User:TimofKingsland/sandbox

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Look up minim in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

The minim (abbreviated ♏, , m, m., min, or D)[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] is a unit of volume of the apothecaries' system used in both British Imperial and United States customary units,[8]: C-5, C-7  and defined as 1⁄480 of a fluid ounce or 1⁄60 of a fluid dram.[note][8]: C-5, C-7 [9]: 7  The minim was introduced in the 1809 edition of the The Pharmacopœia of the Royal College of Physicians of London as a more accurate alternative to the drop.[9][10]

According to the Oxford English Dictionary (3rd ed.), the name was probably derived from another sense of the word minim, meaning the smallest possible quantity of something, or a tiny particle – itself derived from the classical Latin minimum.[10] However, Ronald Edward Zupko states that the term came directly from the latin, mimimus, meaning "the least" or "smallest".[11]

While the use of the minim, along with other such measures, has been reduced by the adoption of the metric system, it still persists in some countries in the measurement of dosages of medicine.

Definitions[edit]

Imperial minim
1 imperial minim  =  1⁄480 imperial fluid ounce
=  1⁄60 imperial fluidram
=  59.1938802083 microlitre (exactly)[12][note]
≈  1⁄500 US fluid ounce
≈  0.960759940 US fluid minim
US customary minim
1 US minim  =  1⁄480 US fluid ounce
=  1⁄80 US teaspoon
=  1⁄60 US fluidram
=  61.611519921875 microliters (exactly)[note]
≈  1⁄461 imperial fluid ounce
≈  1.040842731 imperial minims

History[edit]

A graduated cylinder measuring in fluid drams, 1926

The minim, as a measure of volume, was first devised in the early 19th century.[9][10] Prior to 1809, the drop was the smallest unit of measure in the apothecaries' system, and was considered equivalent to 1⁄60 of a fluid dram.[note][9] However, the advancement of tools to measure volume in the late-18th and early-19th centuries allowed for greater accuracy in measurements of small quantities than before — in 1782 Louis-Bernard Guyton de Morveau first used a graduated cylinder, and in 1786 Franz Karl Achard devised a crude pasteur pipette.[13] In 1791, Francois Antoine Henri Descroizilles used calibrated glass cylinders, and introduced the burette in 1806.[13]

In the early 19th century, the Royal College of Physicians of London, using a graduated cylinder, observed that the size of a drop could vary considerably depending upon the viscosity and specific gravity of the liquid — the drops of any tincture they measured were nearly as low as half the volume of a drop of a water.[9] So in the 1809 edition of the The Pharmacopœia of the Royal College of Physicians of London, the term drop was replaced with the term minim, and defined as equal to 1⁄60 of a fluid dram in the apothecaries' system.[9] The system used the wine gallon as its standard, which contained 128 fluid ounces.[9] The college had already adopted glass measures invented by Timothy Lane that divided the wine gallon into 61,440 parts, equal to the new unit.[9] By 1814, the minim could be measured accurately with a graduated glass pipette known as a "minimometer".[14] In 1820 the minim was included as measure in The Pharmacopœia of the United States of America, also defined as a 1⁄60 of a fluid dram or 1⁄480 of a fluid ounce, using the wine gallon.[15]

In 1816, British scientists began work on introducing a new standard for weights and measures that could be recovered if it was lost or destroyed.[16] The result of this was the Imperial Weights and Measures Act of 1824, which came into effect on 1 January 1826.[16][17] On top of new standards for weight and length, the Act implemented the new Imperial gallon, defined as 10 pounds of distilled water at 62 °F with the barometer at 30 inches, or 277.274 cubic inches (corrected to 277.421 cubic inches, now defined as 4.54609 L).[12][16][17] The Imperial gallon was divided into 160 Imperial fluid ounces, and all units of volume, including the minim, were altered to fit these new values.[8]: C-7 [12][17][18] These standards were subsequently adopted in most of the Commonwealth and other British Empire nations.[19][20]

