|
vaginal process: A
small downward projecting open cylinder on the petrous pyramid of
the temporal, to the inside and in front of the mastoid process,
that holds the styloid process.
valgus: An angulation
of the femur in which the knees are closer together than the hip
joints; "knock-kneed."
variance: A statistical
measure of how values vary from the mean. See also standard deviation.
variance of gene frequency:
The variance in the frequency of an allele among a group of populations.
varves: Fine layers
of alluvium sediment deposited in glacial lakes. Their annual deposition
makes them a useful source of dating.
vascularized: Having
blood vessels.
vegetative reproduction:
See asexual reproduction.
ventral: The belly
side of an animal; the opposite of dorsal.
ventral surface of
flake: The smooth surface of a detached piece that contains no previous
flake removals excetp sometimes an eraillure flake scar on the bulb
of force.
vertebra: One of the
bony segments of the vertebral column.
vertebral canal: See
neural canal.
vertebral column: A
structure made up of the vertebrae, from the cervical to the thoracic
and lumbar.
vertebral spine: A
blade of bone projecting dorsally from a vertebra, serving as an
attachment site for several ligaments and muscles, also called a
spinous process.
vibrissae: Facial hairs
especially sensitive to touch, surrounding the mouth of many animals.
viral oncogene: A viral
gene that transforms a cell it infects to a cancerous state. See
also cellular oncogene; oncogenesis.
virilocal: Residence
of a married couple with the husband's kin (formerly called "patrilocal").
Residence rules can be further distinguished as viri-patrilocal
(with the husband's father - patri-virilocal expresses the same
pattern), viri-avunculocal (or avunculo-virilocal) - residence with
the husband's maternal uncle.
virulent phage: A phage
like T4, which always follows the lytic cycle when it infects bacteria.
visible mutation: A
mutation that affects the morphology or physical appearance of an
organism.
visual cortex: The
outer portion of the brain at the rear of the cerebrum responsible
for visual input and association.
visual overlap: The
ability to see objects simultaneously with both eyes, a requirement
of three-dimensional vision.
|
