• second letter of the Latin alphabet, first consonant
  • numeric value represents duality: B=2
  • phonetic name: "voiced bilabial plosive"; sound: put your lips together and release with a short percussive POP of air as you feel your vocal cords hum ("plosive" = putting lips together and forcing air out through them)
  • in Egyptian, the "bee" sound was represented by a hieroglyph of a foot
  • in Phoenician/Hebrew, can be traced to a pictogram of a house floorplan / shelter (beth)
  • adopted by Greeks into beta (β), which makes up second part of English word "alphabet"
  • in Roman, 'B' represents 300
  • in computer programming, the beta version second pre-release stage, where most of the developmental bugs are worked out
  • lower bowl of capital 'B' is usually larger to avoid top-heaviness
  • associated with childhood, roundness and lips; shape of upper case 'B' (two stacked bowls with a stem) can evoke the shape of lips/mouth, and the roundness of soft, feminine forms; also, beth / Bethlehem = house, birthplace, baby (bebe)
  • shape also sometimes connected to the number thirteen (13 | B)
  • used to denote lower quality (i.e. B-movie); in grade school, B stands for "better than average"
  • 'B' in music is the note "tee", the seventh note in a C-major musical scale
  • can be said to position us on earthly plane (feet, floorplan), where we face dichotomies of good and evil, life and death
  • often silent (lamb, debt)
  • 'B' represents the element Boron (#5 on the periodic table), which has properties of both metals and non-metals (duality?)
  • phonetic sound "bee" can represent the common verb (to be) or the flying insect known for pollination and producing honey (bee)
  • BB gun is a type of air-powered firearm (plosive?)
  • B can also abbreviate bass, bay, Belgium, Bible, billion, bishop, black, bomber, born, British, bye
  • NATO phonetic alphabet: BRAVO
  • B vitamins (B1, B3, B3, B5, B6, B7, B8, B9, B12) are important for cell metabolism
  • Blood type B is a dominant blood type, and will always be expressed; according to Dr. Peter J. D'Adamo, people with blood type B are "balanced, flexible and creative." They have a tolerant digestive system (because of their nomadic ancestors), can enjoy low-fat dairy, meat, and produce but should avoid wheat, corn, and lentils. If you're type B, it's recommended you exercise moderately.