Wiswesser Line Notation

Wiswesser Line Notation, also referred to as WLN, was the first line notation that precisely describes complex molecules. The notation is simple, so that trained chemists as well as computers can translate it.[1] It was invented by William J. Wiswesser in 1949.[2]

The keypunch was the main data entry device when WLN was developed. Keypunches could only type capital letters(A-Z), numbers(0-9), and a few special characters(& / -). So, the symbols used in WLN were limited so that they could be stored on punched cards.[3]

Examples

Wiswesser Line Notation Media

Related pages

References

  1. "Representing Molecules". Retrieved 2011-09-12.
  2. William J. Wiswesser (1982). "How the WLN began in 1949 and how it might be in 1999". J. Chem. Inf. Comput. Sci. 22 (2): 88–93. doi:10.1021/ci00034a005.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Andrew Dalke (October 15, 2003). "WLN – History of Chemical Nomenclature". Retrieved 2011-09-11.
  4. Apodaca, Rich (July 20, 2007). "Everything Old is New Again - Wiswesser Line Notation (WLN)". Retrieved 2011-09-11.

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