fission

/ˈfɪʃən/

Other forms: fissions

Any type of dividing or splitting can be called fission. We often equate it with the splitting of atoms, which is called nuclear fission.

The word fission has always been used for some type of division, beginning with the Latin fissionem, from the root findere, “to split.” As the word worked its way through history, it was applied to various areas. In 1841, the discovery of cell division was labeled fission, while the application in nuclear physics came about in 1939 with the development of the first nuclear bomb. Ironic — the word can be applied to both creating life and ending it.

Definitions of fission

1. noun

   reproduction of some unicellular organisms by division of the cell into two more or less equal parts
   types:

   schizogony

   asexual reproduction by multiple fission; characteristic of many sporozoan protozoans

   type of:

   agamogenesis, asexual reproduction

   reproduction without the fusion of gametes
2. noun

   a nuclear reaction in which a massive nucleus splits into smaller nuclei with the simultaneous release of energy
   synonyms: nuclear fission

   type of:

   nuclear reaction

   (physics) a process that alters the energy or structure or composition of atomic nuclei