Meanwhile, the United States had been working on their own uniform standards for weights and measures.[16][17] George Washington had recommended the establishment of uniform measurement standards during his first Annual Message to Congress in 1790, but work on them did not begin until 1819–20.[16] On 14 June 1836, after a long investigation, the Secretary of the Treasury was instructed by Congress to give every state a copy of the new standards.[16] These standards, in the case of weights and the yard, were equal to Imperial standards.[16] However, the US gallon was based on the older wine gallon, and retained the definition of 231 cubic inches established in 1707 in Britain, meaning the US minim retained its original value.[9][16][17][18] As these two different standards are still used today, the value of one minim still differs between Britain and the US.[8]: C-5, C-7 

In 1864 (or 1897)[16][21] in Britain, and 1866 in the US, the metric system was legalised for use, but not made compulsory.[16] Later the 1890 edition of the United States Pharmacopœia adopted the metric system, excluding all others (except for statements of dosage equivalents).[16] The change did not mean that dosages and prescriptions had to be given in metric units, but meant that medicines were manufactured according to metric units,[22] and the Pharmacopœia strongly encouraged their use.[23] However, American physicians were reluctant to adopt the new system.[22] In 1898, the minim was still in common use, and the "minim-tube", used to measure doses less than half a fluid dram, could be bought at any US drug store.[24] The 1914 edition of the British Pharmacopoeia followed the Americans in adopting the metric system (for everything other than the dosage of medication).[16][21]

In America, three editions of the United States Pharmacopœia had been published urging the use of the metric system by 1921, yet few physicians were doing so.[23] In 1944 the Council on Pharmacy and Chemistry of the American Medical Association adopted the metric system exclusively,[16] and by the early 1950s the use of the metric system by American physicians was becoming increasingly popular, although the apothecaries' system was still commonly used both there and in Britain.[25]

The metric system was not regularly used in UK pharmacies until 1 January 1971, after the Weights and Measures Act of 1963.[21][26] The apothecaries' system was also still used in the United States in 1953, though the metric system, used in continental Europe, was becoming increasingly popular.

Notes[edit]

1.^ Fluid dram is also spelt fluidram, fluid drachm, or fluidrachm.[27][28][29]
2.^ The notation 3 indicates that the digit 3 is repeated infinitely.
3.^ This assumes the international inch of exactly 25.4 millimeters. One US gallon is defined as 231 cubic inches = (3 in.)×(7 in.)×(11 in.).

References[edit]

