respirometer

[ res-puh-rom-i-ter ]

noun

1. an instrument for measuring the extent of respiratory movement.
2. an instrument for measuring oxygen consumption or carbon dioxide production in an isolated tissue.

Word History and Origins

Origin of respirometer¹

First recorded in 1885–90; respire + -o- + -meter

Example Sentences

The duo used a custommade respirometer to measure how much oxygen the pulsating cells used in the process, a proxy for how much energy it takes an octopus to trigger color changes.

From Science Magazine

The first tool was a respirometer.

From Science Daily

Then they took the bags with their tiny quarry into a small, white windowless trailer stuffed with an animal MRI and a respirometer with a tangle of dozens of clear plastic tubes, to weigh and measure the bats in several different ways.

From New York Times

“We can get respirometry from a single fruit fly,” said Dr. Fuller proudly as he stood before the stack of equipment that makes up the respirometer.

From New York Times

These snails were jumpers, however, and researchers put them — one at a time — in a small chamber called a respirometer to test not their willingness to jump, but the physiology of energy use during jumping.

From New York Times