Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

  • Patent ductus arteriosus

    A congenital defect in which the ductus arteriosus fails to close. A congenital condition in which the ductus arteriosus does not close, allowing blood into the circulation without having passed through the lungs. The ductus arteriosus remains open after birth, allowing oxygenated blood back into the lungs through the foramen oval; characterized by thrill, fremitus,…

  • Patella

    The small bone in front of the knee joint. Flat, triangular bone at the front of the knee joint; also called sesamoid bone and, colloquially, kneecap. The small, rounded bone situated at the front of the knee; also known as the kneecap. The lens-shaped bone that forms the kneecap. It is situated in front of…

  • Pasteurella tularensis

    The causative agent of tularemia.  

  • Pasteurella pestis

    The bacterium that causes the bubonic plague. A gram-negative, facultatively anaerobic bacterium, varying in shape from rod-like to oval. It is the causative agent of bubonic and pneumonic plague in humans, rats, ground squirrels, and other rodents. The transmission occurs from rat to rat and from rat to human through the rat flea, and from…

  • Passive vocabulary

    All the words a person understands active vocabulary. Words that a person can recognize or understand in context in hearing or reading matter, as opposed to the active vocabulary that can be used independently in speaking or writing. Because children, like adults, always understand much more than they can express, their passive vocabulary is much…

  • Passive smoking

    Passive smoking

    The inhalation of air that is heavily polluted with tobacco smoke from other people’s cigarettes. The act of breathing in smoke from other people’s cigarettes when you do not smoke yourself. Nonsmokers’ exposure to smoke emitted by burning cigarettes or cigars and exhaled by cigarette or cigar smokers. Passive smoking, also referred to as secondhand…

  • Passively acquired immunity

    A temporary immunity achieved by providing antibodies to a person exposed to a particular pathogen.  

  • Passive listening

    A strong nonverbal message that indicates that a person wants to listen, active listening.  

  • Passive learning

    Learning that takes place without the learner being actively involved in the learning experience. A learning style in which the child sits and listens while others lecture.  

  • Passive immunization

    The practice of injecting antibodies directly into the body to confer immunity active immunity. A type of immunization in which antibodies are directly injected into a person’s body, supplying a short-term immunity; as opposed to the more common active immunization. A therapeutic approach involving the transfer of antibodies obtained from an individual with a pre-existing…

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