  1. ^ Zentz, Lorraine C. (2010). "Chapter 1: Fundamentals of Math — Apothecary System". Math for Pharmacy Technicians. Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning. p. 7–8. ISBN 978-0-7637-5961-2. OCLC 421360709. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  2. ^ Boyer, Mary Jo (2009). "UNIT 2 Measurement Systems: The Apothecary System". Math for Nurses: A Pocket Guide to Dosage Calculation and Drug Preparation (7th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. pp. 108–9. ISBN 978-0-7817-6335-6. OCLC 181600928. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  3. ^ Royal College of Physicians of Dublin (1850). "Weights and Measures". The Pharmacopœia of the King and Queen's College of Physicians in Ireland. Dublin: Hodges and Smith. p. xlvi. hdl:2027/mdp.39015069402942. OCLC 599509441. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  4. ^ Rowlett, Russ (20 November 2001). "M". How Many? A Dictionary of Units of Measurement. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. minim (m or min) [1]. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  5. ^ Buchholz, Susan; Henke, Grace (2009). "Chapter 3: Metric, Apothecary, and Household Systems of Measurement — Table 3-1: Apothecary Abbreviations". Henke's Med-Math: Dosage Calculation, Preparation and Administration (6th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. p. 55. ISBN 978-0-7817-7628-8. OCLC 181600929. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  6. ^ Pickar, Gloria D.; Swart, Beth; Graham, Hope; Swedish, Margaret (2012). "Appendix B: Apothecary System of Measurement — Apothecary Units of Measurement and Equivalents". Dosage Calculations (2nd Canadian ed.). Toronto: Nelson Education. p. 528. ISBN 978-0-17-650259-1. OCLC 693657704. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  7. ^ Phillips, Sir Richard (1848). "III. Measures of Capacity — Fluid Apothecaries' Measures". A Million of Facts, of Correct Data, and Elementary Constants, in the Entire Circle of Sciences, and on All Subjects of Speculation and Practice (much enl., and carefully rev. and improved stereotyped ed.). London: Darton and Co. p. 9. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  8. ^ a b c d National Institute of Standards and Technology (October 2011). Butcher, Tina; Cook, Steve; Crown, Linda et al. eds. "Appendix C – General Tables of Units of Measurement" (PDF). Specifications, Tolerances, and Other Technical Requirements for Weighing and Measuring Devices. NIST Handbook. 44 (2012 ed.). Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Commerce, Technology Administration, National Institute of Standards and Technology. ISSN 0271-4027. OCLC 58927093. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i Powell, Richard; Royal College of Physicians of London (1809). "Weights, Measures, &c. [measures of liquids sect.]". The Pharmacopœia of the Royal College of Physicians of London, M. DCCC. IX (corr. and enl. 2nd ed.). London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, and Orme. pp. 3–7. hdl:2027/wu.89097444632. OCLC 622876101. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  10. ^ a b c Simpson, John A., ed. (March 2002, online version June 2012). "minim, n.1". Oxford English Dictionary (3rd ed.). Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. OCLC 50959346. Retrieved 6 July 2012. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) An entry for this word was first included in New English Dictionary, 1906.
  11. ^ Zupko, Ronald Edward (1985). "minim". A Dictionary of Weights and Measures for the British Isles: The Middle Ages to the Twentieth Century. Memoirs of the American Philosophical Society. Vol. 168. Philadelphia, PA: American Philosophical Society. p. 252. ISBN 978-0-87169-168-2. ISSN 0065-9738. OCLC 13643353. Retrieved 7 July 2012. E minim fr L minimus, the least, smallest
  12. ^ a b c United Kingdom; Department of Trade and Industry (1995). The Units of Measurement Regulations 1995. London: HMSO. Schedule: Relevant Imperial Units, Corresponding Metric Units and Metric Equivalents. ISBN 978-0-11-053334-6. OCLC 33237616. Retrieved 7 July 2012.
  13. ^ a b Ihde, Aaron John (1984) [1964]. "III. The Growth of Specialization: 11. Analytical Chemistry I. Systemization — Volumetric Analysis". The Development of Modern Chemistry. Dover Books on Physics and Chemistry (slgty. corr. Dover ed.). New York: Dover. p. 289. ISBN 978-0-486-64235-2. OCLC 8827750. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  14. ^ Trant, Thomas (August 1814) [5 February 1814]. "Table of English and Scotch Measures". The European Magazine, and London Review. 66. London: James Asperne, Philological Society of London: 123. hdl:2027/uc1.b3054115. OCLC 560258308. Retrieved 7 July 2012.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  15. ^ United States Pharmacopœial Convention (1820). The Pharmacopœia of the United States of America. 10. Washington, DC: United States Pharmacopœial Convention, Board of Trustees: 6. ISSN 0079-1407. OCLC 568184110. {{cite journal}}: External link in |journal= (help); Missing or empty |title= (help)
