TASER
NOTE: TASER International, Inc., is the company which has the trademark on the word “TASER.” Their
site (http://www.taser.com) shows “TASER” in all caps everywhere. A lot of companies use all caps on
their sites for their products or brands to bring more attention to them. But the rule below from
Chicago Manual of Style explains how it is permissible to use just initial cap instead of all caps for these
words.
CHICAGO MANUAL OF STYLE
Rule 8.68 Names with unusual capitalization
Parts of names given in full capitals on the letterhead or in the promotional materials of particular
organizations may be given in upper- and lowercase when referred to in other contexts (e.g., “the Rand
Corporation” rather than “the RAND Corporation”). Company names that are spelled in lowercase
letters in promotional materials may be capitalized (e.g., DrKoop.net rather than drkoop.net). Names
like eBay and iPod, should they appear at the beginning of a sentence or heading, need not take an
initial capital in addition to the capitalized second letter. See also 8.153.
MERRIAM-WEBSTER
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/taser
Ta·ser trademark \ˈtā-zər\
Definition of TASER
—used for a gun that fires electrified darts to stun and immobilize a person
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tased
tase transitive verb, often capitalized \ˈtāz\
tased | tas·ing
Definition of TASE
: to shoot with a Taser gun
Origin of TASE
back-formation from Taser
First Known Use: 1991
WIKIPEDIA:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taser
A Taser is an electroshock weapon sold by Taser International. It uses electrical current to disrupt
voluntary control of muscles causing "neuromuscular incapacitation".[1][2] Someone struck by a Taser
experiences stimulation of his or her sensory nerves and motor nerves, resulting in strong involuntary
muscle contractions. Tasers do not rely only on pain compliance, except when used in Drive Stun mode,
and are thus preferred by some law enforcement over non-Taser stun guns and other electronic control
weapons.[3][4][5]
Tasers were introduced as non-lethal weapons to be used by police to subdue fleeing, belligerent, or
potentially dangerous people, who would have otherwise been subjected to more lethal weapons such
as a firearm. A 2009 Police Executive Research Forum study said that officer injuries drop by 76% when a
Taser is used.[6] However, while Taser CEO Rick Smith has stated that police surveys show that the device
has saved 75,000 lives,[6] there has been some controversy where Tasers have been implicated in
instances of serious injury or death.[7][8]
History
Jack Cover, a NASA researcher, began developing the Taser in 1969.[9] By 1974, Cover had completed the
device, which he named after his childhood hero Tom Swift ("Thomas A. Swift's electric rifle").[10] The
Taser Public Defender used gunpowder as its propellant, which led the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and
Firearms to classify it as a firearm in 1976.[11][12]