PALEOANTHROPOLOGY: Paleontology is a discipline of science that deals with the study of fossils and fossil remains of plants, animals and humans. Antnropology is a discipline of science that deals with the study of human beings. Paleoanthropology is the study of fossil remains of human beings, both pre-human and human beings. (JA)

PALEOINDIANS: Some anthropologists and archaeologists call the first Asians (Mongoloids) that entered the American continent during the Upper Palaeolithic period, Paleoindians. These are the ancestors of the Amerindians. Accordingly, the first migration is also called the paleoindian migration, followed by the Na-Dene and Aleut-Eskimo waves of settlement. This model is very controversial, and recent genetic studies as well as archaeology/anthropology indicate that the colonization of the American continent has been much more complex. Still, the very early occupants of the continent are called Paleoindians. (GK)

PALEOLITIC AGE: the archeological age beginning about 750,000 years ago characterized by the hunter-tribal period of human cultural development. (IP)

PALEONTOLOGY: (Also British: palaeo- from Greek: palaios "ancient" + ontology "existence") The scientific study of fossils and their context. The paleontologist uses remnant clues to reconstruct information about ancient life forms and past environments. (MP)

PALI CANON: See TIPITAKA.

PANDORA: See HOPE.

PANTHEISM: Pantheism is a philosophy, which says that God is everywhere, everything is identical with, or at least a part of God, nothing exists except for God. Pantheism can be regarded as a form of atheism, in the sense that pantheism says that God is nothing but the world. But Pantheism can be regarded as an extremely religious idea in that it says that the world is nothing but an appearance of God. Spinoza (q.v.), was perhaps the most famous pantheist philosopher. Some people call him an atheist. But the American philosopher, William James, called him: "that God-intoxicated man." Israeli Kabala ("Jewish mysticism"), which says that everything in the world is a revelation of Godliness, is a form of pantheism. Another famous pantheist was Parmenides of Elea (5 ^th Century BC) in ancient Greece. (FL)

PAP SMEAR TEST: a smear test of examining stained cervical cells for the presence of cancerous ones (named after George N. Papanicolaou, Greek physician in US practice 1883-1962). The technique permits early diagnosis of cancer and has significantly contributed to lowering the death rate from cervical cancer; thus, is an important part of general gynecological care. (see CERVICAL CANCER) (IP)

PARADIGM: A paradigm is an archetypal pattern or theoretical framework which supports scientific and metaphysical beliefs. Thomas Kuhn in his Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1962) sees the progress of science not as gradual like the empiricists, but as a series of punctuated changes, or ‘paradigm shifts’, which alter the very model and language of the previous belief system. The ‘dominant paradigm’, or established viewpoint, is overthrown by an alternative epistemological framework or world-view. One of Kuhn’s examples was the paradigm shift from the Ptolemaic earth-centered picture of the solar system to the Copernican heliocentric model. (See WORLD VIEW, PARADIGM SHIFT, PARADIGM CASE, DOMINANT PARADIGM, ALTERNATIVE PARADIGM, KNOWLEDGE, META-KNOWLEDGE) (MP)

PARADIGM CASE: The ‘paradigm case’ is a dominant representative example of something, and the ‘paradigm case argument’ is a philosophical refutation of skepticism. (See PARADIGM) (MP)

PARADIGM SHIFT: Punctuated revolution of scientific knowledge and/or community belief with new ideas or discoveries. Changes in fundamental worldview or viewpoint do not come easily, and individuals ahead of their time (on the other side of a paradigm shift) may initially suffer institutional ridicule (examples include James Lovelock, Noam Chomsky and Eric Drexler). The dominant paradigm has the collective weight of inertia, tradition and professional careers invested in its maintenance. Institutional resistance will persist until the models and language of the previous belief system are updated to the alternative paradigm. (See ALTERNATIVE PARADIGM) (MP)

PARADOX: A seemingly contradictory situation, problem or statement. (RW)

PARALLEL UNIVERSES THEORY: The potential simultaneous existence of "ghost" universes other than our own, a theory developed since the 1950s to explain quantum and relativity paradoxes such as the collapse of a quantum wave function. Universes within the "multiverse" may also be connected by "wormholes", a term coined by John Wheeler, maybe with daughter universes able to bud off from the parent universe through a black hole singularity. A parallel universe would be similarly populated by stars and galaxies, perhaps even a near-duplicate of our own universe including humans. It has been even more speculatively proposed that all possible courses of action exist across an infinite number of parallel universes. This is of course non-testable conjecture, but if it were true it would have peculiar repercussions for ethical philosophy. (See QUANTUM THEORY, HOLOGRAPHIC UNIVERSE THEORY) (MP)

PARAMETER: 1. A boundary or limiting factor to thought or action, for example: "technology should be developed within the parameters of bioethical debate". 2. In maths it may be an independent variable in an equation whose constancy allows investigation of the other variables. 3. In statistics it refers to a descriptive measure of a population, as distinct from a statistic which is derived from a sample and is only an estimate of the parameter. (See STATISTIC, SAMPLE) (MP)

PARAMETRIC STATISTICS: Statistics which assume the normal distribution. (See NORMAL DISTRIBUTION, PARAMETER) (MP)

PARANORMAL PHENOMENA: (Greek: para "beyond") Observations or claimed experiences which are not within the range of normal experience and therefore not explainable by science or logic. The progress of science may eventually explain some paranormal phenomena, however more likely the unexpected progressions of technology will attempt to simulate the paranormal and perhaps successfully "normalize" some. (See PARAPSYCHOLOGY, EXTRASENSORY PERCEPTION, CLAIRVOYANCE, PRECOGNITION, PSYCHOKINESIS, STIGMATA, TELEPATHY, TELEPORTATION) (MP)

PARAPSYCHOLOGY: (Greek: para "beyond" + psych "mind" + logos "science"). The branch of psychology concerned with psychic phenomena such as clairvoyance and telepathy. (MP)

PARASITE: (Greek: parasitos "guest"). A symbiotic association in which one organism lives in or on another and takes nourishment at the expense of this host organism. Parasites make up the bulk of the organisms on earth, since each non-parasite is usually host to a multitude of parasite species. Examples of parasitic symbionts of humans include lice, fleas, roundworms, tapeworms, protists, bacteria and fungi. (See SYMBIOSIS, COMMENSALISM) (MP)

PARENTAL CONSENT: Informed consent given by a parent on behalf of a minor or otherwise legally incompetent child. (DM)

PARENTAL NOTIFICATION: For medical treatment of legal minors, in many jurisdictions the parents need to be notified. It is a contentious issue in some states regarding the age for parental notification for abortion decisions in pregnant teenagers. (DM)

PARSIMONY: (Latin parsimōnia ‘sparingness’) Simplicity and least number of requisites and assumptions; economy or frugality of components and associations. In philosophy of theories the principle of parsimony is known as ‘Ockhams Razor’. (See OCKHAMS RAZOR, SIMPLICITY) (MP)

PARTHENOGENESIS: Egg cells develop into an individual organism without the input of the sperms from the male organism. Parthenogenetic stem cells in nonhuman primates have been artificially induced to undergo the early stages of development with the contribution from the sperm ( Science- 1.2.2002). It occurs naturally under some conditions in birds. (JA, DM)

PARTHENOGENOTE: See HUMAN PARTHENOTE.

PARTICLE GUN: A tool in getting through fragments of DNA through the cell membrane into the a cell. Ultra thin tungsten metal particles (fractions of a micrometer) are mixed with DNA and fired at a very high speed into a cell using a 0.22 cartridge.  (See BIOLISTIC AND BIOLISTIC GUN). (JA)

PASSIVE EUGENICS: See EUGENICS.

PASSIVE EUTHANASIA: See EUTHANASIA.

