Dihydrogen monoxide parody Dihydrogen monoxide parody The dihydrogen monoxide parody involves calling water by the unfamiliar chemical name "dihydrogen monoxide" (DHMO), or "hydroxylic acid" in some cases, and listing some of water's well-known effects in a particularly alarming manner, such as accelerating corrosion and causing suffocation. The parody often calls for dihydrogen monoxide to be banned, regulated, and labeled as dangerous. It illustrates how a lack of scientific literacy and an exaggerated analysis can lead to misplaced fears. The parody gained renewed popularity in the late 1990s when a 14-year-old student, Nathan Zohner, collected anti-DHMO petitions for a science project about gullibility. The
Nitrous oxide and inhibit pain signalling. Exactly how causes the release of endogenous opioid peptides remains uncertain. Nitrous oxide is a colourless, non-toxic gas with a faint, sweet odour. Nitrous oxide supports combustion by releasing the dipolar bonded oxygen radical, thus it can relight a glowing splint. The above reaction is the route adopted by the commercial chemical industry to produce azide salts, which are used as detonators. The gas was first synthesised in 1772 by English natural philosopher and chemist Joseph Priestley, who called it "phlogisticated nitrous air" (see phlogiston) or "inflammable nitrous air". Priestley published his discovery in the book