Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

Relating to a bile duct. From the Greek chole meaning bile + a(n)geion meaning a vessel = a bile vessel.

A clear, volatile liquid with a strong smell similar to that of ether. Chloroform was once administered by inhalation to produce anesthesia, given to relieve pain, and used as a remedy for cough. It is quite toxic to the kidneys and the liver.

The major anion (negatively charged substance) in the blood and extracellular fluid (the body fluid that lies outside cells). Blood and other body fluids have almost the same concentration of chloride ion as sea water. The balance of chloride ion (Cl–) is closely regulated by the body. Significant increases or decreases in chloride can have deleterious and…

A prescription sedative/hypnotic drug developed in the 19th century. The drug acts rapidly and induces sleep within 60 minutes, and is used for the short-term treatment of insomnia. Chloral hydrate can be taken orally in syrup or capsule form and is also available in the form of rectal suppositories. The medical use of chloral hydrate has declined over the years…

A bacterium that causes a disease called trachoma that results in blindness so frequently that it places a huge burden a year on world health funding ($25 billion in the year 2000). The disease goes by a number of names such as sandy blight. The transmission of Chlamydia trachomatis is mainly among children and from children to…

A chiropractic practitioner. Becoming a doctor of chiropractic (DC) requires a minimum of 2 years of college and 4 years in a school of chiropractic medicine. Some chiropractors also earn a traditional medical degree (MD) or other additional qualifications. Not all chiropractors are alike in their practice. The International Chiropractors Association believes that patients should be treated…

A system of diagnosis and treatment based on the concept that the nervous system coordinates all of the body’s functions, and that disease results from a lack of normal nerve function. Chiropractic employs manipulation and adjustment of body structures, such as the spinal column, so that pressure on nerves coming from the spinal cord due to displacement (subluxation) of…

A syndrome first described in 1968 in people who had eaten Chinese food on which MSG (monosodium glutamate) had been lavished. The syndrome only seems to occur in some people. Their symptoms may include headache, throbbing of the head, dizziness, lightheadedness, a feeling of facial pressure, tightness of the jaw, burning or tingling sensations over parts of the…

Medically, the mentum. The lower portion of the face below the lower lip including the prominence of the lower jaw and the line of fusion of the two separate halves of the jawbone (mandible). This line of fusion (called the symphysis menti) encloses a triangular area at tip of the chin (termed the mental protuberance).…

In medicine, a person composed of two genetically distinct types of cells. Human chimeras were first discovered with the advent of blood typing when it was found that some people had more than one blood type. Most of them proved to be “blood chimeras” — non-identical twins who shared a blood supply in the uterus. Those…