What is "beaker"

Beaker \Beak"er\ (b[=e]k"[~e]r), n. [OE. biker; akin to Icel. bikarr, Sw. b["a]gare, Dan. baeger, G. becher, It. bicchiere; -- all fr. LL. bicarium, prob. fr. Gr. bi^kos wine jar, or perh. L. bacar wine vessel. Cf. Pitcher a jug.]

1. A large drinking cup, with a wide mouth, supported on a foot or standard.

2. An open-mouthed, thin glass vessel, having a projecting lip for pouring; -- used for holding solutions requiring heat.
   --Knight.

"open large-mouthed vessel," mid-14c., from Old Norse bikarr or Middle Dutch beker "goblet," probably (with Old Saxon bikeri, Old High German behhari, German Becher) from Medieval Latin bicarium, which itself is probably a diminutive of Greek bikos "earthenware jug, wine jar" (said to be an oriental word, perhaps a borrowing from Syrian buqa "a two-handed vase or jug"). Form assimilated in English to beak.

n. 1 A flat-bottomed vessel, with a lip, used as a laboratory container. 2 A drinking vessel without a handle, sometimes for the use of children. 3 A mug.

1. n. a flatbottomed jar made of glass or plastic; used for chemistry

2. a cup (usually without a handle)

Beaker may refer to:

• Beaker (drinkware), a beverage container
• Beaker (glassware), or "laboratory beaker", a glass object used for holding fluids and chemicals in a laboratory setting
• Beaker (archaeology), a prehistoric drinking vessel
• Beaker culture, the archaeological culture often called the Beaker people
• Beaker (musician), Contemporary Christian Music songwriter, musician, and Rich Mullins collaborator
• Beaker (Muppet), the hapless assistant of Dr. Bunsen Honeydew on The Muppet Show

A beaker is a small ceramic or metal drinking vessel shaped to be held in the hands. Archaeologists identify several different types including the butt beaker, the claw beaker and the rough-cast beaker, however when used alone the term usually refers to the pottery cups associated with the European Beaker culture of the late Neolithic and early Bronze Age.

This type of beaker was first defined by Lord Abercromby in the early twentieth century and comes in three distinct forms, the bell beaker and the rarer short-necked and long-necked beakers although there are many variations on these basic types.

Bell beakers appear to be the earliest type and are often covered with decoration made from impressing twisted cord into the unfired clay. When the decoration covers the whole vessel they are known as all-over corded (AOC) beakers. Where comb designs are used, perhaps along with cord impressions they are called all-over ornamented (AOO) beakers. Some have a looped handle on one side or a white coloured material pressed into the decoration, contrasting with the orange or brown ceramic.

Traditionally they were superseded by the short-necked beakers which in turn were replaced by long-necked forms. Work by Humphrey Case in the 1990s has suggested that the three styles were used contemporaneously for different purposes.

Beakers have been found from North Africa to southern Scotland and from Portugal to the far east of Europe but is particularly common in the Rhine valley and the coasts of the North Sea.

A beaker is a beverage container, and a term used in parts of the UK. A beaker is typically a non-disposable plastic or ceramic cup or mug without a handle, much like a laboratory beaker. It has no reference to the fictional character Tracy Beaker.

Beaker is particularly commonly used to describe a lidded cup designed for toddlers or small children, with a no-spill mouthpiece incorporated into the lid.

In North American English, the term is almost exclusively used in the laboratory context.

A beaker is a simple container for stirring, mixing and heating liquids commonly used in many laboratories. Beakers are generally cylindrical in shape, with a flat bottom. Most also have a small spout (or "beak") to aid pouring as shown in the picture. Beakers are available in a wide range of sizes, from one millilitre up to several litres.

Beaker is a pseudonym for David Strasser, a Christian songwriter and musician well known for his collaborations with artist Rich Mullins. He received his nickname as a young man, when friends said he looked like Beaker the Muppet.

When Beaker was in the seventh grade, his youth pastor introduced him to his friend Rich Mullins, and the two soon became collaborators. Beaker co-wrote, performed, and toured with Rich Mullins for several years. The first song they wrote together was "Boy Like Me, Man Like You", a 1991 hit for Mullins. Beaker is also responsible for writing the modern praise chorus "Step By Step" ("Oh God, you are my God, and I will ever praise you..."). He was also instrumental in co-founding the Kid Brothers of St. Frank with Rich Mullins, and well as co-writing Canticle of the Plains, a musical about Saint Francis of Assisi.

In the mid-90s, Beaker dropped out of the spotlight to focus on family life. He and his wife Julie have three sons, Aidan (for whom Rich Mullins penned his hit song "Let Mercy Lead"), Avery, and Elias, and two daughters, Cora Shea and Isabel.

Beaker is a Muppet character from The Muppet Show. He is the shy, long-suffering assistant of Dr. Bunsen Honeydew, and is likewise named after a piece of laboratory equipment.

During the first season of The Muppet Show, Dr. Honeydew presented the Muppet Labs segments by himself; Beaker was added as his lab assistant from the second season on. Beaker has bulging eyes, a shock of red hair, and a drawbridge mouth. He was originally puppeteered and voiced by Richard Hunt until Hunt's death in 1992, when the role was taken over primarily by Steve Whitmire.

Beaker is a magnet for disaster; he routinely experiences mishaps such as being blown up, electrocuted, eaten by large monsters, or afflicted with awkward side effects caused by Dr. Bunsen Honeydew's experiments. Beaker communicates in a nervous, high-pitched squeak that sounds like "Mee-mee-mee mee". In books and merchandise, the sound is spelled "Meep". In The Muppet Movie he appeared to say something other than "mee" or "meep" (he "meeps" Honeydew's previous line "sadly temporary"). His tone or expression helps to communicate his meaning. "Meep" and "mee" are pronounced to rhyme with "beep" and "bee", respectively.