PASSIVE SMOKING: the inhalation by nonsmokers of other people’s smoke. Research indicates that exposure to others' ambient smoke aggravates respiratory illnesses and contributes to more serious disorders, such as cancer. Children whose parents smoke suffer more upper and lower respiratory tract diseases than children whose parents do not smoke, and as adult nonsmokers living in the company of smokers, exhibit an increased risk of both fatal and nonfatal cardiac events. Pregnant women exposed to other people’s smoke are also more likely to deliver a low birthweight infant with an increased risk of SIDS due to a combination of inadequate prenatal growth and the hazards of exposure to ambient smoke. (See SMOKING, SUDDEN INFANT DEATH SYNDROME, XENOBIOTIC). (IP)

PASTORAL CARE: Counseling or comfort given by members of the clergy to patients in stressful situations. (DM)

PATENT: A legal monopoly right tenable for a limited period of time, given to an inventor, an invention filed with a patent office detailing ones invention. A patent is a grant issued by different government through a Patent and Trademark Office that gives the patent owner the right to exclude all others from making, using, or selling a patented invention within the country for the term of the patent (e.g. in the USA this is for 17 years). Fulfillment of one of the criteria, namely details about the patent must be fully disclosed, can enable others and provides incentives to improve the process or develop alternative methods.  The patenting system enables commercial enterprisers to invest in the production and application of knowledge by allowing the benefits to be accrued to the company.  

There are about three essential categories: 1. A product patent which deals with the product (a chemical or a biological entity, a substance or composition) per se .  It also covers its practical uses. It would cover an active ingredient.  2. A process patent – a patent on the methodology or the process by which a product is produced. It would cover the actual making of the ingredient or its formulation. 3. A use patent – it covers the specific practical use of a product for a specific purpose. It would cover a specific pharmaceutical product for a specific medical aliment.

An application usually has three sections:1. An abstract  - gives the summary of the application. 2. Description – a detailed description of the invention as to ensure the reproducibility of the same by another skilled person. 3. Claims – a  detailed statement over which rights are asserted. All claims must be self explanatory in the sense it must be clear and complete. (See PATENT CRITERIA). (DM+JA)

PATENT CRITERIA: In order to issue a patent, the following criteria are considered. The claim for the invention must be eligible for patenting: 1. It must be novel,  2. It must be inventive or non obvious, 3. It must be useful or have an industrial application, 4. It must be fully disclosed in the patent application. A mere discovery does not merit patenting. (JA)

PATENTING LIFE: Many patent offices have expanded patent rights to encompass not just microorganisms but gene sequences, expressed sequence tags (ESTs), proteins, cell lines, genetically modified plants and animals and even non genetically modified species. As on Nov 2002 6,000 patents on full length genes from human, animal, plants, bacteria and viral sources have been awarded, besides 20,000 gene patents. It is estimated that life patents cover 5,00,000 different molecular structures. There has been considerable controversy about patenting of life and genetic material. (JA, DM)

PATERNITY TESTING: In certain disputes involving multiple sex partners,  a woman may declare that the father of her child is not her husband, then DNA identification is carried out. DNA fingerprinting is used in Paternity Testing. It involves legal questions like "support obligations".  (JA)

PATERNAL NOTIFICATION: Informing the father. It is a contentious issue in some states regarding the question of whether paternal notification is required for legal abortion decisions by the mother. (DM)

PATERNALISM: The system of action in which one person treats another the way a father treats a child, striving to promote the other's good even against the other's wishes. The setting of limits on individual autonomy in an effort to benefit, or to prevent harm to, the person whose autonomy is limited . (DM)

PATHOGENIC: Able to cause disease; often utilized to express inactivation or lethality. (DM)

PATIENT ACCESS TO RECORDS: Access by patients to their own medical, genetic, or other health-related records. (DM)

PATIENT ADMISSION: Acceptance of a patient by a hospital or other health facility. (DM)

PATIENT ADVOCACY: Promotion and protection of the rights of patients by an institutionally-appointed or self-designated person or group. (See PATIENTS' RIGHTS). (DM)

PATIENT CARE: Includes medical and nursing care. (DM)

PATIENT CARE TEAM: A multidisciplinary team in which each member of the team has specific responsibilities and the whole team contributes to the care of the patient. (DM)

PATIENT COMPLIANCE: Cooperation of the patient in following a prescribed regimen. (DM)

PATIENT TRANSFER: Interfacility transfer of patients, usually for economic reasons. (DM)

PATIENT RECORDS: The medical records of patients. In some countries patients have a legal right to view them, and in others they do not. (See PRIVACY). (DM)

PATIENTS' RIGHTS: Fundamental claims of patients, as expressed in statutes, declarations, or generally accepted moral principles. (DM)

PAX: 1. Latin: pāx ‘peace’, or a binding together by treaty, associated with pacīscī ‘to agree; pact’. 2. A sacred item blessed by a Roman Catholic priest. 3. A colloquial appeal for truce or ceasefire. (See PEACE, PAX AMERICANA) (MP)

PAX AMERICANA: The ‘American Peace’, or peace imposed by the dominance of the U.S.A. (post World War II); from language of the Roman Empire (Latin: pāx ‘peace’), and in the lineage of Pax Romana (first centuries bce ), Pax Ecclesiastes (first centuries) and Pax Britannica (nineteenth century). (See PAX, PEACE) (MP)

PCBs: See POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS.

PCP: See PHENCYCLIDINE HYDROCHLORIDE.

PCR: See POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION.

PEACE: (Latin: pax , French: pais , Spanish: paz , Arabic: salaam , Hebrew: shalom ) Peace is not just an absence of war. Peace is the absence of any violence, hostility, threats, force, civil strife, conflict, bad intentions, mental disturbance or negativity. Peace is the presence of unity, agreement, security, sufficiency, calm, tranquility, freedom and wellbeing. (See UNITY, UNITED, PACIFISM, NON-VIOLENCE, PEACE KEEPING, SALAAM, SHALOM, SHANTI, AHIMSA, TRANQUILITY) (MP)

PEACE BUILDING: Strategies that create conditions which address the causes of conflict (pre-conflict peace building) and ensure non-recurrence of violence (post-conflict peace building). Methods include preventive diplomacy, peace making, arms control, dispute resolution, conflict analysis, and the introduction of democratic institutions and economic restructuring. Scientific analysis of international conflict uses quantitative methods to predict war-prone dyads (e.g. study of alliances, arms races, capability balance), war-prone states (e.g. national economic and political organization), war-prone regions (regional patterns, population pressure, contagion), and war-prone systems (heterogeneity, polarity etc). Prevention and peace building measures must include meeting people’s requirements for identity and quality of life, and using the ‘soft power’ of an ethically persuasive value system. (See PEACE, PEACE MAKING, PEACE MOVEMENT, PREVENTIVE DIPLOMACY, PREVENTIVE DEPLOYMENT, FACILITATION, DISARMAMENT, SOFT POWER, DOVE) (MP)

PEACE ENFORCEMENT: As well as ‘Peace Keeping’ mission, the United Nations in 1992 added ‘Peace Enforcement’, ‘Preventive Deployment’ and ‘Peace Building’ options to iteace enforcemeon in Kuwait, 1992-3 UNPROFOR in Bosnia-Herzegovina and 1993 UNOSOM II intervention in Somalia. The differences between peace enforcement and war are perhaps in the justification for war (Jus ad bellum), but should also be in its conduct (Jus in bello). (See JUST WAR THEORY, PREVENTIVE WAR, PEACE KEEPING, PEACE BUILDING, AGGRESSOR NATION, SANCTIONS, EUPHEMISM) (MP)

