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APPRAISAL DIMENSION

any aspect of the criteria that account for a person's evaluation of an interaction with the environment and the generation

APPURTENANCE

refers to a concept in gestalt psychology that means interaction or mutual influence between parts of a perceptual field. This

AQUEOUS HUMOR

refers to the clear, sticky fluid that occupies the anterior and posterior chambers of the eye. The fluid is produced

ARCHITECTURAL CONSTRAINTS

limitations dictated by the architectural structure of the brain. This limits the type of information that may processed by the

ARGININOSUCCINIC ACIDURIA

a disorder characterized by the presence of argininosuccinic acid in urine and cerebrospinal fluid. This results from an innate problem

ARMAMENTARIUM

n. 1. the totality of the equipment within an institution, often a medical institution, which is necessary or sufficient for

AROUSAL LEVEL

the level to which an organism is alert to stimuli and therefore physiologically responsive to it.

ARRESTED TESTIS

a testis that lies within the inguinal canal but cannot descend into the scrotum due to obstruction of the passage.

ARTICULATE SPEECH

any form of oral language that is meaningful and intelligible.

ARTIFICIAL LIFE

a research area of artificial intelligence, whereby computer-based life forms are generated. Such forms, as first proposed by Austrian-born U.S.

ASCH, SOLOMON E

(1907-1996) Polish-born U.S. psychologist. Asch emigrated with his family to the United States in 1920 and then earned his doctorate

ASPIRATIONAL GROUP

any group that an individual wishes or aspires to join with. This may be an actual group, that is characterized

ASSISTED SUICIDE

a form of suicide in which the person ending his or her own life is helped to do so by

ASSOCIATION VALUE

1. the extent to which a specific stimulus is associated with a person's ideas, memories, or values. 2. the extent

ASSONANCE

repeated vowel sounds in subsequent words, for example, in poetry.

ASTROBLASTOMA

one type of slow-growing tumor comprised of neuroglial cells (see astrocytoma), whereby the cells have abundant cytoplasm and multiple nuclei.

ASYNDESIS

n. disjointed speech, which sounds a little like word salad, in which disconnected ideas are put together without grammatical linkages

ATHEROSCLEROSIS

n. a common form of arteriosclerosis, or artery hardening, whereby the primary sign is atheroma - or the deposition of

AT-RISK MENTAL STATES

psychological symptoms or other vulnerability factors that render individuals more susceptible to mental illnesses or to adverse behaviors, such as

ATTENSITY

n. the sensory clarity or immediate attention-producing effect of a given sensation.