Philosophy
When it comes to questions of classification, there are usually many avenues one can pursue. The approach one takes to classify any given set of conceptual objects depends to a large extent on the taxonomist's goals. One could try to create a classification system based on aesthetic preferences (like Tom Lehrer did for the purposes of his awesome Elements Song), on criteria of usefulness (like books sorted by subject matter and alphabetically in a library), on degrees of similarity, on proximity of historical genealogy, based on inherent properties of the objects to be classified, etc.
Two of the most famous and useful systems of classification are Darwin's phylogenetic tree of life and Dmitri Mendeleev's periodic table of elements, and as you can see below, the latter has been adopted to classify all sorts of things...
The Periodic Table of Elements:
The Periodic Table of Sex Positions:
The Periodic Table of Irrational Nonsense:
The Periodic Table of Vulgarity:
The Periodic Table of Swearing:
The Periodic Table of Rejected Elements:
The Periodic Table of the Internet:
The Periodic Table of Typefaces:
The Periodic Table of Beer Styles:
The Periodic Table of Video Game Characters:
The Periodic Table of Awesome:
The Periodic Table of Dangerous Elements (can you spot the one Democrat?):
The Periodic Table of Middle-Earth:
The Periodic Table of Controllers:
The Periodic Table of Produce and Storage:
The Periodic Table of Desserts:
The Periodic Table of Cartoon Characters:
The Periodic Table of Cupcakes:
The Periodic Table of Final Fantasy Characters:
Just the Periodic Table :)
Let me know if you come across other ones.
.
- Ununseptium...element #117
"Scientists Confirm The Existence Of Element 117" by Alex Knapp May 3rd, 2014 Forbes The official Periodic Table of the Elements is one step closer to adding element 117 to its ranks. That’s thanks to an international team of scientists that was...
- Proposed Names For The Two New Elements
"Names Proposed for 2 New Elements on Periodic Table" by Kenneth Chang December 1st, 2011 The New York Times Add two names to the periodic table of elements, although you may want to write them in pencil for now. The International Union of Pure and...
- New Elements For The Periodic Table
"Scientists Welcome Two New Elements to the Periodic Table" by Katy Steinmetz June 2011 Time You may have grown up thinking you knew what was what in science, back when Pluto was a planet, the opposite sex had cooties, and the last 10% of every beverage...
- Element 112..."copernicium"?
Not a "done deal" yet...merely a suggestion. "Copernicus nominated for the select club of elemental scientists" The discoverers of element 112, the newest addition to the periodic table, want it named after the 15th century astronomer who had the audacity...
- Elements And Accelerators
The following article is quite interesting in discussing the most important elements used to make an atomic accelerator function. "deconstruction: periodic table" by Kristine Crane July 9th, 2009 Symmetry Look at the periodic table of elements, and...
Philosophy
The Periodic Table of Everything
When it comes to questions of classification, there are usually many avenues one can pursue. The approach one takes to classify any given set of conceptual objects depends to a large extent on the taxonomist's goals. One could try to create a classification system based on aesthetic preferences (like Tom Lehrer did for the purposes of his awesome Elements Song), on criteria of usefulness (like books sorted by subject matter and alphabetically in a library), on degrees of similarity, on proximity of historical genealogy, based on inherent properties of the objects to be classified, etc.
Two of the most famous and useful systems of classification are Darwin's phylogenetic tree of life and Dmitri Mendeleev's periodic table of elements, and as you can see below, the latter has been adopted to classify all sorts of things...
The Periodic Table of Elements:
The Periodic Table of Sex Positions:
The Periodic Table of Irrational Nonsense:
The Periodic Table of Vulgarity:
The Periodic Table of Swearing:
The Periodic Table of Rejected Elements:
The Periodic Table of the Internet:
The Periodic Table of Typefaces:
The Periodic Table of Beer Styles:
The Periodic Table of Video Game Characters:
The Periodic Table of Awesome:
The Periodic Table of Dangerous Elements (can you spot the one Democrat?):
The Periodic Table of Middle-Earth:
The Periodic Table of Controllers:
The Periodic Table of Produce and Storage:
The Periodic Table of Desserts:
The Periodic Table of Cartoon Characters:
The Periodic Table of Cupcakes:
The Periodic Table of Final Fantasy Characters:
Just the Periodic Table :)
Let me know if you come across other ones.
.
- Ununseptium...element #117
"Scientists Confirm The Existence Of Element 117" by Alex Knapp May 3rd, 2014 Forbes The official Periodic Table of the Elements is one step closer to adding element 117 to its ranks. That’s thanks to an international team of scientists that was...
- Proposed Names For The Two New Elements
"Names Proposed for 2 New Elements on Periodic Table" by Kenneth Chang December 1st, 2011 The New York Times Add two names to the periodic table of elements, although you may want to write them in pencil for now. The International Union of Pure and...
- New Elements For The Periodic Table
"Scientists Welcome Two New Elements to the Periodic Table" by Katy Steinmetz June 2011 Time You may have grown up thinking you knew what was what in science, back when Pluto was a planet, the opposite sex had cooties, and the last 10% of every beverage...
- Element 112..."copernicium"?
Not a "done deal" yet...merely a suggestion. "Copernicus nominated for the select club of elemental scientists" The discoverers of element 112, the newest addition to the periodic table, want it named after the 15th century astronomer who had the audacity...
- Elements And Accelerators
The following article is quite interesting in discussing the most important elements used to make an atomic accelerator function. "deconstruction: periodic table" by Kristine Crane July 9th, 2009 Symmetry Look at the periodic table of elements, and...