Test your basic knowledge |

Introduction To Health Sciences Vocab

Subject : health-sciences
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. A beneficial effect deriving from a procedure with no intrinsic benefit. It relies upon the context in which the intervention is made; e.g. a sugar pill might serve as a placebo if the patient believes that it will bring some benefits. (






2. A constantly repeating variation of some quantity that transfers energy from one position in a medium to another.






3. Cells that can divide to produce daughter cells - which can then differentiate to become any of a range of different cell types.






4. One of a family of similar chemicals that have the generic name of 'alcohol' - with the chemical formula C2H5OH.






5. The movement of atoms or molecules from a region of higher concentration to a region of lower concentration - until the concentration is the same throughout the available volume. Atoms and small molecules can also move across a permeable cell membran






6. Over time - a need for an increasing amount of drug to obtain the same level of effect - e.g. the amount of alcohol required to produce intoxication.






7. A break in both of the helical strands of a DNA molecule - caused by ionising radiation.






8. Substances in which an interaction or reaction occurs - or in which an event takes place - or chemicals or objects are transported or supported - e.g. a medium through which a wave is transmitted in the refraction of light.






9. Disease or disorder that often has a gradual onset - involves slowly changing symptoms and lasts for a long time.






10. Distance between one peak of a wave and the next peak - measured in metres (m).






11. An infection of the lower respiratory tract (the bronchi and lungs) - e.g. pneumonia.






12. A class of neurons that convey information from the central nervous system (CNS) to the muscles.






13. Most common type of age-related macular degeneration - in which the blood supply to the retina is reduced - resulting in gradual loss of vision.






14. An instrument that can be used to measure the volume of air entering and leaving the lungs.






15. Vital to many chemical reactions in the body. Crystals containing these form an important part of the structure of bones.






16. The tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi and carrying air to the lungs; also known as the windpipe.






17. An internationally recognised health indicator - defined as the number of babies in every 1000 live births who die in their first year of life.






18. The mechanisms in the nervous system underlying an automatic and unconscious reaction to a particular stimulus - i.e. a reaction that cannot be controlled by will-power.






19. Rigid structures (such as bones) that can move about a fulcrum in response to forces in order to transfer force from one place to another. They can modify the size of the force and the distance of motion.






20. One of the two main branches of the windpipe or trachea - leading to the lungs.






21. A poisonous substance produced by a living organism - usually injurious to potential prey - predators or competitors.






22. Structures in the kidney that filter the blood and produce the urine.






23. The organelles found inside myofibres that run the length of the cell and cause contraction.






24. The share of the total morbidity in a population Which is due to a particular cause; it is usually expressed as a percentage.






25. A complex specialised molecule embedded in the outer membrane of a cell - or in its internal structure - which has a unique three-dimensional shape and patterns of electrical charge that enable it to bind specifically to a particular signalling molec






26. Contains protons - each of which carry a single positive electric charge - and neutrons which are uncharged.






27. A screening programme (sometimes called 'individual screening' or 'targeted screening') that identifies individuals who are likely to be at substantially greater risk of developing a certain condition than others in their population group. These indi






28. The time between a pathogen entering its host and the host beginning to show disease symptoms; varies from one infectious disease to another.






29. The type of bone that is less dense (compared with compact bone) and contains struts (trabeculae) to provide strength. It is found within the widened areas inside the ends of the bones.






30. The number of individual pathogens required to cause disease in an infected person; the number varies from one infectious disease to another.






31. A painful eye condition caused by repeated infections with the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis .






32. A very long macromolecule found in the cell nucleus - abbreviated to DNA. It is the main component of chromosomes and is the material that transfers genetic characteristics through the generations in all organisms. The genetic information is carried






33. Microbes that cause disease.






34. A measure of the dose of ionising radiation to an organism which takes into account the sensitivity to radiation of different organs in the body. Multiplied by a tissue weighting factor for that organ. Then the amounts for all the affected organs are






35. A symptom of trachoma in which eyelashes grow inwards and scratch the conjunctiva - causing pain - scarring and eventually blindness.






36. A state of inadequate supply of oxygen to the brain and other vital organs - often as a result of severe blood loss.






37. The system of muscles and bones and their various joints and linkages that facilitates support and movement in the body.






38. A drug that widens the airways of the lungs and eases breathing by relaxing smooth muscle in the walls of bronchioles.






39. The study of toxins and their effects on living organisms.






40. A difficult and controversial term to define - in spite of its everyday use. It describes all the information processing carried out by the brain.






41. The skin layer that lies beneath the epidermis and provides the strength and elasticity of the skin.






42. The volume of air remaining in the lungs after a maximum expiration (abbreviated to RV).






43. A slimy - viscous substance secreted as a protective lubricant by the cells in the lining of the nose - throat and airways. Traps microbes and particles and is swept out of the respiratory system into the throat - to be coughed out or swallowed. Also






44. A sudden change in potential difference (voltage) across the cell membrane of neurons - consisting of an increase in the resting potential and a sudden return to the resting value. Transmitted along axons and constitute the principal 'language' of co






45. The experience of being in an unpleasant situation - over a period of days - weeks or longer - in which one is unable to exert control over circumstances which are not of one's choosing. The coping resources necessary to meet the demands of this unpl






46. A process at an interface of two media in which light is returned into the original medium without transmission or absorption.






47. Photoreceptor cells that are responsible for night vision. These cells provide no information about colour.






48. The pivot point about which a lever rotates.






49. An electrically charged atom or molecule. May be positively or negatively charged; e.g. Na+ (the positively charged sodium ion) and Cl- (the negatively charged chloride ion).






50. A lens shape with a greater thickness at each end than through the centre.