by Timothy A. Hovanec
Intro:
Every group that shares a special interest develops its own terminology that its members use to discuss and explain their experiences and problems. Tropical fish hobbyists are no different and over the years as the hobby technology has increased, so has the technical vocabulary of the hobby. Most of the technical terms hobbyists and writers use are borrowed from biology and chemistry. But in some cases, the definitions or meanings of the terms have been changed by the hobby or incorrect definitions have been allowed to spread through the hobby, much like computer viruses.