Medium
From Nordan Symposia
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English
Pronunciation
- mē'diəm, /ˈmiːdiəm/
Noun
medium (see individual senses for plurals)
- The nature of the surrounding environment, eg solid, liquid, gas, vacuum, or a specific substance such as a solvent.
- The material or empty space through which signals, waves or forces pass.
- A format for communicating or presenting information.
- A nutrient solution for the growth of cells in vitro
- The means or channel by which an aim is achieved.
- A liquid base which carries pigment in paint.
- Someone who supposedly conveys information from the spirit world
- Anything having a measurement intermediate between extremes, such as a garment or container.
- A person whom garments or apparel of intermediate size fit.
Quotations
- 1996 (sense 4): In some instances one can take advantage of differential carbohydrate fermentation capabilities of microorganisms by incorporating one or more carbohydrates in the medium along with a suitable pH indicator. Such media are called differential media (e.g., eosin methylene blue or MacConkey agar) and are commonly used to isolate enteric bacilli. — Medical Microbiology, ed. Samuel Baron, MD.
Communication
- Data storage device, any physical material that records or holds recorded information
- Art medium, materials and techniques used by artists to produce art works
- Transmission medium, in physics and telecommunications, any material substance which can propagate waves or energy
- Optical medium, material through which electromagnetic waves propagate
Economics
- Medium of exchange, any monetary instrument used to pay for goods and/or services
Education
- Medium of instruction, any language or other tools used to educate, train, or instruct
Measurement
- A point or degree near the middle of a spectrum or range. For example: The medium degree of doneness in cooking meat; see: temperature (meat)
Natural Science
In general, a medium is a material that is either itself undergoing a process that is being studied or used (e.g. transmission medium), or enabling another process of interest (e.g. growth medium). Specific examples include the following:
- Processing medium, in industrial engineering, a material that plays a role in manufacturing processes
- Excitable medium, a nonlinear dynamic system which has the capacity to propagate a wave
- Growth medium (or culture medium), in biotechnology, an object in which microorganisms or cells experience growth
- Interplanetary medium, in astronomy, material which fills the solar system
- Interstellar medium, in astronomy, the matter and energy content that exists between the stars within a galaxy
Paranormal and New Age
- Mediumship (see article on channel), a practice in which a person acts as an intermediary between the physical world and what is believed to be a spiritual world.
Titles/Names
Dramatic works
- The Medium, an opera by Gian-Carlo Menotti
- Medium (TV series), a television series about a research medium for a district attorney's office
- The Medium (Rutgers)|The Medium, an entertainment weekly at Rutgers University