PEACE KEEPING: Deployments of military forces to maintain order and control in situations of recent conflict. Limited to self-defense and non-coercive mandate, peace observers and peace keepers try to establish security and adherence to negotiated agreements, ceasefires and military withdrawals. Peacekeepers also try as best they can to protect civilians and humanitarian workers (e.g. Red Cross, Médicins Sans Frontières), and maintain order on the streets. Deployments may be the distinctive blue-helmeted United Nations troops, or other independently-organized national or multinational forces. The first United Nations peace operation to be deployed is likely still there (UNTSO 1948 in Israel). Other examples of Peace Keeping deployments have included UNGOMAP 1988 for the Soviet withdrawal of Afghanistan, UNIIMOG 1988 for Iran/Iraq, UNTAC 1992 in Cambodia, S-FOR in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and INTERFET 1999 in East Timor. The boundaries between ‘Peace Keeping’ and ‘Peace Enforcement’ may be blurred, g in operational practice. (See PEACE, PEACE ENFORCEMENT, PEACE BUILDING, PREVENTIVE DEPLOYMENT, PREVENTIVE DIPLOMACY, CONFLICT RESOLUTION, NON LETHAL WEAPONS) (MP)

PEACE MAKING: The use of diplomatic means to negotiate a peaceful settlement and cessation of hostilities, for example dispute mediation by a third country or personality of international standing such as the Secretary General of the United Nations. Peace making uses similar methods as preventive diplomacy, only after conflict has already taken hold. Neutral mediation in combination with facilitators from identifying cultural groups or civilizations may encourage trust and effective communication for negotiation and ceasefire. (See PEACE, PEACE BUILDING, PREVENTIVE DIPLOMACY, MEDIATION, FACILITATION, NEGOTIATION, CONFLICT RESOLUTION) (MP)

PEACE MOVEMENT: The peace movement is a worldwide collection of anti-war activists, philosophers of peace, and others committed in opposition to conscription, armed conflict, nuclear technologies, military-industrial complex, violent media, gun ownership, government oppression, terrorism and/or other abuses of human rights. Its ideologies have parallels to varying degrees with green politics, the civil rights movement, socialism, anti-nuclear, anti-globalization, anarchism, preventive diplomacy and peacekeeping. Elements of pacifism and peace activism can be seen for example in some of the words and philosophies of Jesus Christ, Gautama Siddhartha (Buddha), Mahavira, Lao Tzu, Bertrand Russell, Leo Tolstoy, Hermann Hesse, Mahatma Mohandas Gandhi (assassinated 1948), John F. Kennedy (assassinated 1963), Martin Luther King Jr. (assassinated 1968), John Lennon (assassinated 1980), Yitzhak Rabin (assassinated 1995), Princess Diana Spencer (1997), Sergio Vieira de Mello (assassinated 2003), Pope John Paul II, Nelson Mandela, Kofi Annan, Noam Chomsky, Aung San Suu Kyi, and Tenzin Gyatso (Dalai Lama). (See PACIFISM, NONVIOLENT RESISTANCE, CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTOR, AHIMSA, ACTIVISM, PROTEST, GREEN MOVEMENT, ANTI-GLOBALIZATION MOVEMENT, NONVIOLENT DIRECT ACTION, VIOLENT MEDIA, UTOPIA) (MP)

PEACE NEGOTIATION: See PEACEKEEPING, PEACE ENFORCEMENT.

PECKSNIFFIAN: a. Archaic: a hypocritical parade of benevolence or high principle (after a character in one of Charles Dickens" novels, 1812-70). (IP)

PEDIGREE: An structured family tree showing relevant genetic characteristics, e.g. Albinism. (JA)

PEER REVIEW: The evaluation by professionals of the quality of work performed by fellow professionals. (DM)

PENAL SERVITUDE: Time spent in jail or a penal institution, that may include labour for community good. (DM)

PENTATEUCH: The Five Books of Moses, or the first five books of the Hebrew Bible ('Genesis' to 'Deuteronomy'). These books comprise the Torah, central teachings of the Jewish faith. (See TORAH, OLD TESTAMENT) (MP)

PEOPLE POWER:

PER ANNUM: (Latin: ‘by the year’) A statistic referring to amount per year, e.g. number of births per annum. (MP)

PER CAPITA: (Latin: "by heads") A statistic referring to a proportion per person or for each individual; e.g. average annual income per capita. (MP)

PERCENTILE: The p^th percentile is a value such that p percent of the data take on this value or less. It is a measure that locates values in the data set that are not necessarily central locations. It provides information regarding how the data items are distributed. (JA)

PERCEPTION: Human awareness and understanding of the environment, both physical and social, perceived elements and relationships that surrounds them, meaning/importance understood by different groups of people in different times and places. (See SENSES). (JA)

PERCIVAL, THOMAS:

PERFORMANCE INDICATORS:

PERMACULTURE: ("Permanent" + "Agriculture"). The design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems which have the diversity, stability and resilience of natural ecosystems. Permaculture is based on the observation of nature rather than its domination, and allows the co-existence of natural systems within the cultivated agricultural system. Instead of the conventional monocultural practice of "mining the land" of its fertility and ecology for the purpose of providing a single product, permaculture is a combination of ecology, agriculture, forestry, energy, architecture, animal husbandry, traditional wisdom and scientific technology. The term was coined in 1974 by Bill Mollison of Australia and is spreading to become a global grassroots initiative. (See MONOCULTURE, SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE). (MP)

PERMACULTURE ETHICS: Planning for long-term sustainability by the use of a diverse polycultural mix of species, cultivation of the smallest possible land area, the use of species native to the area, the use of renewable resources and energy, reafforestation, the incorporation of subsistence agriculture into urban areas, promotion of self-reliance, community, recycling, reduced consumption, ethical and environmental education. (See PERMACULTURE, POLYCULTURE, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT) (MP)

PERSISTENT ORGANIC POLLUTANTS (POPs): These dangerous chemicals remain in the environment for long periods, are highly toxic in small doses, undergo bioaccumulation, and have been implicated as carcinogens (e.g. breast cancer) and endocrine disruptors (e.g. reduced sperm counts). The "dirty dozen" POPs identified by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) include the dioxins, furans, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), DDT, dieldrin, aldrin, endrin, mirex, toxaphene and chlordane, but others also of particular concern include endosulfan, halogenated chemicals and volatile organic compounds such as toluene and benzene. Such poisons must be phased out at their industrial sources to prevent export to the less regulated world, accumulation in the environment or damage to human health. (See POLLUTION, POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS, SYNTHETIC HORMONE DISRUPTORS) (MP)

PERSISTENT VEGETATIVE STATE: See PVS.

PERSONAL PILLS: Knowledge about the details of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNIPs) can indicate genetic variations, which may dictate how drugs are prescribed for a particular person. (JA)

PERSONHOOD: Descriptively, the status of being self-aware, capable of rational thought and of moral agency; normatively, the status of being accorded moral and/or legal rights. (DM)

PESSIMISM: See OPTIMISM.

PET SCAN: short for positron emission tomography - a computerized radiographic technique that employs radioactive substances, typically labeled glucose, to examine the metabolic activity of various body structures. The labeled substance is inhaled or injected where it emits positively charged particles which, on combining with negatively charged cellular electrons, result in the creation of gamma rays that are then converted into color-coded images that indicate the intensity of the metabolic activity of the organ, or body part involved. The technology is particularly useful for the study of blood flow, metabolism of the heart, diagnosis of cancer and the biochemical activity of the brain. (see MRI) (IP)

PETROL SNIFFING: See SOLVENT ABUSE.

PGD:  See PRE-IMPLANTATION GENETIC DIAGNOSIS.

pH: ("potential of hydrogen") The acid-base measurement, a logarithmic scale across which a pH of 0 is the most acid, pH 7 is neutral, and pH 14 the most basic (alkaline). Pure water is pH 7.0 and blood is about pH 7.4. (MP)

PHARMACEUTICAL CHEMISTRY: (Greek pharmakon 'drug'). Engaged in the application, composition, preparation and sale of medicinal drugs used in diagnoses and therapies. (See PHARMACOLOGY, PHARMACOPOEIA, DRUG). (IP)

PHARMACEUTICALS: See DRUG, PHARMACEUTICAL CHEMISTRY.

