I have finally embarked in earnest on the quest to unite ASMS and IUPAC to get the MS terms and definitions situation in order. It has been about a dozen years since there was a general agreement on MS terminology and there has been just a little bit of change in the field in the mean time. Fortunately, we in the mass spectrometry and analytical chemistry communities have quite a bit more information technology to draw on since the last terminology go round.<\/p>\n
For starters, the IUPAC recommendations for MS terms can be found on line in Chapter 12 of the “Orange Book”<\/a> entitled Compendium of Analytical Nomenclature<\/a>. Be forewarned, though: the index in hypertext, but the text is in PDF so get ready for some downloads.<\/p>\n The Old ASMS Terms and Definitions glossary (that was on the ASMS website until June of 2000) can still be found in the Internet Archive Wayback Machine<\/a>. I took the liberty of copying the hypertext into a Quicktopic Document Review<\/a> comment forum as a way to start discussion.<\/p>\n Other important documents are David Sparkman’s book “The Mass Spectrometry Desk Reference<\/a>” and reviews of this book in The Journal of Chemical Education<\/a> and Trends in Biotechnology<\/a>. Phil Price’s JASMS article is “Standard Definitions of Terms Relating to Mass Spectrometry,” J. Am. Soc. Mass Spectrom.<\/i> 1991, 2<\/b>, 336, which can be found on the JASMS site<\/a> if you can remember how to log on (I can’t).<\/p>\n I am an associate membership of the IUPAC Analytical Chemistry Division<\/a> and an at-large member of the ASMS board<\/a>. Feel free to contact me in either, both, or neither of these capacities at kmurray@ch335c.chem.lsu.edu<\/a>. I will also post any feedback on the MS Blog if you like.<\/p>\n – Kermit Murray<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I have finally embarked in earnest on the quest to unite ASMS and IUPAC to get the MS terms and definitions situation in order. It has been about a dozen years since there was a general agreement on MS terminology and there has been just a little bit of change in the field in the … <\/p>\n