Dihydrogen monoxide parody

File:DMRDlogo.gif

The logo of DHMO.org, primary current residence of the dihydrogen monoxide hoax

Dihydrogen monoxide (DHMO) is an obscure name for water, used in hoaxes that illustrate how ignorance of science and one-sided analysis can lead to misplaced fears.

The hoax involves listing strictly negative effects of water, such as erosion or death by drowning, attributing them to "dihydrogen monoxide", and then asking individuals to help control the seemingly dangerous substance. It was apparently created by Eric Lechner, Lars Norpchen and Matthew Kaufman, housemates while attending UC Santa Cruz in 1989, revised by Craig Jackson in 1994, and was brought to widespread public attention in 1997, when Nathan Zohner, a 14-year-old student, gathered petitions to ban "DHMO" as the basis of his science project, titled "How Gullible Are We?"

Original Web appearance

The first Web posting by Craig Jackson read as follows:

The dangers of dihydrogen monoxide include:

• Also called "hydroxyl acid", the substance is a major component of acid rain;
• Contributes to soil erosion;
• Contributes to the greenhouse effect;
• Accelerates corrosion and breakdown of electrical equipment;
• Excessive ingestion may cause various unpleasant effects;
• Prolonged contact with its solid form results in severe tissue damage;
• Inhalation, even in small quantities, may cause death;
• Its gaseous form may cause severe burns;
• It has been found in the tumors of terminal cancer patients;
• Withdrawal by those addicted to the substance causes certain death within 168 hours;

Nevertheless, governments and corporations continue using it widely, heedless of its grave dangers.

Other Alleged Dangers

In addition to the dangers contained in the original note, other notices have contained other warnings:

• Used in many forms of cruel animal research;
• The US Navy has a secret distribution network for DHMO;
• Lakes and rivers all over the world are contaminated with DHMO;
• In the distribution of pesticides. Even after washing, produce remains contaminated by this chemical;
• As an additive in certain "junk-foods" and other food products;
• Known to be a component of a number of cancer-causing agents

Terminology

"Dihydrogen Monoxide" in its liquid form.

The water molecule has the chemical formula H₂O, meaning each molecule of water is composed of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom.

The prefix "di" in "dihydrogen" means two and the prefix "mono" in "monoxide" means one. Oxide means that there is one or more oxygen atoms in the compound. Literally, the term "dihydrogen monoxide" means "two hydrogen, one oxygen", consistent with its molecular formula. However, in actual chemical terms, such numeric prefixes are only used for certain compounds, and water would not be one of them. For instance, H₂S is simply called hydrogen sulfide, and Li₂O is lithium oxide. In practice, of course, water is simply called water in actual scientific contexts in English.

Still, "dihydrogen monoxide", although essentially a made-up chemical term, can only make sense as a label for water, but sounds dangerous to those who don't get the connection. The term "monoxide", despite its systematic origin, has negative connotations due to its association with the highly toxic carbon monoxide.

Water can also be seen as an aqueous solution of hydroxide (OH⁻), H₂O, and hydronium (H₃O⁺), due to the hydrogen atoms constantly changing their bonds. This makes water both an acid and a base and thus an excellent solvent.

Water has a regular scientific or systematic name of hydrogen oxide, as well as an alkali name of hydrogen hydroxide and several acid names such as hydroxic acid, hydroxylic acid, and hydroxilic acid. Incidentally, the term "hydroxyl acid" used in the original hoax is slightly incorrect, as it does not follow convention.

Water is not a chemical name under any recognized nomenclature, nor is it international. Under the 2005 revisions of IUPAC nomenclature of inorganic chemistry, there is no single correct name for every compound, and water is a tolerated name for this compound. Additional names of μ-oxido dihydrogen and oxidane have been developed for this compound.

Public efforts 'against' DHMO

• In 1989, Eric Lechner, Lars Norpchen and Matthew Kaufman circulated a Dihydrogen Monoxide contamination warning on the UC Santa Cruz Campus via photocopied fliers . The concept originated one afternoon when Matthew recalled a similar warning about "Hydrogen Hydroxide" that had been published in his mother's hometown paper, the Durand (Michagan) Express, and the three then worked to coin a term that "sounded more dangerous". Eric typed up the original warning flier on Matthew's computer, and a trip to the local photocopying center followed that night.
• In 1994, Craig Jackson created a web page for the Coalition to Ban DHMO. The page spread widely on the net and off, including publication as an "ad" in a 1995 issue of Analog Magazine.
• The Friends of Hydrogen Hydroxide was created partly as a foil on the Coalition page, to provide evidence of 'misguided' supporters of dihydrogen monoxide. This form of collaborative connivance is a classic tool of internet spoofers.
• In 1997, Nathan Zohner, a 14-year-old, junior high student at Idaho Falls, Idaho, gathered 43 votes to ban the chemical, out of 50 people surveyed among his classmates. Zohner received the first prize at Greater Idaho Falls Science Fair for analysis of the results of his survey .
• In 1997, drawing inspiration from Jackon's web page and Zohner's research, Tom Way created the Dihydrogen Monoxide Research Division web site as a fun and educational resource for teaching about critical thinking and information literacy.
• Kate Dalgleish and Mikael Sydor, high school students from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, circulated a petition in April 2004 to ban the chemical as part of the Western Canada High School film festival. Several high school chemistry teachers and university science students signed the petition, which asked the municipal government to ban the 'dangerous chemical' under a fictitious Hazardous Chemical Act. Their film won the film festival.
• The idea was used for an episode of the Penn & Teller show Bullshit!, in which they had self-proclaimed environmentalists sign a petition to ban DHMO.
• In March 2004, Aliso Viejo, California almost considered banning the use of foam containers at city-sponsored events because dihydrogen monoxide is part of their production. The issue was put on the agenda of the City Council after a paralegal found mention of DHMO online and did not realize it was a joke. The item was pulled from the agenda before it could come to a vote, but not before the city received a raft of bad publicity.
• Teams in a 2005 version of The Game circulated a petition to ban dihydrogen monoxide at Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco, California—while dressed in superhero costumes.
• In 2005 at "Tent State University", a weeklong anti-war event at Rutgers University, members of the conservative publication The Rutgers Centurion gathered signatures from the protestors on a petition calling for a ban on Dihydrogen Monoxide. The petition's purpose was to prove not so much how gullible people are, as much as to condemn the notion that, "It's for the environment, so it must be good".
• In 2006, in Louisville, Kentucky, David Karem, executive director of the Waterfront Development Corporation, a public body that operates Waterfront Park, which features a large, accessible public fountain, wished to deter bathers from using the fountain. "Counting on a lack of understanding about water's chemical makeup," he arranged for signs reading:

DANGER
WATER CONTAINS HIGH LEVELS OF HYDROGEN
KEEP OUT

to be posted on the fountain at public expense.

See also

• Water
• Chemical nomenclature

External links

• Original Usenet posting
• Mirror of first web publication
  • Some responses by college students
• DHMO.org - Dihydrogen Monoxide Research Division
• About.com article
• How gullible are we? (George Mason University)
• Dihydrogen Monoxide Kate Dalgleish and Mikael Sydor's DHMO movie
• Mysterious Killer Chemical