PHARMACOGENOMICS: A term that describes the use of advanced genetic tools to elucidate how variations in patients" DNA may diminish or amplify drug effects or render a pharmaceutical toxic. (JA)

PHARMACOLOGY: (Greek pharmakon 'drug' + logos 'science'). The science of the actions, properties, preparation and uses of drugs on living systems. (See PHARMACEUTICAL CHEMISTRY, PHARMACOPOEIA, DRUG). (IP)

PHARMACOPOEIA: (Greek pharmakon 'drug' + poiein 'to make'). A book listing drugs that describe their standard preparation, recommended administration, clinical uses, toxic effects, and fate (if known) in the body. National pharmacopoeias are published in many countries; for example, the French Codex, European Pharmacopoeia and United States Pharmacopoeia. These reference texts are reviewed regularly. (See PHARMACEUTICAL CHEMISTRY, PHARMACOLOGY, DRUG) (IP)

PHASE TRANSITION: See FEEDBACK, CHANGE.

PhD: Doctor of Philosophy.

PHENCYCLIDINE HYDROCHLORIDE: An anesthetic drug used in veterinary medicine, it is also known as PCP (perhaps from PeaCe-Pill) or "Angel dust" (perhaps from the Hell’s  Angels), and has been used as an illegal recreational drug since the 1960s. Symptoms include loss of pain response, distortions of percations, seizure, ataxia and respiratory depression risking death. (See KETAMINE) (IP+MP)

PHENOTYPE: The characteristics of individuals that result from the interaction of their genotypes and their environments. The external appearance of an organism -controlled by genes and environment. (See GENOTYPE). (JA, DM)

PHILOSOPHY: Philosophia, in Greek, means love of wisdom. The great philosophers, before the nineteenth century, at least, almost always developed their philosophies out of their attempts to grapple with tension between science and spirituality. It is hard to find a great philosopher who was not deeply learned both in science and mathematics, and in the theology of at least one religion. Since philosophy became an academic profession, some professional philosophers still fit this description, but not all do.
One of the greatest of all philosophers was Plato.. Over the gate of his Academy in ancient Athens were the words: "Let no one enter who has not studied mathematics." Philosophy in Plato's day was largely inspired by wonder at the spiritual implications of mathematics. From the 17^th Century revolution in physics of Descartes and Newton, through the days of Einstein and Heisenberg, physics was the inspiration of philosophical thought, and those not learned in it might have been forbidden entry to philosophical academies. The sciences, which inspire wonder today, are the health and biological sciences. But only a minority of members of university philosophy departments is learned in health and biological sciences. Nor are a majority of professional philosophers sufficiently learned in the theologies of any religions to grapple adequately with spiritual implications of science. So there is a vacuum. Bioethics is a new, interdisciplinary, co-operative endeavour, which attempts to fill this vacuum by bringing together people from several disciplines (each complementing the others) to grapple with questions of the kinds which philosophers used to address. (FL)

PHLOEM: Plant conductive tissue involved in the transport of organic materials. (See XYLEM, PLANTAE) (MP)

PHOBIA : (Greek: phobos 'fear') Irrational dread or abnormal anxiety resulting from a specific subject or situation. Awareness of the irrationality of the fear is usually not enough to prevent it, and the trigger for the phobic response may spread or generalize in some sufferers. Phobias may arise from repetitive emotional conditioning in childhood or as a result of some specific shocking or fearful event. Predisposition to certain phobias may have been selected for by evolution, but in the modern day most phobias are negative preoccupations maladaptive to normal living. The most commonly existing phobia is social-anxiety disorder; the extreme case of phobia is the panic attack. Phobias may be managed and reduced using cognitive-behavioral therapy involving progressive desensitization to the stimulus of the fear. Examples of specific phobias include fear of pain (algophobia or odynophobia), death (necrophobia), sinning (peccatophobia), nudity (gymnophobia or dishabiliophobia), homosexuality (homophobia), sex (erotophobia or malaxophobia), marriage (gamophobia), childbirth (tocophobia), children (pedophobia), strangers (xenophobia), clowns (coulrophobia), spiders (arachnophobia), germs (mysophobia), crowds (ocholophobia), enclosed spaces (claustrophobia), open spaces (agoraphobia), heights (acrophobia), technology (technophobia) and fear (phobophobia). (See FEAR, ANXIETY, SOCIAL ANXIETY, DESENSITIZATION) (MP)

PHOTOCHEMICAL SMOG: a major local or regionalized air pollution phenomenon characterized by oxidants, irritants, and visibility-obscuring particles occuring in urban areas where the combination of pollution-forming emissions, sulfur dioxide from vehicle exhaust for example, and atmospheric conditions are suitable for its formation. Photochemical smog is highly injurious to health and quality of life. Photochemical smog has a long history, for example, in 1542, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo named San Pedro Bay in southern California "The Bay of Smokes" because of the heavy haze that covered the area. (see NUCLEAR WINTER) (IP)

PHOTON: A quantum of electromagnetic radiation; the smallest indivisible unit, or "particle", of light, having zero charge and inertial mass. (See QUANTUM) (MP)

PHOTOSYNTHESIS: literally "synthesis out of light" - metabolic processes carried out by green plants where water and carbon dioxide is synthesized to form oxygen and organic compounds such as ATP and glucose. The process is enabled by trapping the energy from sunlight. (See RESPIRATION, AUTOTROPHS, BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE) (IP)

PHRENOLOGY: A study that predicts the faculties and qualities of mind using the shape of the skull. (JA)

PHYCOLOGY: (Greek: phukos "seaweed" + logos "reason") The scientific study of algae, including physiology, ecology and environment. (MP)

PHYLOGENY: (Greek: phulo "tribe" + geny "birth") The sequence of events in the evolutionary development of a species or other taxonomic group. (See ONTOGENY) (MP)

PHYLUM: (Greek: phulon "race") The second highest level of taxonomic classification of organisms below the kingdom, and containing one or more classes. For example Phylum Arthropodia (including insects and crustaceans) or Phylum Chordata (including all vertebrates). (See SPECIES, KINGDOM, TAXONOMY) (MP)

PHYSICAL MAP: A map of the locations of identifiable landmarks on DNA (e.g., restriction enzyme cutting sites, genes, RFLP markers), regardless of inheritance. Distance is measured in base pairs. For the human genome, the lowest-resolution physical map is the banding patterns of the 24 different chromosomes; the highest-resolution map would be the complete nucleotide sequence of the chromosomes. (DM)

PHYSICAL POLLUTION: See POLLUTION.

PHYSICAL PROCESS SUSTAINABILITY: See SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT.

PHYSICAL RESTRAINT: Use of a device for the purpose of preventing an individual from moving all or part of the body. (DM)

PHYSICIAN: (Greek: physis 'nature'). A health professional who has completed a Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degree. Interestingly, the ancients saw the physical laws ( physikos meaning natural) of the universe and the work of physicians inseparably interconnected. From our perspective, reflecting on the ancient thesis of the unity of all things, we are again confronting modern physics. Thus, physician and physics can be seen as a metaphor - the body that must be healed is united with the immensity of the cosmos of which it is a part. (See PHYSICS; PLACEBOS) (IP)   

PHYSICS: (Greek: physikos "natural") The scientific study of matter and energy, their interrelations and the physical properties of the universe. Physics is based on mathematics and its natural laws, forces and processes are fundamental to the other sciences. Branches of physics include mechanics, thermodynamics, optics, acoustics, electromagnetism, nuclear physics, particle physics, solid-state physics, astrophysics and quantum mechanics. (See CHEMISTRY) (MP)

PHYSIOLOGICAL ECOLOGY: See ECOPHYSIOLOGY.

