[chimiste]

Hello,

It's not directly related to chemistry, but as Diels-Alder is such a common reaction in chemistry and I'm going to make a presentation about it in english, I'd like to know how you pronounce it.

If you could help me, I'd be grateful.

[sjb]

I can only tell you how I pronounce it, which is not necessarily right or useful as it depends how you pronounce the words I use as illustrations

Anyway, I say Diels to rhyme with kneels (to sit on the front of one's lower legs), and Alder like All (everything) - Der (like Un-DER).

Hope this helps

IPA (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Help:IPA&oldid=220806684 is not something I "speak" that fluently)

S

(Possible useful background - Originally from near London, England but went to the University of Bath (which I guess is where the majority of my chemical intonations have come from), but have also spent time doing chemistry back closer to London and in Nottinghamshire and Oxfordshire - I am also slightly hard of hearing)

[chimiste]

I can only tell you how I pronounce it, which is not necessarily right or useful as it depends how you pronounce the words I use as illustrations

Anyway, I say Diels to rhyme with kneels (to sit on the front of one's lower legs), and Alder like All (everything) - Der (like Un-DER).

Hope this helps

IPA (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Help:IPA&oldid=220806684 is not something I "speak" that fluently)

S

(Possible useful background - Originally from near London, England but went to the University of Bath (which I guess is where the majority of my chemical intonations have come from), but have also spent time doing chemistry back closer to London and in Nottinghamshire and Oxfordshire - I am also slightly hard of hearing)

Thank you, if looking at your background, your pronounciation should help but I didn't get how you pronounced "diels", you prounounce the "di" part like in "to die" or like "the".

[Borek]

And not just like "deals"?

[macman104]

And not just like "deals"?

That's how I say it.

[sjb]

OK, point taken

I think I was trying to move away from a "deals" style phrasing as I was concious of read (reed / red) being ambigious, and looking at Niels Bohr on wiki - I pronounce his first name to rhyme with deals (though whether that's a mental transposition to Neils, I don't know, as it seems it's actually probably pronounced to rhyme with Bells..).

Sorry for any confusion, mine's the navy greatcoat on the left.

S