free counters We welcome newcomers!

Remember: if you participate with us, please link to and mention us in your post.

Monday 20 July 2015

B is for Beta

Beta is the second letter is the Greek alphabet, and, naturally, the source of the final syllable in the word alphabet. "Like the names of most other Greek letters, the name of beta was adopted from the acrophonic name of the corresponding letter in Phoenician, which was the common Semitic word *bayt ('house')."

A beta male is considered to be sensitive, nurturing, conflict-averse communicator. OR have characteristics to be avoided. It depends on who you ask.

Beta testing is the software development phase which "generally begins when the software is feature complete but likely to contain a number of known or unknown bugs... The focus of beta testing is reducing impacts to users, often incorporating usability testing... This is typically the first time that the software is available outside of the organization that developed it.

Beta-Carotene is a strongly colored red-orange pigment abundant in plants and fruits such as carrots, pumpkins and sweet potatoes.

Beta blockers "treat a variety of conditions, such as high blood pressure, glaucoma and migraines."

Founded in 1922, Beta Beta Beta (TriBeta) is "a society for students, particularly undergraduates, dedicated to improving the understanding and appreciation of biological study and extending boundaries of human knowledge through scientific research."

In nuclear physics, beta decay (β-decay) "is a type of radioactive decay in which a proton is transformed into a neutron, or vice versa, inside an atomic nucleus. This process allows the atom to move closer to the optimal ratio of protons and neutrons."

Like alpha, beta is also a financial term though I would be hard pressed to explain it.

There are a lot more Beta terms. If you are of a certain age, you may remember Betamax, a video recording tape that was technologically superior to VHS, but lost out in the marketplace.
***


19 comments:

  1. Hate to admit it, but friends of ours had the first beta VCR while we could only afford the VHS one. Look who's smiling now, though! LOL

    ReplyDelete
  2. Who would have guessed the versatility of that 4-letter word?

    ReplyDelete
  3. I think you've given enough 'beta's' a place here ;-)
    And yes i am of that certain age... i remember Betamax

    ReplyDelete
  4. We were thrilled with our beta VCR because the image would stay still when paused instead of the static-look of the VHS. I never understood why no advances were made for it. Of course, what we have with DVDs and the "recordings" we do now blow both of those kind of recordings out of the water!
    Beta foods are not only healthy, but their colors are pleasing to the eyes.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Lex knew an Austin, TX-based group called Beto y los Fairlanes, a motley salsa sensation. Close to beta, but "sin cigar"!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I quite like the look of Beta foods - that orange is tempting.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Whoa, never knew there were so many beta words.
    Ann

    ReplyDelete
  8. Betas rule! :-)
    My "B" stand for BEANS BROCCOLI & BITTER MELON

    ReplyDelete
  9. "B" is for BUDDHA
    Thanks for hosting!

    ReplyDelete
  10. And "B" also stands for BEACH, BAYSIDE and BRIGHTON!
    Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  11. I learned a lot about beta today, thank you very much. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Wonderful synopsis of the term♪

    ReplyDelete
  13. Phooey - my blog is down. Have contacted the server people.

    ReplyDelete
  14. some of my friends eat a lot of the beta veges, and their palms turn orange.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Oh and then there are the Betta Fishes tho that word has 2 t's, still pronounced the same as beta.

    ReplyDelete
  16. great intro! I'm a bit late with everything this week, but at least I got to it! now, to find a few minutes to click on all the links!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Happu weekend
    http://louisette.eklablog.com/

    ReplyDelete
  18. Good one
    Do visit my blog at http://shilpachandrasekheran.blogspot.ae/?m=1

    ReplyDelete