In this, the stream of video and audio data is recorded as a series of minuscule spots on the disc's surface that have been gently fried by a laser beam and turned from their normal crystalline condition to an amorphous state that has different reflective properties.

ECONOMIST: Digital video discs

The Catalans had rarely felt themselves part of an entity called Spain, in part because throughout modern history, the idea of a Spanish nation state has been amorphous.

BBC: Eurozone crisis: Catalonia's place in Spain