Sunday, July 15, 2007

A Song Of Particles

Sing a song of particles,
Infinitely small,
Tissue culture specimens,
From off your stomach wall

I'm sure you all know the tune. I'm not sure who, if anyone, wrote this but Angus Deaton on Have I Got News For You (S01E07) credits it to someone who's name I can't spell, possibly as a joke. I like it.

6 comments:

  1. That is so damn win...

    --- OL

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  2. Sing a song of particles infinitely small Tissue coated specimen from your stomach wall Six and forty chromosome dividing into two, Hoards of hungry phagocytes like tigers in a zoo
    Take refuge from this synchrotron to fix this hellish brew
    Because proton and electron that’s me and you

    But tell me dear professor explain if you can
    are microscopic entities are all that’s left of man?
    And tell dear professor explain it if you please
    why man through countless ages have believed they’re more than these?

    If our love is but a hormone and our sight an optic lens
    And beauty a mere enzyme, why are homo-sapiens
    If a heart is a simple pump and our will a chemist shop and death of a lifes journey is just a final stop.
    Id Descartes were a donkey and I am sure you’d have him one
    You’d have to throw out not just SUM
    But en Cognito
    do you have the rest of this poem?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Unfortunately I do not. All I ever heard was the four lines I posted. Thanks for posting what you did have though :)

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  4. kEMP THIS WAS A POEM WRITTEN BY A PARTICLE PHYSICIST IN THE EARLY 1980'S, IT WOULD BE GREAT IF WE COULD FIND THE ORIGINAL

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  5. I've done a little research and come up with the following sites (with identical content):

    http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1962/jul/12/science-and-industry

    http://www.theyworkforyou.com/debates/?id=1962-07-12a.1527.9

    "I shall quote in support of this the "Song for a Minister of Science" which the noble Lord no doubt caused to be published in the Observer on Christmas Day, 1960. The Observer said that Lord Hailsham's family Christmas card contained this song"

    With the full lyrics being:

    Sing a song of particles
    Infinitely small
    Tissue cultured specimens
    From off your stomach wall.

    Take mesons from a synchroton
    To fix the hellish brew—
    For proton and electron,
    That's me—and you.

    But tell me, dear Professor
    Explain it if you can
    If microscopic entities
    Are all that's left of man.

    Yes, tell me, dear Professor
    Explain it if you please
    Why men through countless ages
    Have believed they're more than these.

    If our love is but a hormone
    And our eye an optic lens
    And beauty but an enzyme
    Why is homo sapiens?

    For if Descartes was a donkey
    And I'm sure you'd have him so
    You'll have to rub out not just 'sum'
    But also 'cogito'.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I think we have pieced it together, I had read this poem in a Biophysics class I tokk in 1981, now you & I have pieced it together. Here goes:
    Sing a song of particles
    Infinitely small
    Tissue cultured specimens
    From off your stomach wall.
    Six & forty chromosomes dividing into two
    Hoards of Hungry Phagocytes Like Tigers in a zoo

    Take mesons from a synchrotron
    To fix the hellish brew—
    For proton and electron,
    That's me—and you.

    But tell me, dear Professor
    Explain it if you can
    If microscopic entities
    Are all that's left of man.

    Yes, tell me, dear Professor
    Explain it if you please
    Why men through countless ages
    Have believed they're more than these.

    If our love is but a hormone
    And our sight an optic lens
    And beauty a mere enzyme
    Why is homo sapiens?

    If our heart just a muscular pump
    And our will a chemist shop
    And death of one’s life journey
    Is just the heart’s final stop

    For if Descartes was a donkey
    And I'm sure you'd have him so
    You'll have to rub out not just 'sum'
    But also 'cogito'.

    ReplyDelete