- Syzygy
In broadest terms, Syzygy (IPAEng|ˈsɪzɪʤi) is a kind of unity, especially through coordination or alignment, most commonly used in the
astronomical and/orastrological sense. [http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=Syzygy&x=56&y=22 Syzygy - Definitions from Dictionary.com ] ] "Syzygy" is derived from theLate Latin _la. syzygia, "conjunction," from the Greek _el. σύζυγος (" _el. syzygos").Syzygia, adjective of Syzygy, describes the alignment of three or more
celestial bodies in the same gravitational system along a straight line.Usage in academia
Astronomy
In
astronomy , a syzygy is the alignment of three or morecelestial bodies in the same gravitational system along a straight line. The word is usually used in context with theSun ,Earth , and theMoon or aplanet , where the latter is in conjunction or opposition. Solar and lunareclipse s occur at times of syzygy, as do transits andoccultation s. The term is also applied to each instance ofNew Moon orFull Moon when Sun and Moon are in conjunction or opposition, even though they are not precisely on one line with the Earth.The word 'syzygy' is often loosely used to describe interesting configurations of planets in general. For example, one such case occurred on
March 21 ,1894 at around 23:00 UTC, when Mercury transited theSun as seen fromVenus , and Mercury and Venus both simultaneously transited the Sun as seen fromSaturn . It is also used to describe situations when all the planets are on the same side of the Sun although they are not necessarily found along a straight line, such as onMarch 10 ,1982 .Gnosticism
In
Gnosticism , a "syzygy" is a divine active-passive, male-female pair ofaeons , complementary to one another rather than oppositional; in their totality they comprise the divine realm of thePleroma , and in themselves characterise aspects of the unknowable GnosticGod . The term is most common in Valentinianism.Mathematics
In
mathematics , a syzygy is a relation between the generators of a module M. The set of all such relations is called the "first syzygy module of M." A relation between generators of the first syzygy module is called a "second syzygy" of M, and the set of all such relations is called the "second syzygy module of M." Continuing in this way, we get the n-th syzygy module of M by taking the set of all relations between generators of the (n-1)th syzygy module of M. If M is finitely generated over apolynomial ring over a field, this process terminates after a finite number of steps; i.e., eventually there will be no more syzygies (seeHilbert's syzygy theorem ). The syzygy modules of M are not unique, for they depend on the choice of generators at each step.Medicine
In
medicine , the term is used to signify the fusion of some or all of the organs.Music
Syzygy was the name of the electronic music duo that recorded for
Rising High Records and Infonet Records in the 1990s.Dominic Glynn and Justin Mackay produced a hybrid of techno, ambient and electronica culminating in the cult album "Morphic Resonance".Syzygy is the name of a composition written by
Michael Brecker which can be found on his self-titled album.Syzygy is also the name of a 1998 CD made by the band Lynch Mob. It is a project led by former
Dokken bandmember and guitar virtuoso George Lynch.Philosophy
In
philosophy , the Russian theologian/philosopherVladimir Solovyov (1853–1900) used the word "syzygy" to signify "unity-friendship-community," used as either an adjective or a noun, meaning:
*a pair of connected or correlative things, or
*a couple or pair of opposites.Poetry
In
poetry , "syzygy" is the combination of two metrical feet into a single unit, similar to anelision .Consonant al orphonetic syzygy is also similar to the effect ofalliteration , where one consonant is used repeatedly throughout a passage, but not necessarily at the beginning of each word.Psychology
In
psychology ,Carl Jung used the term "syzygy" to denote an archetypal pairing ofcontrasexual opposites, which symbolized the communication of the conscious andunconscious mind s: the conjunction of two organisms without the loss of identity.College Sports
Carleton College 's competitive women'sultimate frisbee team was formed in 1982 and changed its name to Syzygy in 1983 [SYZYGY - [http://syzygyultimate.org] ] . They are highly competitive at the national level and in 2007 tied for 5th place in the nation in theUltimate Player's Association championships at Columbus, OH. [UPA Score Reporter - [http://www.upa.org/scores/tourn.cgi?div=122&id=3660] ]Zoology
In
zoology , "syzygy" is
* the association of two protozoa end-to-end or laterally for the purpose of asexual exchange of genetic material,
* the pairing ofchromosome s inmeiosis Usage in popular culture
Books
"Syzygy" in
book s:
* "Syzygy", a1973 science fiction novel byMichael G. Coney
* "Syzygy", a1982 science fiction novel byFrederik Pohl (Save for the concept of aligned planetary bodies, Pohl's novel is completely unrelated to Coney's.)
* "The Perfect Host", a1948 science fiction novella byTheodore Sturgeon
* "It Wasn't Syzygy", a1947 fantasy short story byTheodore Sturgeon
* "Syzygy", a1977 science fiction short story byW. K. Brown (privately published)Broadway
"Syzygy" is the word Rona Lisa Peretti spelled correctly when she won the Putnam Spelling Bee as a child in the musical
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee .Candles
Circa 1971, "Syzygy" was used by a candle company in California. (See "Video games", below.)