PI: The fascinating number denoted by the Greek letter π (pi), 22 divided by 7, or 3.14159… and on to an infpi by radius squared to get area. An example of chaos, and of simple rules embedded in complexity. (See CHAOS, COMPLEXITY, STATISTICS) (MP)

PIDGIN: A pidgin is a mixed tongue which develops between neighbors or trading partners speaking different languages, for example 'pidgin English'. A creole is a pidgin which has matured to become a localized mother tongue. Pidgins have limited grammar and vocabulary resulting from their makeshift origin, but are creatively adaptive expressions never to be stereotyped as the result of 'primitive' thought processes. (See LINGUA FRANCA, ARTIFICIAL LAGUAGES) (MP)

PILOT STUDY: An initial study carried on a small sample, to explore the subject and identify requirements for design of the main study or experiment. (See SCOPING, EXPLORATORY RESEARCH, BASELINE MONITORING, EXPERIMENT) (MP)

PLACEBOS: Biologically inactive substances used for their psychological effect in patient care or as control agents in research. The word placebo is Latin for 'I will please', and refers to any procedure administered solely to gratify a patient's desire for treatment. Since the therapy is scientifically ineffective, its efficacy is realized by self-governance or reliance on an authority figure (doctor, spiritual healer, Shaman) for getting well. Therefore, an alternative meaning of placebo has to do with the way in which a patient 'pleases' by involving the doctor (or surrogate) as the therapeutic agent in the process of getting well. The placebo effect, as measured in a variety of modern studies, has been estimated to range from 21% to a remarkable 58%, depending on the disease, the placebo, and the way the study was executed. (See CLINICAL TRIALS; PHYSICIAN) (DM+IP).

PLACENTAL MAMMAL: see EUTHERIAN MAMMAL.

PLAGUE: Bubonic or Black plague killed between 17 and 28 million during the years 1347 to 1350, i.e. one third of Europe. Japanese attempted to use it as a biological weapon on Chinese during World War II with the loss of some human lives on both sides. (JA)

PLANCK, MAX: (1858-1947) German Physicist. Planck's work on the laws of thermodynamics and black body radiation moved him away from classical Newtonian principles, opening up the way for original innovative thinking. In 1900 Planck proposed the quantum theory for which he received, in 1918, the Nobel Prize for physics. (See QUANTUM THEORY; CLASSICAL MECHANICS; NEWTON, ISAAC; EINSTEIN, ALBERT) (IP)

PLANKTON: The collection of organisms that float in the water; planktonic organisms float or swim more slowly than typical currents. (RW)

PLANNED OBSOLESCENCE: Integral features of a product known by the manufacturer to wear out or become superfluous, ensuring regular return custom for replacements or updates. This is typical for computer and software technology which supersedes itself at a fast rate. Planned obsolescence and in-built redundancy protect commercial values only at the expense of both environmental and social values. (See CONSPICUOUS CONSUMPTION, WASTE) (MP)

PLANT BREEDING: The development of plants with certain desirable characteristics, such as disease resistance. (DM)

PLANT VARIETY: Cultivated plants that are clearly distinguishable from others by one or more characteristics, and that when reproduced retain those distinguishing characteristics. (DM)

PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION: Patent-like protection for certain sexually produced plants. Plant variety protection is granted by many countries, and applies within those countries. It only applies if the holder ensures a reasonable commercial supply of that variety to all who want it. (DM)

PLANTAE: Plantae are the plants, one of the five taxonomic kingdoms along with Animalia, Fungi, Protista and Monera. Plants are autotrophic organisms with chloroplasts which manufacture energy directly from the sun through photosynthesis. They have rigid cell walls and reproduce on a variation of the alternating diploid sporophyte and haploid gametophyte life-cycle model, with increasing emphasis on the sporophyte stage through evolution. Members of the kingdom Plantae include algae (green, red, bluegreen, macro-algae), bryophytes (mosses, liverworts), ferns, tracheophytes (vascular plants) and Spermopsida (seed plants; gymnosperms and angiosperms). Plant communities form the basis of habitat structure and ecological energy procurement, and include phytoplankton, seaweeds, seagrasses, mangroves, deciduous forest, sclerophyll forest, coniferous forest and tropical rainforest. (See PLANT VARIETY, AUTOTROPHS, PHOTOSYNTHESIS, ANGIOSPERM, GYMNOSPERM, HABITAT, ALGAE, SEAGRASS, MANGROVE FOREST, DECIDUOUS FOREST, SCLEROPHYLL FOREST, CONIFEROUS FOREST, TROPICAL RAINFOREST, EUTROPHICATION, REFORESTATION, TREE PLANTING, POLYCULTURE, PERMACULTURE) (MP)

PLASMID: An extrachromosomal, circular piece of DNA found in the cytoplasm and capable of replicating and segregating independently of the host chromosome. See vector . Found in cytoplasm of bacteria and in some eukaryotes. R-plasmids are those that carry gene for drug resistance and Col - plasmids that carry the gene for producing a protein, known as Colicins, conjugal plasmids transfer their properties to other members of the population, non-conjugal are non transmissible in nature. (DM, JA)

PLASTIC SURGERY: See COSMETIC SURGERY.

PLATO: (428-7 - 348-7 BC) Pupil of Socrates and teacher of Aristotle, Plato is famous for his many literary-philosophical dialogues in which Socrates is given the central role. He believed that this world is a not-very-good copy of the world of forms or ideas, where the true archetypes of things exist. In his Republic, he advocated a rather regimented society in which people would be educated to live ethical ways of life, and to perform functions according to their class. Karl Popper, in his Open Society and its Enemies depicted Plato's Republic as the model of the closed society.

Over the entrance to Plato's academic was a warning that people who had not studied mathematics were not welcome to enter. This was long before the days in which academic learning was separated into humanities and sciences , and in which people could become "professional philosophers" without having studied mathematics or the sciences. Bioethics, which raises ethical and spiritual questions as a consequence of studies in mathematics and the sciences, is a return to the interdisciplinary philosophical tradition for which Plato's Academy stood. (FL)

PLEASURE: (Old French: plaisir "to please") An enjoyable sensation or emotion which arouses delight or happiness. Common positive sources of pleasure include love, friendships, recreation, relaxation, productivity, personal and financial success and security. However, some religious philosophy has been interpreted to condemn pleasure-seeking in an attempt to avoid greed, excess, selfishness and self-indulgence. Certain means of satisfying the human drive for pleasure have associated costs and ethical boundaries, for example inappropriate or overconsumed resources, material possessions, food, drink, drugs, sex, money, trivial amusements, theft, revenge or other harmful behaviours. A sense of balance must be developed and avenues for pleasure-seeking must be bounded by our ethics and the consequences of our actions. (See JOY, HAPPINESS). (MP)

PLEBISCITE: A referendum to allow people to vote directly on an issue or policy of relevance to their lives. (See REFERENDUM) (MP)

PLEIOTROPIC EFFECT: The production of several unrelated changes in the characteristics of a cell or organism by a single genetic change. (DM)

PLURIPOTENT: Cells capable of differentiation into any type of organs or cell type. (See STEM CELLS). (JA)

PLUTONIUM (PU): (Planet Pluto) A highly toxic synthetic waste product of nuclear power plants. Plutonium, discovered in 1940, is a transuranic metallic element which is produced by the collision of a neutron with uranium; thus, it is formed in uranium fuel rods in nuclear reactors. Plutonium is itself an extremely efficient source of nuclear energy so it can be extracted from used fuel rods for re-use in a different type of nuclear reactor. The process whereby more nuclear fuel is produced than is used is called 'breeding' and the reactors employed are known as 'fast-breeder reactors'. Plutonium was used in the assembly of early nuclear weapons. (See ATOM BOMB, NEUTRON BOMB). (IP).

