Glossary
B
baby walker
framework with wheels to assist babies in learning to walk (US origin)
baby weigher
Set of scales or other type of balance (balance scales or spring type) used to assertain the weight of a baby or small infant
bacteria
Micro-organisms which can cause disease but have an important role in global ecology.
bacterial culture
A population of bacterial micro-organisms grown in a laboratory environment. Usually developed in liquid or solid state.
bacteriology
The study of a group of single-celled organisms called bacteria.
badge
Objects bearing special or distinctive marks, tokens, or devices signifying membership, allegiance, authority, or qualification; usually worn on the person.
baldness
trial term S&H
ballistic galvanometer
A moving-coil galvanometer designed for measuring charge by detecting a surge of current
balsam
An aromatic substance which is secreted from certain plants. It is used in some botanical medicines.
bandage
A strip of material such as gauze used to protect, immobilize, compress, or support a wound or injured body part
baptism
A ceremony symbolising purification and marking entry into the Christian church.
barber-surgeon
A medical practitioner in medieval Europe, who performed some types of surgery, such as bloodletting and pulling teeth. They often performed surgery on people wounded in war.
barbiturate
A group of drugs that reduce the activity of the central nervous system. They were used as sedatives or tranquillisers but have been replaced in clinical use now as they were found to be addictive.
bas-relief
Another term for ‘low-relief’. It refers to a sculpture whose image has a shallow depth.
battery
Collection of voltaic cells that convert chemical energy into direct current (DC) electricity
BCG
Bacille Calmette-Guerin (BCG) is a weakened strain of the tuberculosis bacteria, which is used as a vaccination against TB(. Developed in 1908, it was first used on humans in 1921.
beamscale
Scales with a horizontal bar pivoting about a central fulcrum, creating equal-length arms; suspended from the ends of the arms are pans or baskets, in one of which is placed the item being weighed and in the other, a premeasured weight.
bed - furniture
Generally, the sleeping places of humans and animals. Specifically, permanent pieces of furniture comprised of a bedstead, which is the wooden or metal support, and the bedding, including the mattress and cover.
bed cycle
Invented by Dr Ludwig Guttman (1899-1980), a Jewish neurologist and surgeon, the bed cycle was used for exercise by paraplegics and tetraplegics
bed rest
A support for a person in bed or confinement of a sick person to bed