Administratium
Encyclopedia
Administratium is a well-known joke in scientific
circles, and is a spoof
both on the bureaucracy
of scientific establishments
and on descriptions of newly discovered chemical element
s.
In 1991, Thomas Kyle (the supposed discoverer of this element) was awarded an Ig Nobel Prize
for physics, making him one of only three fictional people to have won the award.
A spoof was written by William DeBuvitz in 1988 and first appeared in print in the January 1989 issue of The Physics Teacher. It spread rapidly among university campuses and research centers, and many versions surfaced, often customized to the contributor's situation.
A similar joke concerns Administrontium which was referenced in print in 1993.
Another variation on the same joke is "Bureaucratium". A commonly heard description describes it as "having a negative half-life", in other words the more time passes, the more massive "Bureaucratium" becomes; it only grows larger and more sluggish. This obviously refers to the bureaucratic system, which is generally perceived as a system in which bureaucratic procedures accumulate and whatever needs to get done takes increasingly longer to get done as soon as it touches the bureaucracy.
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
circles, and is a spoof
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
both on the bureaucracy
Bureaucracy
A bureaucracy is an organization of non-elected officials of a governmental or organization who implement the rules, laws, and functions of their institution, and are occasionally characterized by officialism and red tape.-Weberian bureaucracy:...
of scientific establishments
Academia
Academia is the community of students and scholars engaged in higher education and research.-Etymology:The word comes from the akademeia in ancient Greece. Outside the city walls of Athens, the gymnasium was made famous by Plato as a center of learning...
and on descriptions of newly discovered chemical element
Chemical element
A chemical element is a pure chemical substance consisting of one type of atom distinguished by its atomic number, which is the number of protons in its nucleus. Familiar examples of elements include carbon, oxygen, aluminum, iron, copper, gold, mercury, and lead.As of November 2011, 118 elements...
s.
In 1991, Thomas Kyle (the supposed discoverer of this element) was awarded an Ig Nobel Prize
Ig Nobel Prize
The Ig Nobel Prizes are an American parody of the Nobel Prizes and are given each year in early October for ten unusual or trivial achievements in scientific research. The stated aim of the prizes is to "first make people laugh, and then make them think"...
for physics, making him one of only three fictional people to have won the award.
A spoof was written by William DeBuvitz in 1988 and first appeared in print in the January 1989 issue of The Physics Teacher. It spread rapidly among university campuses and research centers, and many versions surfaced, often customized to the contributor's situation.
A similar joke concerns Administrontium which was referenced in print in 1993.
Another variation on the same joke is "Bureaucratium". A commonly heard description describes it as "having a negative half-life", in other words the more time passes, the more massive "Bureaucratium" becomes; it only grows larger and more sluggish. This obviously refers to the bureaucratic system, which is generally perceived as a system in which bureaucratic procedures accumulate and whatever needs to get done takes increasingly longer to get done as soon as it touches the bureaucracy.