PO: A word coined by Edward de Bono as a lateral-thinking tool to counter-force the ‘No’ of logical thinking. ‘Po’ i. It has some of the feel of po ssibility, hy po thesis sup po se and po tent, but rather opens up spaces ‘outside of reason’, a ‘holiday from the usual conventions of logic’, therefore more in the spirit of po etry. Po has not been the most successful of memes, but still has an intangible persuasiveness. (See LATERAL THINKING) (MP)

POACHING: Poaching is unauthorized hunting or capture of animals, for example illegal fishing, hunting outside the appropriate season, or taking wildlife from private property or National Parks. Large amounts of illegal African ivory, skins and other animal products have been ceremoniously destroyed in the war against poaching. In some countries, poaching of charismatic and threatened species is crime enough for rangers to have a shoot-first policy for poachers. Regulatory and consumer action must be maintained against products containing animal parts, for example Asian tiger, rhino and seahorse 'aphrodisiacs'. (See HUNTING) (MP)

POISON: (Latin potio 'drink'). Any substance that when ingested, inhaled or absorbed into the body in small amounts destroys life or injures health. Poisons may act by rapid action or become damaging after repeated exposure. Clinically poisons are categorized into those that respond to specific treatments and those for which there are no specific treatments available. (See TOXIN, TERATOGEN, POISON HEMLOCK) (IP)

POISON HEMLOCK: Conjum maculatum is a biennial plant found in wastelands and moist soils in the eastern US and on the Pacific coast. It has large, compound umbels of small, white flowers that appear from June to August. Poison hemlock contains an alkaloid toxin that makes it a dangerously poisonous plant that has sometimes been used for sedation and analgesia. In classical times it was a standard method of executing convicted criminals - Socrates being the best known of its victims. Unintentional poisoning has taken place when the seeds were mistaken for anise, the leaves for parsley and the roots for parsnip. Legend tells us that even blowing a whistle made from the hollow stem can cause fatal poisoning. (See BUSH MEDICINE, HERBALISM, POISON, TOXICOLOGY, SOCRATES) (IP)

POLICY ANALYSIS: Indicates that the document contains substantive argumentation concerning moral and/or public policy. (DM)

POLITICAL ACTIVITY: Actions by individual citizens or by interest groups, designed to influence government policies. (DM)

POLITICAL CORRECTNESS: See DEBATE.

POLITICAL REFUGEES: See REFUGEES.

POLITICS : Actions by government officials or bodies in the development of public policy. (DM)

POLLUTANT: Any chemical/solid/liquid/gaseous substance/suspended particulate matter released into the environment and are present in such concentrations that may cause or induce deleterious environmental condition or to organisms or tend to be injurious to human beings. Any substance that is categorized as wastes specified by a competent authority and included in a Schedule appended to a specific rule/government order. (JA)

POLLUTION: Any undesirable change in the physical, chemical or biological characteristics of air, land and water with a possibility to harm organisms/human beings/cultural assets/industrial process/living conditions. Physical pollution include noise (undesirable sound) pollution, genetic pollution include man made alteration in the gene sequence that may go out of control at a later stage; cultural pollution include undesirable social change. Introduction by humans, directly or indirectly, of substances or energy into the environment (including air, water, soil etc.). Often resulting in such deleterious effects as harm to living resources, hazards to human health, hindrance to activities including agriculture, fishing, impairment of quality for use of water and reduction of amenities (See GESAMP). (JA)

POLLY: Transgenic cloned sheep, produced from a cell line of genetically modified foetal cell culture by Roslin Institute and PPL-Therapeutics, expressing a human protein in its milk. (JA)

POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS OR PCBs: are synthetic, chemically stable industrial compounds used 1. as hydraulic fluids, flame retardants, dielectric fluids for capacitors and transformers 2. As organochlorine insecticides methoxychlor, kepone and DDT, as well as a number of closely related chlorinated hydrocarbons such as chlordane, dieldrin, endin and heptachlor used in aerial crop spraying, and numerous other products. PCBs are in a class collectively known as "hormone disruptors" because they mimic naturally-occurring steroid hormones such as estrogens and testosterone, and interfere with thyroid and adrenal gland metabolism. They resist the body’s  natural detoxification processes so accumulate in the body’s  fat deposits (see Biomagnification) and have been documento be an important factor in rising infertility rates in humans. (see SYNTHETIC HORMONE DISRUPTORS & DDT) (IP)

POLYCULTURE: (Greek: polys "many" + Latin: cultura "cultivation") The agricultural cultivation of a range of intermingled mixed crops. This diversity allows for stability in the face of environmental change, and enables the cohabitation of a wider biodiversity of native species. (See MONOCULTURE, PERMACULTURE) (MP)

POLYGAMY: (Gr. poly: many + gamos: marriage) a breeding system in which an individual acquires more than one mate. In polyandry, a female mates with more than one male, in polygyny, a male mates with more than one female. (IP)

POLYGENIC DISORDERS: Genetic disorders resulting from the combined action of alleles of more than one gene (e.g., heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers). Although such disorders are inherited, they depend on the simultaneous presence of several alleles, thus the hereditary patterns are usually more complex than those of single-gene disorders. Compare single gene disorders. (DM)

POLYMERASE: An enzyme that assembles a number of similar or identical subunits into a macromolecule (e.g. DNA polymerase and RNA polymerase). (DM)

POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION (PCR): a technique for the rapid amplification of a specific nucleic acid sequence contained in a stretch of DNA. (DM)

POLYMORPHISM: Difference in DNA sequence among individuals. Genetic variations occurring in more than 1 percent of a population would be considered useful polymorphisms for genetic linkage analysis. Compare MUTATION. (DM)

POLYPLOID: Having a chromosome number that is greater than two of the monoploid number. Polyploid oysters were among the first non-naturally occurring, non-human, multicellular, living organisms to be declared patentable subject matter. Multiple chromosome sets in the nucleus are common in plants, but rare in animals. Eg. Triplid, teraploids. (DM, JA)

POMOLOGY: Science of growing fruits (JA)

POPPER, SIR KARL RAIMUND: (1902-1994) Born in Austria. One of the most famous philosophers of science of the 20^th Century. Popper rejected inductive 'proof' in science and emphasized that scientific ideas must be falsifiable. (RW)

POPs: See PERSISTENT ORGANIC POLLUTANTS.

POPULATION: Strictly a collection of individuals within a SPECIES (q.v.) that forms an interbreeding group. However, the term is often used simply to mean a number of individuals within a species found in a common area. People also talk about world human population size, which probably reached six billion (6 x 10⁹) in the year 2000 at which time is was increasing by about 80 million a year. (MR)

POPULATION CONTROL: Regulation of the growth and distribution of people in a country or region. (DM)

POPULATION DENSITY: The number of individuals of a species per unit of land area occupied by that species, for example people per square kilometre. The measure should exclude land unsuitable for habitation, such as rugged mountains, deserts or other inappropriate habitats. (See POPULATION DISTRIBUTION) (MP)

POPULATION DISTRIBUTION: The location, range and extent of occupation of a population or species. The arrangement of a population may be measured by its extent of occurrence, which is the area within the boundary encompassing all known or inferred sites of occurrence, excluding vagrant individuals. It may also be more accurately measured using the area of occupancy, which is the sum of appropriately sized grid squares occupied by the species, thereby excluding unsuitable habitat within its extent of occurrence. (See POPULATION, POPULATION DENSITY) (MP)

POPULATION EXPLOSION: In most species the number of individuals in a POPULATION (q.v.) can increase rapidly, i.e. undergo a 'population explosion' at times when there is an excess of food and other factors necessary for successful reproduction. (See EXPONENTIAL) (MR)

POPULATION LIMITS: See LIMITING FACTOR and LIMITS TO GROWTH.

PORNOGRAPHY: (Greek porne whore + graphein write/draw) lascivious art or literature. The Greek word porne or harlot first appeared in the 7^th Century BC and is derived from the ancient verb pernimi to sell. (IP)

POSITIVE DISCRIMINATION: See AFFIRMATIVE ACTION.

