered and synthesized in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Based on the source data, the publication time of the names of the last 35 chemical elements was identified. In the case of discoveries from the end of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty-first century, the principle was adopted of the priority of information about the synthesis of a new chemical element in scientific journals (...) or conference reports. However, when the same information was published earlier in the news sections of scientific journals, in articles in popular science journals, and (in modern times) on the websites of interested research institutes, such an info is presented as well. It turned out that in some cases this information is very complex as the names of some elements were changed several times and published in different media in the same period. Therefore, this article is an attempt to sort out the issue of first publishing of the names of the last known 35 chemical elements. (shrink)

The second article of the “Naming game…” series provides detailed information on the discovery and naming of elements in the nineteenth century. Outlines of discoveries of 46 elements were presented, with particular emphasis on publications in which the name appeared for the first time. In the article the short historical information about every element naming is presented. The process of naming each chemical element was analyzed, with particular emphasis on the first publication with a given name.

Chemical elements are the bricks with which Chemistry is build. Their names had a history, but part of it is forgotten or barely known. In this article the forgotten, no more used, never used, and alternatively used names and symbols of the elements are reviewed, bringing to us some surprises and deeper knowledge about the richness of Chemistry. It should be stressed that chemical elements are important not only for chemists but for all people dealing with science. As in any (...) other aspect of our lives, we tend to better understand something by knowing his history. By knowing them we can have a deeply understanding of how science evolves and how it is influenced by our human aspects. (shrink)

By 1933, the class of generally accepted elementary particles comprised the electron, the photon, the proton as well as newcomers in the shape of the neutron, the positron, and the neutrino. During the following decade, a new and poorly understood particle, the mesotron or meson, was added to the list. By paying close attention to the names of these and other particles and to the sometimes controversial proposals of names, a novel perspective on this well-researched line of development is offered. (...) Part of the study investigates the circumstances around the coining of “positron” as an alternative to “positive electron.” Another and central part is concerned with the many names associated with the discovery of what in the late 1930s was generally called the “mesotron” but eventually became known as the “meson” and later again the muon and pion. The naming of particles in the period up to the early 1950s was more than just a matter of agreeing on convenient terms, it also reflected different conceptions of the particles and in some cases the uncertainty regarding their nature and relations to existing theories. Was the particle discovered in the cosmic rays the same as the one responsible for the nuclear forces? While two different names might just be synonymous referents, they might also refer to widely different conceptual images. (shrink)