cryo-, cry-, kryo-, kry-

(Greek: cold, very cold, freezing; used to describe the effects of low temperatures or activities carried on at a very low temperature)

Cryolophosaurus
A “frozen-crested lizard” from Early Jurassic.

The name is a reference to both the freezing conditions under which the fossil remains of a large theropod were extracted on Mount Kirkpatrick in the Queen Alexandra Range, west central Antarctica, and to the unusual ridged, transverse bony crest on the animal’s forehead.

It was originally compared to Elvis Presley’s 1950’s pompadour hair-do. Named by U. S. paleontologists William R. Hammer and Hickerson in 1994.

Cryolophosaurus ellito
Frozen crested reptile.
cryolysis
Destruction by cold; such as, the destruction of bodily tissue with a very low temperature of about -162°F or -108°C.
cryomation
A commercially coined term given to a procedure that instead of being burned in an incinerator and then ground to ashes in a cremulator, the human body is frozen using liquid nitrogen at 196 degrees Celsius until the body is brittle.

Such a process drives out all of the water, and the cadaver is then subjected to a process which breaks it up into granules or fragments, which can then be returned in the normal way to the family for either burial or in an urn.

The process ensures that the final powder is sterile and 100% free of all bacteria and viruses. An accelerated composting process further reduces the mass and can itself, generate and sustain life; that is, a flower or tree can be planted with the remains and so complete the "circle of life" which is preferred by many religions.

Compared to traditional burials, there is much less space necessary which is an important issue for many overcrowded urbanized-burial cemeteries. If the remains are buried after cryomation, then this could return to loam in the ground in 6-12 months. In such situations, the family could have one plot that would be a third of the traditional size which could be utilized by the family for many generations in the future.

cryomatory, cryomator
New coined terms indicating a place where cryomation takes place or where human cadavers are frozen using liquid nitrogen and the brittle remains of the frozen bodies are turned into a powder and any metals removed.

The powdered remains can be buried in a biodegradable box or placed in urns depending on what is decided by the person before his or her death or the living relatives, etc. who are responsible for the freeze-dried remains.

cryometer
A device for measuring very low temperatures.
cryometry
The measurement or recording of extremely low temperatures, especially using a cryometer.
cryomorphology
In geology, a branch of geomorphology that involves the study of the processes and features of cold climates.
cryonically (adverb), more cryonically, most cryonically
When a person is cryonically frozen, the body is taken to a storage facility either in America or Russia, the only two facilities that store such bodies.
cryonics
1. Any of several medical techniques that use cold for therapeutic purposes; such as, using ice to deaden pain.
2. The study or practice of keeping a newly dead body at an extremely low temperature in the hope of restoring it to life later with the help of future medical advances: The process of cryonics involves replacing the blood with an anti-freeze fluid, slowly cooling the body to -70C, and then packing it in dry ice to be transported to a storage facility.

The scientific theory underlying cryonics is theoretical or hypothetical and controversial, and there is a great deal of disagreement about its ethical implications.

cryopathy (s) (noun), cryopathies (pl)
A morbid condition in which exposure to a cold temperature is an important determinant; frigorism: Judy learned about cryopathy which referred to a person's tissues being destructed by freezing weather and could cause a blistering and tingling of the skin.
cryopedology
A branch of geology that involves the study of frost action and the occurrence of frozen ground.
cryopedometer
An instrument for measuring the depth to which soil is frozen.
cryopexy
In retinal detachment surgery, sealing the sensory retina to the pigment epithelium and choroid by a freezing probe applied to the sclera.
cryophil, cryophile (s) (noun); cryophils; cryophiles (pl)
In ecology, an organism that grows at low temperatures; psychrophile: Such cryophiles can thrive at extremely cold temperatures varying from -20°C to 20°C (-4°F to 68°F).

The cryophils are found in areas that are continually cold, like the polar regions and in the deep oceans.

You may take a self-scoring quiz over some of the words in this section by clicking on this cryo-, kryo- quiz to check your word knowledge or learn more about the words in this unit.

Cross references of word families that are related directly or indirectly to "winter, freezing, frost, and/or cold": algid- (cold, chilly); cheimo-, chimo- (winter, cold); crymo-, krymo- (cold, chill, frost); frigo-, frig- (cold, frost); gel-, gelati- (freeze, frost, congeal); hiber- (winter, wintry); pago- (cold, freezing); psychro- (cold); rhigo- (cold, frost; shiver).