POSITIVE EUGENICS: The achievement of systematic or planned genetic changes to improve individuals or their offspring. (DM)

POSITIVE FEEDBACK: See FEEDBACK.

POSITIVISM: The form of positivism best known today is Logical Positivism, a philosophy developed by a group called the Vienna Circle, who met regularly in Vienna from the 1920's until they fled the Nazis in the late 1930's. Their philosophy is presented in a readable form in A.J. Ayer's clear and classic book, Language, Truth and Logic. The Logical Positivists sought to rid our language of nonsensical talk, which they believed derived from religion and fanatic ideologies. In fact the movement may have been at least in part a reaction against the ideologies of nationalism, fascism, and Nazism, which were prevalent in Europe at that time. They decreed that a statement is meaningful if, and only if, it is either analytic or empirically verifiable. By "analytic" is meant a statement, which can be proved to be true by the methods of logic or mathematics. By "empirically verifiable" is meant provable or falsifiable, by direct sense observation, or by the methods of laboratory science. It should be noted that a false statement, like "The Eiffel Tower is in Tokyo", is just as meaningful as a true one. Statements, which are neither analytic nor empirically verifiable, were called: "Strictly speaking, nonsense." Statements of religion, spiritualism, etc, were deemed nonsensical by the Logical Positivists. So were statements of ethics. The statement: "This is red", is meaningful because red is an observable property. But the statement: "This is bad" is not meaningful because bad is not an observable property. We can observe a murder, for example. And we might observe all sorts of colours, smells, sounds, etc. But bad is not one of the things, which we observe. (The reasoning was taken from David Hume) But although the positivists believed that statements of ethics have no meaning, they allowed that they have a use. Their use was in expressing emotions. This was called the "emotivist" theory of ethics.

Since ethical statements were considered meaningless, it became no longer acceptable in some circles for philosophers to say anything about what is good and what is bad. The job of philosophers became to "analyse" what other people say when they make ethical statements. In professional language, philosophers stopped engaging in ethics, and started to engage in metaethics. The distinction is the forerunner of Macer's discussions of prescriptive and descriptive bioethics. (FL)

POSITIVITY: Positivity is an expression of enthusiasm, optimism, good cheer, acceptance, tolerance and love. Most things have elements of both good and bad, people have strengths and weaknesses, there are pros and cons to every decision or change - positivity is a general focus on the good aspects. Experimental studies have looked at the beneficial effects of positivity on the longevity of relationships. Using an index of positive and negative comments made during a single 15-minute discussion of an issue of dispute between newly-weds, a study successfully predicted over 90% of marriage breakups over a ten year period. Positive thinking also has benefits to health, business and self-perception. So don’t worry, be happy, look on the bright side of life, see the glass half full, notice the good in people. (MP)

POSITRON EMISSION TOMOGRAPHY: See PET SCANS.

POST-: Prefix denoting ‘after’ in space or time. (See PRE-, INTER-, TRANS-) (MP)

POST TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER: Exceptionally harsh treatment can trigger a ‘last resort’ biological reaction described as body-mind dissociation or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. During the aftermath of World War II, this phenomenon (called 'shell-shock' back then) was documented in detail in children who had been traumatized by their experiences in Nazi concentration camps, or working as forced laborers in Germany. The syndrome is not a new condition as it is the bane of the military and forms part of the ‘collateral damage’ of systematic human brutality. Scientists have known for a long time now that life-threatening situations propel the body and mind to engage in the struggle for survival by inactivating non-essential activity and emotions in order to channel all available energy to staying alive. This adaptation involves the stress response - the so called ‘fight or flight’ mechanism - that is crucial for survival. However, when the stress response is overly severe or sustained for too long, it has disastrous consequences for physical and mental health. Normally the workings of the brain allow a gradual process of desensitization of raw emotions, allowing the victim to look back at the traumatic event with a degree of detachment. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder sufferers, however, react with undiminished intensity years after the actual traumatic event. Specifically, they respond to unidentified, non-threatening environmental stimuli that trigger flashbacks, not only of the sights and sounds but also the smells of past traumatic memories. Acutely, these flashbacks are powerfully played over and over in the present but cannot be controlled or altered. Thus, the syndrome in children can be lifelong and not be fully recognized. With advancing age and memory deterioration, the reliving of past traumas can become more frequent and sharpened. (See GENERAL ADAPTATION SYNDROME; STRESS; INSTITUTION OF WAR; COLLATERAL DAMAGE) (IP)

POSTHUMOUS REPRODUCTION: giving rise to offspring after one’s  death; that is, from gametes or embryos that have been collected and stored frozen during life or soon after death. For example, using sperm from a decreased male to fertilize in vivo (donor insemination) or in vitro in conjunction with ICSI technology. (see ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGY) (IP)

POSTNATAL BLUES: See POSTPARTUM BLUES.

POSTNATAL DEPRESSION: a mood disorder which usually begins insidiously some weeks postpartum and is characterized by feelings of inadequacy and overwhelming sadness. The condition strikes approximately one in ten mothers and is of considerable severity as it is not a temporary loss of emotional control and cannot be simply attributed to hormonal instability. Surveys indicate that the women most likely to suffer postnatal depression are women who have delayed having children until their careers are established and who have had little contact with other mothers or support from their families. Nutritional deficiencies due to the heavy demands of pregnancy and breast-feeding, alcohol, smoking and other stresses may be contributing variables. Counselors urge new mothers to ask for help from their partner, family and friends as, ideally, parenting is not a single responsibility but one to be shared among those close to the mother and her baby. (See POSTNATAL PSYCHOSIS, POSTPARTUM BLUES, DEPRESSION) (IP)

POSTNATAL PSYCHOSIS: psychiatric illness after childbirth has been observed and documented since its description by Hippocrates in 400 BCE, and is a severe mental illness of mostly unknown etiology which can lead to violence such as suicide, child neglect and abuse. Fortunately, the condition is uncommon but still affects an estimated 1 in every 1,000 deliveries. Typically, the mother suffers illness of such severity that hospitalization with full psychiatric control is necessary to assure her safety and/or the safety of her infant. (See POSTNATAL DEPRESSION, POSTPARTUM BLUES, DEPRESSION) (IP)

POSTPARTUM BLUES: short periods of mild depression and mood swings which quickly return to normal but affect up to 80% of women any time between 2 and 5 days after the birth of their babies. Sleep deprivation, extra demands of the offspring and the re-establishment of the non-pregnant endocrine balance can all induce this condition in otherwise healthy women. In one theory, mild depression is attributed to the sudden removal of circulating beta -endorphin - produced by the placenta in increasing amounts during pregnancy - and the consequent deprivation of its analgesic and euphoric properties. From the hormonal theory of depression has evolved a modern reanalysis of the old belief that violent postnatal endocrine fluctuations may be moderated by eating the placenta (many mammals routinely eat their placentae). Eating the placenta, however, is not a new western invention since, for thousands of years, Chinese women traditionally were given placental broth to fortify them after labor. (See POSTNATAL DEPRESSION, POSTNATAL PSYCHOSIS, DEPRESSION) (IP)

POT: See MARIJUANA.

POTENTIAL HEALTH RISK: any harm either physical or psychosocial/ psychological damage to a person due to a scientific, technological and medical application. It may also include disclosure of genetic information and other medical records of a person which may cause a possible damage in familial relationship and other social stigmatization and discrimination. (JA)

POWER ANALYSIS: See STATISTICAL POWER.

PPM: Parts Per Million.

