So when I'm running D&D, I try to remind myself, in descriptions, of things like, "Use the word lightning instead of electricity," or, "disease or malady instead of virus or bacteria." Substitutions that sound more in genre (even though D&D 3 used Electricity as a descriptor) when you're describing something. (Sometimes this might lead to a coconut effect, where I'm using a word because it sounds more atmospheric, even though the word I'm replacing would be just fine to people of that era/setting-equivalent.)

I'm curious what are some other substitutions or words you would use, and in what context? What are things you do for the correct sizzle for your game (or that your DM does for the game you're playing in, or both)?

Electricity may be still viable depending on how well anyone in the setting understands or employs electricity. I like to use terms like "galvanizing current arcs through you at his merest touch!" or "the eldritch discharge of shocking force leaps from one target to another!" and so on.

But yeah unless someone has invented the microscope equivalent or shrunken down small enough the idea of bacteria may be unknown. Though I think most anyone would know of fungal and mold growths and infections. Though with the presence of gods and spells all bets are off. Depending on the setting at least some may be very aware of what a disease is. That is assuming the setting has actual bacterialogical diseases at all. What if its instead very tiny elementals spreading?

Then there are settings like Greyhawk which have access to alien tech. Knowledge and terms may filter down to at least the general academia or arcana circles of knowledge.

The thing with D&D though, is that the world is not discovered by trial and error, observation, and scientific method, but by dialing up a god or higher power via a spell. Provided the god himself/herself doesn't come down for a visit.  The Sumerians (and others) that they were taught civilization by beings from beyond (Oannes) and in a fantasy setting, this would literally be true. So people would not be ignorant peasants.

I tend to run settings more in the vein of "Thundarr" than Medieval Authentic, so I generally just consider anachronistic knowledge that's just so pervasive it's hard to avoid its influence on our thinking (ex. germ theory and basic first aid procedures) to have been something discovered by someone in the past.

Ironically, these same players have no problem referring to lightning instead of electricity even when dealing with things where it'd make sense to call it electricity. I suspect it's because lightning isn't exactly a rare phenomenon and "lightning bolt" is probably second only to "fireball" in terms of iconic spells.

Using the "right" vocabulary for a particular genre can be helpful for immersion.  Steampunk has its own lingo and using that vocab enhances players' belief in your steampunk world.

As for science words in D&D, I don't know. JeremyR brings up a good point about the gods. In settings where the gods chat with mortals, like the Greek Gods in Mazes & Minotaurs, there would be a high level of education, at least among the priests. In settings like Conan where the gods don't chitchat, its doubtful the people of Hyboria would know any more about the world than our bronze age ancestors.  

As for electricity, check this out:
Long before any knowledge of electricity existed, people were aware of shocks from electric fish. Ancient Egyptian texts dating from 2750 BCE referred to these fish as the "Thunderer of the Nile", and described them as the "protectors" of all other fish. Electric fish were again reported millennia later by ancient Greek, Roman and Arabic naturalists and physicians.[2] Several ancient writers, such as Pliny the Elder and Scribonius Largus, attested to the numbing effect of electric shocks delivered by catfish and electric rays, and knew that such shocks could travel along conducting objects.[3] Patients suffering from ailments such as gout or headache were directed to touch electric fish in the hope that the powerful jolt might cure them.[4] Possibly the earliest and nearest approach to the discovery of the identity of lightning, and electricity from any other source, is to be attributed to the Arabs, who before the 15th century had the Arabic word for lightning ra'ad applied to the electric ray.[5]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electricity#History

I did not know that!

Guess that makes electricity a "coconut effect," for me then.

Quote from: JeremyR;1062027The thing with D&D though, is that the world is not discovered by trial and error, observation, and scientific method, but by dialing up a god or higher power via a spell. Provided the god himself/herself doesn't come down for a visit.  The Sumerians (and others) that they were taught civilization by beings from beyond (Oannes) and in a fantasy setting, this would literally be true. So people would not be ignorant peasants.

Which raises two questions:
1. What do the gods know?
2. How does that benefit the gods?

If we take the creation myths around the world as their upper limit, the gods know only the basics of civilization, like fire, agriculture, plows, domesticated animals, and so on. If they know more, they're not sharing. And why would they share? They want their worshipers to have an advantage over their neighbors, but keeping them in a perpetual state of willful ignorance and dependence is a great way to ensure your continued preeminence. The scientific method and the continual expansion of knowledge will just erode their power.

Or man was not ready to know how to wield thunderbolters (misspelling on purpose). Man needed to grow in wisdom before he could wield the fireball of atomos with responsibility.

"Lightning" works for every occasion.

Just because a culture is not technologically advanced, doesn't mean that they cannot build and use more advanced items. Case in point, the Baghdad Battery. While not an archaeologist, my own thoughts are that the device was used for religious ceremonies.

Quote from: jeff37923;1062142Just because a culture is not technologically advanced, doesn't mean that they cannot build and use more advanced items. Case in point, the Baghdad Battery. While not an archaeologist, my own thoughts are that the device was used for religious ceremonies.

That was one of the things I was referring to with the possibility knowledge of electricity might not be unknown. And the early theories are that the battery may have been used to electroplate jewlery as was demonstrated even that using materials of the era it could be done with that battery. What exactly they were used for is anyones guess though.

Trick is... This sort of knowledge might not be well known. Various reasons to hoard such secrets rather than reveal them. Such as jewelers secret. Military secret. etc. The process of making flasks oil that act like mini fire grenades may be a well kept secret. Or no one else at the time sees any use in sending electricity along thin wires. and so on.