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mercurymore about mercury

mercury


  5  definitions  found 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Mercury  \Mer"cu*ry\,  n.  [L.  Mercurius;  akin  to  merx  wares.] 
  1.  (Rom.  Myth.)  A  Latin  god  of  commerce  and  gain;  --  treated 
  by  the  poets  as  identical  with  the  Greek  Hermes,  messenger 
  of  the  gods,  conductor  of  souls  to  the  lower  world,  and 
  god  of  eloquence. 
 
  2.  (Chem.)  A  metallic  element  mostly  obtained  by  reduction 
  from  cinnabar,  one  of  its  ores.  It  is  a  heavy,  opaque, 
  glistening  liquid  (commonly  called  {quicksilver}),  and  is 
  used  in  barometers,  thermometers,  ect.  Specific  gravity 
  13.6.  Symbol  Hg  (Hydrargyrum).  Atomic  weight  199.8. 
  Mercury  has  a  molecule  which  consists  of  only  one  atom.  It 
  was  named  by  the  alchemists  after  the  god  Mercury,  and 
  designated  by  his  symbol,  [mercury]. 
 
  Note:  Mercury  forms  alloys,  called  amalgams,  with  many 
  metals,  and  is  thus  used  in  applying  tin  foil  to  the 
  backs  of  mirrors,  and  in  extracting  gold  and  silver 
  from  their  ores.  It  is  poisonous,  and  is  used  in 
  medicine  in  the  free  state  as  in  blue  pill,  and  in  its 
  compounds  as  calomel,  corrosive  sublimate,  etc  It  is 
  the  only  metal  which  is  liquid  at  ordinary 
  temperatures,  and  it  solidifies  at  about  -39[deg] 
  Centigrade  to  a  soft,  malleable,  ductile  metal. 
 
  3.  (Astron.)  One  of  the  planets  of  the  solar  system,  being 
  the  one  nearest  the  sun,  from  which  its  mean  distance  is 
  about  36,000,000  miles.  Its  period  is  88  days,  and  its 
  diameter  3,000  miles. 
 
  4.  A  carrier  of  tidings;  a  newsboy;  a  messenger;  hence  also 
  a  newspaper.  --Sir  J.  Stephen.  ``The  monthly  Mercuries.'' 
  --Macaulay. 
 
  5.  Sprightly  or  mercurial  quality;  spirit;  mutability; 
  fickleness.  [Obs.] 
 
  He  was  so  full  of  mercury  that  he  could  not  fix  long 
  in  any  friendship,  or  to  any  design.  --Bp.  Burnet. 
 
  6.  (Bot.)  A  plant  ({Mercurialis  annua}),  of  the  Spurge 
  family,  the  leaves  of  which  are  sometimes  used  for 
  spinach,  in  Europe. 
 
  Note:  The  name  is  also  applied,  in  the  United  States,  to 
  certain  climbing  plants,  some  of  which  are  poisonous  to 
  the  skin,  esp.  to  the  {Rhus  Toxicodendron},  or  poison 
  ivy. 
 
  {Dog's  mercury}  (Bot.),  {Mercurialis  perennis},  a  perennial 
  plant  differing  from  {M.  annua}  by  having  the  leaves 
  sessile. 
 
  {English  mercury}  (Bot.),  a  kind  of  goosefoot  formerly  used 
  as  a  pot  herb;  --  called  {Good  King  Henry}. 
 
  {Horn  mercury}  (Min.),  a  mineral  chloride  of  mercury,  having 
  a  semitranslucent,  hornlike  appearance. 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Mercury  \Mer"cu*ry\,  v.  t. 
  To  wash  with  a  preparation  of  mercury.  [Obs.]  --B.  Jonson 
 
  From  Webster's  Revised  Unabridged  Dictionary  (1913)  [web1913]: 
 
  Poison  \Poi"son\,  n.  [F.  poison,  in  Old  French  also  a  potion, 
  fr  L.  potio  a  drink,  draught,  potion,  a  poisonous  draught, 
  fr  potare  to  drink.  See  {Potable},  and  cf  {Potion}.] 
  1.  Any  agent  which  when  introduced  into  the  animal  organism, 
  is  capable  of  producing  a  morbid,  noxious,  or  deadly 
  effect  upon  it  as  morphine  is  a  deadly  poison;  the 
  poison  of  pestilential  diseases. 
 
  2.  That  which  taints  or  destroys  moral  purity  or  health;  as 
  the  poison  of  evil  example;  the  poison  of  sin. 
 
