Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

A genus of hookworm which infests the small intestine. A genus of hookworms that live in the small intestine. The human hookworm, N. americanus, occurs in tropical Africa, Central and South America, India, and the Pacific Islands. The worm possesses two pairs of sharp cutting plates inside its mouth cavity, which enable it to feed…

A slightly cloudy spot on the cornea. A spray of medicinal solution, applied to the nose or throat using a nebuliser. A faint opacity or scar on the cornea; it seldom interferes with vision. A faint opacity of the cornea that remains after an ulcer has healed. A subtle, greyish cloudiness on the cornea of…

One of the tarsal bones in the foot. A boat-shaped bone of the ankle that articulates with the three cuneiform bones in front and with the talus behind. A bone in the foot that connects with the talus’s head (a bone within the ankle joint) and with three of the tarsal bones (comprising the rear…

The scar with a depression in the middle of the abdomen where the umbilical cord was detached after birth. The scar on the abdomen that marks the site where the umbilical cord connecting mother to fetus during pregnancy was attached to the fetus. The medical word for the navel is the umbilicus. The scar on…

The arguments put forward about whether human beings behave in the way they do because of their genetic make-up and instincts or because of the way they are educated and the influences they are exposed to when they are young. A term first coined by Sir Francis GALTON (1822-1911) for a controversial question: whether humans’…

The essential quality of something. Kind or sort. The genetic make-up which affects personality, behaviour or risk of disease. Plants and animals.  

Something which helps sodium to be excreted in the urine. Compound, often a drug, that increases the excretion of sodium in the urine; most diuretics are potent natriuretics, resulting in loss of sodium and water in the urine, often with a mild to moderate decrease in the patient’s blood pressure or swelling (edema), if present.…

A weekly payment from a person’s wages, with a supplement from the employer, which pays for state assistance and medical treatment, in the UK.  

An organisation in the UK which produces recommendations for treatments based on clinical evidence and cost-effectiveness.