Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

A type of food additive that has been implicated in triggering, or at least exacerbating, hyperactivity.  

Inspection and repair of the inside of a joint, using a flexible viewing tube called an endoscope, inserted through a small incision. The technique is most commonly used on knee joints and allows orthopedists to remove damaged material, repair torn tissues, and make other repairs, in a procedure that allows people (notably athletes) to resume…

Back payments that have accumulated on a debt, such as unpaid, overdue child support payments; also called arrears. The term is sometimes also used to refer to “unpaid” visits, when visitation rights have been denied.  

Obstacles barring people with physical handicaps from free access to buildings, such as stairs, narrow doorways, and inaccessible bathrooms. Many older buildings are completely inaccessible to people with physical disabilities, but various laws are requiring that at least some be modified for free access; the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, for example, requires that…

A frightening episode in which an observer thinks someone has died or is dying and needs resuscitation; in cases of infants with pathologic sleep apnea, sometimes called aborted crib death or near-miss SIDS and apparently associated with increased risk of sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).  

Medical phrase for the centuries-old, traditional definition of death, notably lack of heartbeat and breathing as indicating cessation of life.  

A medical physician who specializes in administering anesthetics, drugs to produce local or general loss of sensation, generally in preparation for some form of surgery. In some situations, a nurse anesthetist, a registered nurse with advanced training, may handle anesthesia. If you or your child are scheduled for any procedure that may require anesthesia, you…

Numerical summary of the relationship between a child’s growth and the statistical average for a child of the same size and sex. If a child of six has a degree of skeletal maturation normally seen in a seven-year-old, that child’s anatomical age is seven. An estimate of age as judged by the stage of development…

A learning style that focuses on the general rule or concept first, and then on the parts or supporting details.  

A kind of blood test, one of the liver function tests, that can indicate damage to heart or liver tissues.