Relating to or containing cacodyl, a toxic chemical compound that smells extremely bad and was historically used in chemical research.
From Greek 'kakos' (bad) + 'dysmē' (bad smell), formalized in chemistry in the 1800s as scientists studied this foul-smelling organic compound. The name reflects its characteristic odor.
Cacodyl compounds were famously studied by chemists in the 1800s because they smelled absolutely horrible—Robert Bunsen (of Bunsen burner fame) actually lost several fingers to explosions while researching these arsenic compounds!
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