Comic books
"Syzygy" in
comic book s:
*Syzygy Darklock is a key character in theSpace Opera Dreadstar , premier title ofEpic Comics .
*Syzygy is awebcomic by Alicorn.
*For a brief period in theDoctor Strange comics, Strange invoked the syzygy of all planets to tap into "catastrophe magic."Computer software
"Syzygy" is a
virtual reality gridoperating system for PC clusters, tele-collaboration, and multimedia supercomputing. [http://www.isl.uiuc.edu/syzygy.htm Syzygy ] ] It was also a project management package available in the early 1990s.(See also video games, under "games", below.)
Film
A major plot point in the film "Tomb Raider" concerns a planetary alignment taking place every 5,000 years, during which a magic item, The Triangle of Light, can be utilized. To preserve a fictional environment, the exact chronology of this alignment is not given except the date of the first phase,
May 15 .The setting for the film "Pitch Black" is a fictional moon that undergoes a prolonged period of complete solar eclipse every 22 years when it is aligned with its parent planet.
"SYZYGY" is the title of a 1969 color film
short subject produced by theNational Council of Churches ; approx. run time 15 minutes.Games
"Syzygy" is the name of a word
puzzle game made by Little Fish Industries. [ [http://www.playsyzygy.com/ playsyzygy.com] It is also the highest scoring word that can be played inScrabble without using an a, e, i, o, or u.Fact|date=January 2008Video games
"Syzygy Engineering" was the first choice of name
Nolan Bushnell andTed Dabney had used (in1971 ) for their newvideo game company, which was incorporated asAtari, Inc in1972 . They claimed the name had already been registered by another Californian company (a candle company owned by ahippie commune [Nolan Bushnell ] ). The term "Syzygy Engineered" appeared first associated with their Nutting Inc. releasedComputer Space [http://www.marvin3m.com/arcade/cspace.htm 1972 Nutting Associates Computer Space Syzygy Engineering coin operated video game ] ] and later on Atari's first product, the coin-operated "Pong " game.The [http://www.syzygycult.com Syzygy Cult] is a
freeware development company active during the mid 1990s that developed classicApple Macintosh games."Syzygy"
computer games :
* [http://www.tranzed.net/project_syzygy/index.htm Project Syzygy] is analternate reality game , now referred to asPerplex City . (See also the [http://perplexcitywiki.com/wiki/Main_Page Perplex City Wiki] .)
* "Syzygy" was the name of aStar Wars -inspired graphicaltext adventure published byMicrodeal for theDragon 32/64 computers in1984 .Use of "syzygy" within
video game environments:
* "Syzygy" is the name of a bot inUnreal Tournament 2003 ,Unreal Tournament 2004 ,Unreal Championship and a playable character inUnreal Championship 2 .
* A "syzygy" was a major plot point in theGamecube game .
* "SyzYgY" is the name of a Minnesota-based pseudo-professional gamer best known for his performance on the team Powers Gaming,Cyberathlete Amateur League -Invite andCyberathlete Professional League 2005 champions.The parameter "syzygy" enables the cheats in the PC version of
Avoid the Noid .ocial Activism
"Syzygy" is the name of the annual meeting of all national branches of
City Year , a US volunteer service organization operated under theAmeriCorps umbrella.Television
"Syzygy" is the name of a
1996 episode of thescience fiction mystery TV show "The X-Files ". The alignment of Mercury,Mars andUranus happens at the same time several murder cases occur in a small town.FBI agents Scully and Mulder investigate in a climate of fear and mob mentality.A skit in a
1997 episode of "Saturday Night Live " featured "syzygy" as a spelling bee word which is asked toMary Katherine Gallagher (Molly Shannon ) by hostRudolph Giuliani . When she asks for the word's usage in a sentence, Giuliani replies, "Sure. Your spelling bee word is 'syzygy'."On the 18 April 2007 episode of "
The Colbert Report ", Stephen Colbert used "syzygy" in its poetic sense – aftersynecdoche andmetonymy – as part of a threat made against actorSean Penn , in preparation for the next night's "Metaphor Off" between the two.Wine
Syzygy is the name of a winery located in
Walla Walla, Washington ,United States .Business Names
Syzygy is used as a Company name by a number of companies across the world. For example, in Australia [http://www.syzygycorp.com.au Syzygy Corporation] , which consists of Syzygy Consulting, Syzygy People and Syzygy Technology. Also in the UK and Germany, [http://www.syzygy.net Syzygy] is a website design agency.
Unusual Spelling
"Syzygy" is the shortest English word containing three "y"'s. It is also the second-longest common English word containing neither "a", "e", "i", "o", nor "u", being tied with "rhythm". (The longest common word with this characteristic is "rhythms", although it is beaten handily by the archaic word "twyndyllyngs".) See
English words with uncommon properties .References
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