  16. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Schnaare, Roger L.; Prince, Shelly J. (2005). "Chapter 11: Metrology and Pharmaceutical Conventions". In Troy, David B. (ed.). Remington: The Science and Practice of Pharmacy (21st ed.). Baltimore, MD; Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. pp. 100–2. ISBN 978-0-7817-4673-1. OCLC 253942300. Retrieved 7 July 2012.
  17. ^ a b c d e "British Imperial System". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Chicago, IL: Encyclopædia Britannica. 2012. OCLC 67911661. Retrieved 7 July 2012.
  18. ^ a b Rowlett, Russ (13 September 2001). "G". How Many? A Dictionary of Units of Measurement. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. gallon (gal) [1],[3]. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  19. ^ Ostmann, Barbara Gibbs; Baker, Jane L. (2001). "Chapter Eight: Metrics — Imperial Measures". The Recipe Writer's Handbook (rev. and expanded ed.). New York: John Wiley & Sons. p. 201. ISBN 978-0-471-40545-0. OCLC 46456372. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
  20. ^ Morris, Christopher G., ed. (1992). "imperial system". Academic Press Dictionary of Science and Technology. San Diego: Academic Press. p. 1090. ISBN 978-0-12-200400-1. OCLC 187438081. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
  21. ^ a b c Homan, Peter G. (2002). "Information Sheet 11: Balances, Weights and Measures" (PDF). Objects in the history of pharmacy. Royal Pharmaceutical Society. OCLC 754932428. Retrieved 7 July 2012.
  22. ^ a b Whelpley, H. M. (27 December 1890). "The Metric System and the Seventh Decennial Revision of the U. S. P.: Read before the Missouri State Pharmaceutical Association 1890" (PDF). The Journal of the American Medical Association. XV (26). Chicago: American Medical Association: 919–920. doi:10.1001/jama.1890.02410520003001b. ISSN 1538-3598. OCLC 36366429. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
  23. ^ a b Osborne, Oliver T[homas] (1922) [1921]. "United States Pharmacopœia". The Principles of Therapeutics. Philadelphia: W. B. Saunders. p. 22. OCLC 669405351. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
  24. ^ Weeks-Shaw, Clara S. (1898) [1885]. "Chapter VII.—Medicines and their Administration: Measurements". A Text-book of Nursing: For the Use of Training Schools, Families, and Private Students (rev. and enl. 2nd ed.). New York: D. Appleton and Company. p. 107. hdl:2027/mdp.39015006027752. OCLC 557931966. Retrieved 7 July 2012. Medicines should be measured [for] doses of less than a drachm in a minim-tube, (...) which can be procured at any drug-store.
  25. ^ McGehee, William H[arper] O[wen] (1952). Pharmacology and Pharmacotherapeutics for Dentists (4th ed.). New York: Blakiston. p. 53. OCLC 3219631. Retrieved 8 July 2012. The Apothecaries' method is used in the United States and Great Britain (...) In the United States, the Metric system is becoming increasingly popular
  26. ^ Zupko, Ronald Edward (1990). "The Weights and Measures Act of 1963". Revolution in Measurement: Western European Weights and Measures Since the Age of Science. Memoirs of the American Philosophical Society. Vol. 186 (ill. ed.). Philadelphia, PA: American Philosophical Society. pp. 261, 263, 265, 267. ISBN 978-0-87169-186-6. ISSN 0065-9738. OCLC 185535373. Retrieved 7 July 2012.
  27. ^ Simpson, John A.; Weiner, Edmund S.C., eds. (1989, online version 2012). "dram, n.". Oxford English Dictionary (2nd ed.). Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-861186-8. OCLC 50959346. Retrieved 2 July 2012. A fluid dram (= 1⁄8 fluid ounce) of medicine, etc. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Earlier version first published in New English Dictionary, 1897.
  28. ^ Simpson, John A.; Weiner, Edmund S.C., eds. (1989, online version June 2012). "drachm, n.". Oxford English Dictionary (2nd ed.). Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-861186-8. OCLC 50959346. Retrieved 7 July 2012. Spelt drachm or dram (...) fluid drachm = 1⁄8 of fluid ounce, = 60 minims or drops {{cite encyclopedia}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Earlier version first published in New English Dictionary, 1897.
  29. ^ Simpson, John A.; Weiner, Edmund S.C., eds. (1989, online version June 2012). "fluidra(ch)m | fluigram, n.". Oxford English Dictionary (2nd ed.). Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-861186-8. OCLC 50959346. Retrieved 7 July 2012. contracted forms of fluid dra(ch)m, fluid gram(me). {{cite encyclopedia}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Earlier version first published in New English Dictionary, 1897.

[[Category:Units of volume]] [[Category:Customary units in the United States]] [[Category:Imperial units]] [[de:Minimum (Einheit)]] [[es:Minim]] [[pt:Minim]] [[ru:Миним]] [[uk:Мінім]]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:TimofKingsland/sandbox&oldid=1142142873"