| absorptiometry, photon | A noninvasive method for quantitating bone mineral content. It is used especially in the diagnosis of osteoporosis and also in measuring bone mineralization in infants. (12 Dec 1998) |
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| absorption | The process of absorbing, specifically: 1. <physiology> The movement and uptake of substances (liquids and solutes) into cells or across tissues such as skin, intestine and kiidney tubules, by way of diffusion or osmosis. 2. <chemistry> The drawing of a gas or liquid into the pores of a permeable solid. 3. <psychology> The devotion of thought to one object or activity, with inattention to others. 4. <radiology> The taking up of energy by matter with which the radiation interacts. 5. <physics> The loss of (electromagnetic) energy to a medium. For instance, an electromagnetic wave which propagates through a plasma will set the electrons into motion. If the electrons make collisions with other particles, they will absorb net energy from the wave. 6. <immunology> A process in which an antigen or antibody is used to pull an analogous antigen or antibody out of a solution. Compare: adsorption. Origin: L. Absorptio (12 Nov 1997) |
| absorption band | The range of wavelengths or frequencies in the electromagnetic spectrum where radiant energy is absorbed by passage through a gaseous, liquid, or dissolved substance; it is exploited for analytical purposes in colourimetry or spectrophotometry, and is usually described in terms of the wavelength where maximum absorbance occurs (i.e., lambdamax). (05 Mar 2000) |
| absorption cell | A small glass chamber with parallel sides, in which absorption spectra of solutions can be obtained. (05 Mar 2000) |
| absorption chromatography | <investigation> Techniques for separating molecules based on differential absorption and elution. Term for separation methods involving flow of a fluid carrier over a nonmobile absorbing phase. (18 Nov 1997) |
| absorption coefficient | <physics> Measures the degree of wave absorption defined as the fraction of wave energy lost as the wave travels a unit distance. See: absorption. (15 Jan 1998) |
| absorption collapse | Pulmonary collapse due to rapid complete obstruction of a large bronchus. (05 Mar 2000) |
| absorption fever | An elevation of temperature often occurring, without other untoward symptoms, shortly after childbirth, assumed to be due to absorption of uterine discharges through abrasions of the vaginal wall. (05 Mar 2000) |
| absorption lines | The dark line's in the solar spectrum due to absorption by the solar and the earth's atmosphere; the phenomenon occurs because rays passing from an incandescent body through a colder medium are absorbed by elements in that medium. (05 Mar 2000) |
| absorption spectroscopy | <investigation> This is the use of a spectrophotometer to measure the ability of particles (solutes) in a solution to absorb light through a range of specific wavelengths. Every compound absorbs light differently, so absorption spectra can be used to identify compounds, measure concentrations, and determine reaction rates. (15 Jan 1998) |
| absorption spectrum | <chemistry> A graph of the amount of light a substance absorbs, plotted as a fuction of energy, frequency or wavelength. (15 Jan 1998) |
| absorptive | 1. Anything which absorbs. "The ocean, itself a bad absorbent of heat." (Darwin) 2. <medicine> Any substance which absorbs and neutralizes acid fluid in the stomach and bowels, as magnesia, chalk, etc.; also a substance e. G, iodine) which acts on the absorbent vessels so as to reduce enlarged and indurated parts. 3. <physiology> The vessels by which the processes of absorption are carried on, as the lymphatics in animals, the extremities of the roots in plants. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
| absorptive cells of intestine | Cell's on the surface of villi of the small intestine and the luminal surface of the large intestine that are characterised by having microvilli on their free surface. (05 Mar 2000) |
| absorptivity | Synonym: specific absorption coefficient, molar absorption coefficient. (05 Mar 2000) |