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fission

[fish-uhn]

noun

the act of cleaving or splitting into parts.

Also called nuclear fission. Physics. the splitting of the nucleus of an atom into nuclei of lighter atoms, accompanied by the release of energy. Compare fusion (def. 4).

Biology. the division of an organism into new organisms as a process of reproduction.

verb (used without object)

Physics. to undergo fission.

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Fission is always a great word to know.

So is reverberate. Does it mean:

to be reflected many times, as sound waves from the walls of a confined space

the ability of a substance to flow; a measure of this ability, the reciprocal of the coefficient of viscosity

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verb (used with object)

Physics. to cause to undergo fission.

Origin:
1835–45; < Latin fissiōn- (stem of fissiō) a splitting, dividing, equivalent to fiss(us) divided (see fissi-) + -iōn- -ion

Can be confused: fission, fusion.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To fission

Example Sentences

Some of the speeding subatomic particles of the fission process turn uranium into plutonium.

Relax and let the fission between you work it's magic.

Nuclear energy comes in two different flavors: fission and fusion.

EXPAND

Some of the speeding subatomic particles of the fission process turn uranium into plutonium.

Relax and let the fission between you work it's magic.

Nuclear energy comes in two different flavors: fission and fusion.

Nuclear fission appeared to lead the race as an energy alternative decades ago, as countries began building reactors.

The way to cut off a fission chain reaction, then, is to intercept the neutrons.

Upshot-Knothole involved the testing of new theories, using both fission and fusion devices.

The many safety mechanisms of a nuclear plant focus mainly on keeping these so-called fission products out of the environment.

It cannot stop a determined cheat producing a crude fission bomb, since the technology is well-known.

Implosion bombs create a fission reaction, which causes the nuclei of atoms to split and release huge amounts of energy.

When it comes to radical energy solutions, an extreme long shot is a nuclear power scheme that would combine fusion and fission.

In the photo above, one desmid is splitting into two by a process called fission.

The electromagnet releases the rods, which fall into the reactor core and halt the fission that produces heat to make steam.

For really heavy elements, such as uranium, such fission happens spontaneously.

In both fission and fusion no containment no control is needed when properly working.

Count me among the greens who believe that nuclear fission can be safe and ecologically sound.

All nuclear warheads contain conventional chemical explosives as well as nuclear fission fuel.

In some countries that secrecy stemmed from the military uses of nuclear fission.

It looked highly probable that the pulse was indeed a signal of the hoped-for fission.

She discovered atomic fission but couldn't publish her results as a woman.

Most nuclear reactors in operation today use a fission process.

More money should be put into fusion research as it's the only serious alternative to fission reactors.

The fuel is recycled to remove the fission products, not the protactinium.

Tritium is the basic fuel of hydrogen bombs and is used to increase the power for fission bombs.

Manufacturing even a low yield fission bomb is no trivial matter.

The discovery of nuclear fission involved related efforts by a number of scientists.

Some fission products were placed in the explosive so that radioactive traces could be measured.

What it may lead to is commercial fusion power that could end our dependence on fossil fuels and dirty fission plants.

Nukes consume radoactive waste by converting byproduct uranium to fission products.

Dempster was internationally known for his experiments establishing the large release of energy in the fission of uranium.

Normal fission involves breaking uranium or plutonium atoms up by hitting them with neutrons.

The discovery of a new type of fission turns a tenet of nuclear theory on its head.

But while new fission reactors vie with wind turbines and biofuels to raise the old.

If a lot of fission occurs, which may happen only in an extreme case, the uranium would melt through anything underneath.

Nuclear fission emits none of the greenhouse gases that are warming the climate.

The nuclear fission process, which generates energy from uranium, does not produce harmful greenhouse emissions.

Serber told them what they needed to know about fission to build an atomic bomb.

Some byproducts of the nuclear fission are themselves radioactive.

The science curriculum ranged from fossil fuels and fission to space colonies and interstellar travel.

He is involved in research on an aneutronic fission and fusion process to produce nuclear energy without radiation.

Nuclear fission could fill the gap, but it has well-known disadvantages.

Unlike power plants fired by coal and natural gas, nuclear fission produces no carbon.

These radioactive elements are by-products of the fission reaction that generates power in the nuclear plants.

Control rods shut down the nuclear fission reactions that generate power.

Interesting thing about fission and fission by products.

Call the phenomenon comic combustion, or maybe fools' fission.

Handl had acquired various rare and radioactive elements and was trying to create nuclear fission.

Until the human species stepped in, there was no appreciable release of atomic energy from nuclear fission or fusion on earth.

The longer fuel stays in the reactor, the more neutron absorbing fission products, build.

Nuclear criticality refers to a sustained nuclear fission chain reaction.

Fuel rods that were producing fission have cooled substantially since the reactors shut down.

The idea was radiation implosion, which uses a fission bomb to set off a much more powerful fusion bomb.

Several advanced fission reactors show great promise as short term stop gaps.

New development in the nuclear fission could be a valuable solution if there is a will.

If the overarching goal is to reduce risks for future generations, shutting fission down should be a key objective.

Nobody beleives in the theory that explains nuclear fission or fusion.

COLLAPSE

Collins

World English Dictionary

fission (ˈfɪʃən)

—n
1.	the act or process of splitting or breaking into parts
2.	biology a form of asexual reproduction in single-celled animals and plants involving a division into two or more equal parts that develop into new cells
3.	short for nuclear fission

[C19: from Latin fissiō a cleaving]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

fission

1841, "division of a cell or organism," from L. fissionem (nom. fissio) "a breaking up, cleaving," from root of findere "to split" (see fissure). Cognate with O.E. bitan "to bite." Nuclear physics sense is 1939.

American Heritage

Medical Dictionary

fission fis·sion (fĭsh'ən)
n.

The act or process of splitting into parts.
The amitotic division of a cell or its nucleus.
An asexual process of reproduction in which a unicellular organism divides into two or more independently maturing daughter cells.
A nuclear reaction in which an atomic nucleus, especially a heavy nucleus such as an isotope of uranium, splits into fragments, usually two of comparable mass, with the evolution of from 100 million to several hundred million electron volts of energy.

American Heritage

Science Dictionary

fission

(fĭsh'ən) Pronunciation Key

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The splitting of an unstable atomic nucleus into two or more nuclei. Fission occurs spontaneously, generally when a nucleus has an excess of neutrons, resulting in the inability of the strong force to bind the protons and neutrons together. The fission reaction used in many nuclear reactors and bombs involves the absorption of neutrons by uranium-235 nuclei, which immediately undergo fission, releasing energy and fast neutrons. Compare fusion.
A process of asexual reproduction in which a single cell splits to form two identical, independent cells. In fission, the chromosomal DNA replicates before the cell divides. Most bacteria and other prokaryotes reproduce by means of fission. Also called binary fission.

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Matching Quote

"The pace of science forces the pace of technique. Theoretical physics forces atomic energy on us; the successful production of the fission bomb forces upon us the manufacture of the hydrogen bomb. We do not choose our problems, we do not choose our products; we are pushed, we are forced—by what? By a system which has no purpose and goal transcending it, and which makes man its appendix."

-Erich Fromm

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