"Viruses" again

[Robin Leech]

Now we all know the reason for the words VIRUS and VIRUSES.  If the experts
cannot agree, then use a term (viruses) that all will understand.
Robin Leech

----- Original Message -----
From: B. J. Tindall <bti at DSMZ.DE>
To: <TAXACOM at USOBI.ORG>
Sent: Monday, December 06, 1999 2:54 AM
Subject: "Viruses" again


> I think there is a rather "odd" problem here. While it is true that
"virus"
> has a classical Latin meaning it has nothing to do with the small
> biological objects which we know today. The term bacterium is derived from
> the Greek "bakteria", "baktron", meaning a rod or stick, "bacterion" is
the
> diminutive of "bakteria". The word then took up a Latin form "bacterium".
> However, in microbiology we know that not all "bacteria" are small sticks,
> and the ancient Romans and Greeks really could not have known about what
we
> call a "bacterium". Similarly the microbiological use of the word "coccus"
> has a link to Latin "coccum" and Greek "kokkos", both meaning a seed,
grain
> or berry, but the link to the small spherical bodies which we call "cocci"
> has nothing to do with traditional languages.
> The term virus probably has a similar history. In a classical sense it
does
> have the meaning(s) given in Latin dictionaries, but the modern concept of
> "a virus", with DNA or RNA and infecting the cells of prokaryotes or
> eukaryotes has nothing to do with the classical definition. I found a
> reference in 1957 to the Latin origin of the word, but that same article
> uses virus-viruses. One aspect that we must accept is that terms such as
"a
> bacterium", "a coccus" and "a virus" are modern concepts and may have a
> root in Latin or Greek, but have taken on another meaning in modern
> science. Why we have bacterium - bacteria, coccus - cocci, but virus -
> viruses I do not know, perhaps the person who first used virus - viruses
> did not learn Latin at school. While I would object to "bacteriums" or
> "coccuses" I doubt whether we can do much about "viruses".
> Brian Tindall
>
>
>
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