mass spectrometry
nounDefinition of mass spectrometry
— called also mass spectroscopy
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Examples of mass spectrometry in a Sentence
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Zhu Ling's family contacted him about establishing a timeline of her poisoning, via a mass spectrometry analysis of several of her hairs collected between 1994 and 1995 over the course of her illness. — Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, "Study brings us one step closer to solving 1994 thallium poisoning case," 25 Dec. 2018 The sophisticated tests now available include gas chromatography mass spectrometry, which can detect minuscule amounts of substance, and was used in missions to Mars. — Erik Lacitis, The Seattle Times, "What a new WSU study tells us about the earliest days of smoking tobacco in the Northwest," 30 Oct. 2018 With the support of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, the researchers had been examining ancient Native American pipes for years, using a chemical analysis technique called mass spectrometry to look for traces of plant material left behind. — Michael Price, Science | AAAS, "Americans have been lighting up for more than 3000 years, ancient pipe reveals," 15 June 2018 Using gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, the team discovered residue of oleic and linoleic acid, telltale signatures of olive oil. — Jason Daley, Smithsonian, "This 4,000-Year-Old Jar Contains Italy’s Oldest Olive Oil," 4 June 2018 Thanks to technological advancements, labs now use accelerated mass spectrometry, a technique that requires smaller sample sizes and provides more precise results than the earlier method, called radiometric dating. — Lorraine Boissoneault, Smithsonian, "An 800-Year-Old Shipwreck Helps Archaeologists Piece Together Asia’s Maritime Trade," 17 May 2018 Niziolek and her colleagues decided to submit more samples from the collection for a more precise method of radiometric dating called accelerated mass spectrometry. — Ashley Strickland, CNN, "Treasure trove reveals origins of 800-year-old shipwreck," 16 May 2018 The scientists used a portable, briefcase-size device that pulls air from the surface of the skin and collects VOCs in a filter for later laboratory analysis, using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. — Richard Conniff, Scientific American, "Is Malaria's Peculiar Odor Key to Its Conquest?," 14 May 2018 The world-class scientists in the room laughed at this, and justifiably so, as Culberson nerdily debated the finer points of mass spectrometry or magnetometry with them. — Eric Berger, Ars Technica, "The billion-dollar question: How does the Clipper mission get to Europa?," 16 Apr. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'mass spectrometry.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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