Chapter 1 Flashcards
Anatomy
The study of body structures
Physiology
The study of body functions
Inspection
Simply looking at the body’s appearance
Palpation
Feeling a structure with the hands
Palp
Touch, feel
Auscultation
Listening to the natural sounds made by the body
Auscult
Listen
Percussion
Tapping on the body, feeling for abnormal resistance, and listening to the emitted sound for signs of abnormalities
Dissection
Carefully cutting and separating tissues to reveal their relationships
Cadaver
A dead human body, commonly used in dissection for the purpose of training students in anatomy
Comparative Anatomy
The study of multiple species in order to examine similarities and differences and analysis evolutionary trends
Exploratory Surgery
Opening the body and taking a look inside to see what was wrong and what can be done about it
Medical Imaging
Methods of viewing inside of the body without surgery
Radiology
The branch of medicine concerned with imaging, such as with X-rays
Gross Anatomy
Structure that can be seen with the naked eye - whether by surface observation, radiology, or dissection
Histology (Microscopic Anatomy)
The study of normal tissues, or groups of cells and their surrounding extracellular materials under a microscope
Histo
Tissue
Histopathology
The microscopic examination of tissues for signs of disease
Cytology
The study of the structure and function individual cells
Cyto
Cell
Ultrastructure
Focuses on the study of structures within cells
Comparative Physiology
The study of how biological processes vary in different animal species
Robert Hooke
Developed and improved compound microscope, described plant cell walls
Antony van Leeuwenhoek
Invented a simple microscope (200x) to look at fabrics
Matthias Schleiden & Theodor Schwann
Concluded that all organisms were composed of cells, which later became the first tenet of cell theory
Hypothesis
Educated speculation or possible answer to the question, must be (1) consistent with what is already known and (2) capable of being tested and possibly falsified by evidence
Placebo
A substance with no significant physiological effect on the body
Theory
An explanatory statement of set of statements derived from facts, laws, and confirmed hypothesis
Evolution
A change in the genetic composition of a population of organisms over a period of time
Natural Selection
Some individuals within a species have hereditary advantages over their competitors
Selection Pressures
Natural forces that promote the reproductive success of some individuals more than others, include things like climate, predators, disease, competition, and the availability of food
Adaptations
Features of anatomy, physiology, and behavior that have evolved in response to these selection pressures and enable the organism to cope with the challenges of its environment
Opposable
Thumbs can cross the palm to touch the fingertips
Bipedalism
Standing and walking on two legs
Homo sapiens
Modern human species
Organism
A single, complete individual
Organ System
A group of organs with a unique collective function
Organ
A structure composed of at least two different tissue types, has recognizable structural boundaries, and has a discrete function different from the structures around it
Tissue
A mass of similar cells and cell products that forms a discrete region of an organ and performs a specific function
Cell
The smallest unit of an organism that can carry out all the basic functions of life
Organelle
A microscopic structure in a cell that carry out its individual functions
Molecule
A particle composed of at least two atoms
Atom
The smallest particles with unique chemical identities
Reductionism
The theory that a large, complex system such as the human body can be understood by studying its simpler components
Metabolism
Internal chemical reactions in a living organism
Excretion
The separation of wastes from the tissues and their elimination from the body
Stimuli
Changes in the environment, to which organisms respond
Differentiation
The transformation of cells with no specialized function into cells that are committed to a particular task
Growth
An increase in size
Homeostasis
The body’s ability to detect change, activate mechanisms that oppose it, and thereby maintain relatively stable internal conditions
Dynamic Equilibrium
Balanced change
Negative Feedback
A process in which the body senses a change and activates mechanisms that negate or reverse it
Receptor
A cell or organ that is specialized to detect a stimulus
Integrating (Control) Center
A mechanism that processes change in the body
Effector
A molecule, cell, or organ that carries out a response to a stimulus
Positive Feedback
A self-amplifying cycle in which a physiological change leads to even greater change in the same direction, for example, contractions during childbirth and formation of a blood clot
Charles Darwin
Best known for his theory of natural selection
Hypo
Below
Epi
Above
Endo
Within, inside
Di
Two
Plasma Membrane
The structure that encloses a cell and controls the traffic of molecules in and out of the cell
Cell Theory
States that all organisms are composed of cells
Inductive Method
The process of drawing conclusions and making predictions from repeated observation
Law of Nature
A verbal or mathematical description of a predicable natural phenomenon
Peer Review
The method of evaluating results by the other experts in that field
Fact
Information that can independently verified by any trained person
Experimenter Bias
The term for the conscious or subconscious influence an experiment may have on the interpretation of their data
Gradient
A difference in chemical concentration, electrical charge, physical pressure, temperature, or other variable between one point and another
Statistical Test
Provides a statement of probability that the experimental outcome was due to random variation
