Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

A person in whom there is the normal nocturnal fall (dip) in blood pressure. The opposite of a dipper is a nondipper.

A condition in which a single object appears as two objects. Also known as double vision.

An acute infectious upper respiratory tract disease that affects the throat. It is caused by the bacteria Corynebacterium diphtheriae. Symptoms include sore throat and mild fever at first. As the disease progresses, a membranous substance forms in the throat that makes it difficult to breathe and swallow. Diphtheria can be deadly. It is one of the diseases that the DT (diphtheria-tetanus), DTP (diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis),…

Diphallia: an extremely rare congenital abnormality (birth defect) in which a male infant is born with duplication of the penis. This condition is estimated to occur in only one out of every 5 to 6 million live births. Diphallia is often associated with other abnormalities including gastrointestinal problems and other genitourinary abnormalities. The anatomical abnormality is often referred to as diphallus.

Dioscorides of Anazarbus. First century Greek physician, botanist and pharmacologist whose encyclopedia of materia medica was used for centuries after his death. Born in southeast Asia Minor in the Roman Empire in the first few decades C.E. During his lifetime, Dioscorides traveled extensively seeking medicinal substances from all over the Roman and Greek world. He benefited greatly from the ease…

The process of enlargement, stretching, or expansion. The word “dilatation” means the same thing. Both come from the Latin “dilatare” meaning “to enlarge or expand.”

A disorder in which the chambers of the heart are dilated (enlarged) because the heart muscle is weakened and cannot pump effectively. There are many causes, the most common being myocardial ischemia (not enough oxygen supplied to the heart muscle) due to coronary artery disease.

To stretch or enlarge. Also known as dilatate.

A byproduct of the male hormone testosterone. Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is considered to be the essential androgenic hormone. DHT is responsible for the formation of male primary sex characteristics during embryonic life. It is responsible for the development of most secondary sex characteristics in males at puberty. And it continues to be important to male sexual function throughout adult life. A semisynthetic analog of…

A finger or toe.