  {Poison  ash}.  (Bot.) 
  a  A  tree  of  the  genus  {Amyris}  ({A.  balsamifera})  found 
  in  the  West  Indies,  from  the  trunk  of  which  a  black 
  liquor  distills,  supposed  to  have  poisonous  qualities. 
  b  The  poison  sumac  ({Rhus  venenata}).  [U.  S.] 
 
  {Poison  dogwood}  (Bot.),  poison  sumac. 
 
  {Poison  fang}  (Zo["o]l.),  one  of  the  superior  maxillary  teeth 
  of  some  species  of  serpents,  which  besides  having  the 
  cavity  for  the  pulp,  is  either  perforated  or  grooved  by  a 
  longitudinal  canal,  at  the  lower  end  of  which  the  duct  of 
  the  poison  gland  terminates.  See  Illust.  under  {Fang}. 
 
  {Poison  gland}  (Biol.),  a  gland,  in  animals  or  plants,  which 
  secretes  an  acrid  or  venomous  matter,  that  is  conveyed 
  along  an  organ  capable  of  inflicting  a  wound. 
 
  {Poison  hemlock}  (Bot.),  a  poisonous  umbelliferous  plant 
  ({Conium  maculatum}).  See  {Hemlock}. 
 
  {Poison  ivy}  (Bot.),  a  poisonous  climbing  plant  ({Rhus 
  Toxicodendron})  of  North  America.  It  is  common  on  stone 
  walls  and  on  the  trunks  of  trees,  and  has  trifoliate, 
  rhombic-ovate,  variously  notched  leaves.  Many  people  are 
  poisoned  by  it  if  they  touch  the  leaves.  See  {Poison 
  sumac}.  Called  also  {poison  oak},  and  {mercury}. 
 
  {Poison  nut}.  (Bot.) 
  a  Nux  vomica. 
  b  The  tree  which  yields  this  seed  ({Strychnos 
  Nuxvomica}).  It  is  found  on  the  Malabar  and  Coromandel 
  coasts. 
 
  {Poison  oak}  (Bot.),  the  poison  ivy;  also  the  more  shrubby 
  {Rhus  diversiloba}  of  California  and  Oregon. 
 
  {Poison  sac}.  (Zo["o]l.)  Same  as  {Poison  gland},  above.  See 
  Illust.  under  {Fang}. 
 
  {Poison  sumac}  (Bot.),  a  poisonous  shrub  of  the  genus  {Rhus} 
  ({R.  venenata});  --  also  called  {poison  ash},  {poison 
  dogwood},  and  {poison  elder}.  It  has  pinnate  leaves  on 
  graceful  and  slender  common  petioles,  and  usually  grows  in 
  swampy  places.  Both  this  plant  and  the  poison  ivy  ({Rhus 
  Toxicodendron})  have  clusters  of  smooth  greenish  white 
  berries,  while  the  red-fruited  species  of  this  genus  are 
  harmless.  The  tree  ({Rhus  vernicifera})  which  yields  the 
  celebrated  Japan  lacquer  is  almost  identical  with  the 
  poison  sumac,  and  is  also  very  poisonous.  The  juice  of  the 
  poison  sumac  also  forms  a  lacquer  similar  to  that  of 
  Japan. 
 
  Syn:  Venom;  virus;  bane;  pest;  malignity. 
 
  Usage:  {Poison},  {Venom}.  Poison  usually  denotes  something 
  received  into  the  system  by  the  mouth,  breath,  etc 
  Venom  is  something  discharged  from  animals  and 
  received  by  means  of  a  wound,  as  by  the  bite  or  sting 
  of  serpents,  scorpions,  etc  Hence  venom  specifically 
  implies  some  malignity  of  nature  or  purpose. 
 
  From  WordNet  r  1.6  [wn]: 
 
  mercury 
  n  1:  a  heavy  silvery  toxic  univalent  and  bivalent  metallic 
  element;  the  only  metal  that  is  liquid  at  ordinary 
  temperatures  [syn:  {quicksilver},  {Hg},  {atomic  number 
  80}] 
  2:  (Roman  mythology)  messenger  of  Jupiter  and  god  of  commerce; 
  counterpart  of  Greek  Hermes  [syn:  {Mercury}] 
  3:  the  smallest  planet  and  the  nearest  to  the  sun  [syn:  {Mercury}] 
 
  From  Elements  database  20001107  [elements]: 
 
  mercury 
  Symbol:  Hg 
  Atomic  number:  80 
  Atomic  weight:  200.59 
  Heavy  silvery  liquid  metallic  element,  belongs  to  the  zinc  group  Used  in 
  thermometers,  barometers  and  other  scientific  apparatus.  Less  reactive 
  than  zinc  and  cadmium,  does  not  displace  hydrogen  from  acids.  Forms  a 
  number  of  complexes  and  organomercury  compounds. 
 
 




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