The correct use of formal scientific names of organisms is key to
accurate communication, but despite the simplicity of the system, it is
rarely done right. Everyone is familiar with at least a few of these,
even if they don't realize it.
Homo sapiens, Tyrannosaurus rex, Boa constrictor and Geranium arboreum
are all likely recognizable no matter how limited your biological
knowledge. You might well know these as 'Latin names' and while many are
in Latin, there are those in Ancient Greek, Aztec, Mongolian, Xhosa and
others and thus the general preference these days is to call them 'scientific names.'
No comments:
Post a Comment