Molecules with funny names

Have you ever heard of Cummingtonite?

Cummingtonite or magnesium iron silicate hydroxide is a metamorphic amphibole with the chemical composition (Mg,Fe)7Si8O22(OH)2. Monoclinic cummingtonite is compositionally similar and polymorphic with orthorhombic anthophyllite, which is a much more common form of magnesium-rich amphibole, the latter being metastable. Cummingtonite shares few compositional similarities with alkali amphiboles such as arfvedsonite, glaucophane-riebeckite. There is little solubility between these minerals due to different crystal habit and inability of substitution between alkali elements and ferro-magnesian elements within the amphibole structure.

Well, there are many chemical compounds with funny names. Some of those are inadvertently funny, some on purpose, some are funny only when one looks at the structural formula, others only if one mispronounces the name slightly.

But they are all collected here - three long pages of funny examples. What I like about that site is that it is not just a simple listing of names. For each molecule, there is some additional information, e.g., the structural formula, a picture of the mineral, some chemical properties, how humans may use it, or how it got its name in the first place. So, you can find everything you need to know about Dickite, Fucitol, and Clitorin, for instance.

And once you are done with all three pages and want more, go to my SciBling's blog Molecule of the Day and see how even the compunds with somber, serious names can be fun and interesting.