Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

pulse, in anatomy

(Encyclopedia)pulse, alternate expansion and contraction of artery walls as heart action varies blood volume within the arteries. Artery walls are elastic. Hence they become distended by increased blood volume duri...

pulse, in botany

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Sweet pea, Lathyrus odoratus, a member of the pulse family pulse, in botany, common name for members of the Fabaceae (Leguminosae), a large plant family, called also the pea, or legume, family...

foot, in anatomy

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Foot foot, in anatomy, terminal part of the land vertebrate leg. The term is also applied to any invertebrate appendage used either for locomotion or attachment, e.g., the legs of insects and ...

heart, in anatomy

(Encyclopedia)CE5 Cross section of heart, with arrows indicating direction of blood flow heart, muscular organ that pumps blood to all parts of the body. The rhythmic beating of the heart is a ceaseless activit...

gum, in anatomy

(Encyclopedia)gum, in anatomy: see teeth.

bursa, in anatomy

(Encyclopedia)bursa bûrˈsə [key], closed fibrous sac lined with a smooth membrane, producing a viscous lubricant known as synovial fluid. Bursas are found in regions where muscles or tendons rub against other mu...

joint, in anatomy

(Encyclopedia)joint, in anatomy, juncture between two bones. Some joints are immovable, e.g., those that connect the bones of the skull, which are separated merely by short, tough fibers of cartilage. Movable joint...

iris, in anatomy

(Encyclopedia)iris: see eye.

colon, in anatomy

(Encyclopedia)colon, in anatomy: see intestine. ...

nail, in anatomy

(Encyclopedia)nail, in anatomy, the horny outgrowth shielding the tip of the finger and the toe in humans and most other primates. The nail consists of dead cells pushed outward by dividing cells in the root, a fol...