PRAGMATISM: Actions which are based upon immediate practicalities rather than any theoretical considerations. In philosophy, pragmatism implies that the truth or content of a concept lies in its practical applicability or coherence with experience rather than theory. (MP)

PRAISE: (Latin: pretium "prize") An expression of admiration, commendation or gratitude to a person or deity. Positive encouragement of praiseworthy behavior is held in higher regard than attempts to educate using criticism or condemnation. (MP)

PRAYER: (Latin: prex) A personal communication or communion with God or another deity, often ritualized prayers of devotion but also often also a respectful request or entreaty to divinity. Prayer is a central focus of religious institutions and places of worship, aided by prayer books, beads and prayer wheels. For many people prayer provides a fundamental connection to their spiritual support and sense of identity. However, in a bioethical situation such as a sick child, prayer is an addition not an alternative to practical action. (MP)

PRE-: Prefix denoting ‘before’ in space or time. (See ANTE-, POST-, INTER-, TRANS-) (MP)

PRECAUTION: (Latin: praecavure "before + beware") An advance action, cautious circumspection or safeguard to protect against potential dangers or undesirable events. Accidents, uncertainty and unpredictability are factors leading to environmental damage and loss of life, and professionals in positions of power must take ethical responsibility for the future by exercising precaution. (See PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE) (MP)

PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE: An important modern concept for ecological, political and corporate management, the precautionary principle effectively states that "Where there are threats of serious or irreversible environmental damage, lack of full scientific certainty should not be used as a reason for postponing measures to prevent environmental degradation" (1992 Australian Intergovernmental Agreement on the Environment). Lack of full scientific knowledge of impacts should not be used as an excuse for development, with the onus of responsibility on the developer. Threats of irreversible environmental damage should be considered guilty until proven innocent. The principle of caution involves leaving ecological space as room for ignorance. All efforts should be taken to prevent non-sustainable development, habitat destruction or degradation, release of chemicals into the environment, global climate change, and loss of biodiversity. It is a useful tool to flag ignorance and uncertainty about eventualities such as undesirable ecological, social or corporate impacts, and to hold policy until increased scientific understanding of a problem has been achieved. The precautionary principle should be especially considered in environmental impact assessment, risk analysis, hazard management, political diplomacy and the scientific development of dangerous knowledge or technology. Many believe that the principle should become an established guideline for all policy-makers. (See PRECAUTION, ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT, RISK ANALYSIS, HUMAN EXTINCTION). (IP & MP)

PRECISION: Precision is the correspondence of a measurement or repeated measurements within close specified limits. In mathematics, the precision of a number may be expressed as its power of 10. It is possible for a measurement to be precise but inaccurate. (See ACCURACY) (MP)

PRECOGNITION: (Latin: prae "before" + cognoscere "know") Prior knowledge of the occurrence of a specific event, for example a death revealed in a dream state, with no reasonable explanation for that awareness. One rationalization is that regular false expectations tend to be forgotten, whereas the occasional random precognitions which turn out to be true are noticeable and are remembered. (See CLAIRVOYANCE) (MP)

PRECONCEPTION INJURIES: Injuries to offspring attributed to damage sustained by either parent before the start of pregnancy. (DM)

PREDESTINATION: See DETERMINISM.

PREEMBRYO: The developing cells produced by the division of the zygote before the formation of the embryo proper at the appearance of the primitive streak. Also called pro-embryo. (DM)

PRE-EMPTION: Action in anticipation of the likely or possible action of another. (See GAME THEORY, PRE-EMPTIVE STRIKE, PREVENTIVE WAR) (MP)

PRE-EMPTIVE STRIKE: An early or surprise offensive attack, designed to prevent anticipated terrorism or military actions before the threat has actually materialized. It relies however upon a ‘reaction’ to the ‘possible’ intentions of another, which cannot necessarily be known, especially in a hawkish climate of fear or distrust. Pre-emptive strikes put conflicts on a hair-trigger, precipitating vengeance and a ‘use it or lose it’ mentality. (See PREVENTIVE WAR, HAWK, AGGRESSOR NATION) (MP)

PREFRONTAL CORTEX: See FRONTAL LOBE.

PREGNANCY: (Latin praegnans 'pregnant'). The gestational period between fertilization and the complete delivery of the fetus, placenta and fetal membranes, or the period between fertilization and the interruption of pregnancy as by spontaneous or induced abortion. A human pregnancy lasts approximately 36 weeks from the day of conception but is generally calculated 40 weeks from the first day of the last menstrual period. During the period of growth and development of the embryo and the fetus many physiological and psychological changes take place. (IP)

PREIMPLANTATION GENETIC DIAGNOSIS (PGD): A genetic technique that allows a single cell to be taken from an embryo in vitro in order to detect certain serious genetic conditions, before implantation. (see also GENETIC DIAGNOSIS) (JA)

PREIMPLANTATION SCREENING: See PREIMPLANTATION GENETIC DIAGNOSIS.

PREMARITAL TESTING: Premarital testing has been developed as a way to prevent genetic anomalies without recourse to abortion or discontinuation of neonatal intensive care. The idea seems to work most efficiently in groups, like some Orthodox Jewish sects, where prearranged marriages are the rule. One organisation, Dor Yesharim , started testing potential matches for Tay-Sacks several years ago. Privacy is guaranteed. If neither, or only one person is a carrier, they simply inform the families that they have no objection to the match, without mentioning which, or whether either person is a carrier. If both are carriers, they inform the families that they do not recommend the match. Among modern young people, where the rule is love marriages, rather than arranged marriages, it can be a subject for hot debate in the university classroom, whether a couple who have fallen in love, would cancel a wedding because of genetic test results. (FL)

PREMATURITY: inadequate birth weight due to preterm delivery where the duration of pregnancy was less than 37 weeks rather than poor fetal weight gain for a given duration of pregnancy which is conveyed as intrauterine growth retardation. (See INTRAUTERINE GROWTH RETARDATION) (IP)

PREMISES: Statements or evidence used to support an argument or conclusion. (See ASSUMPTIONS) (MP)

PRENATAL DIAGNOSIS: Determination of fetal status prior to birth. Methods include alpha-fetoprotein screening, amniocentesis, chorionic villi sampling. (See FETAL THERAPY, GENETIC SCREENING, PRENATAL SCREENING, PREIMPLANTATION DIAGNOSIS, SEX DETERMINATION) (GK)

PRENATAL SCREENING: See PRENATAL DIAGNOSIS.

PREPUCE: Technical name for the foreskin, or retractable fold of skin across the tip of the penis which is removed during circumcision; also the hood of skin protecting the clitoris. (See CIRCUMCISION) (MP)

PRESIDENT'S COMMISSION: The President's Commission was a body set up in the United States in the 1970s to deliberate on bioethical issues, and laid out a number of fundamental reports on bioethics issues. (DM)

PRESSURE/STATE/RESPONSE MODEL: A model often used by OECD countries in State of the Environment (SoE) reporting. It follows a causal relationship from the pressures which impact upon the state of the environment through to the development of adaptive responses. Driving forces may include population change, economic production, international trade, consumption trends, and flows of energy and materials. Pressures on the environment include energy use, agriculture, industry, developments and other human activities. State or condition of the environment is measured and reviewed, with reference to impacts upon land, air, water, biodiversity, ecology and human environments. Response requires close links to institutional policy, legislation, management decision-making, new technology, economic policies, international obligations and changing value systems. (See STATE OF THE ENVIRONMENT REPORT, ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT) (MP)

PRESUMED CONSENT: An institutional policy of granting authority to health personnel to perform procedures on patients or to remove organs from cadavers for transplantation unless an objection is registered by family members or by the patient prior to death. (DM)

PRESYMPTOMATIC GENETIC TESTING: The genetic status of a person can be predicted with much certainty.  A presence or absence of a gene (monogenetic) can cause a disorder. Testing of genetic disorder due to a single gene is often referred to as "presymptomatic genetic testing". Primarily carried out in healthy or asymptomatic individuals to provide information about that individual’s  future health, with respect to specific inherited diseases. Such a test result may indicate that the iesting is most frequently used in late onset autosomal dominant disorders such as Huntington’s Disease. (JA)

PREVALENCE: The number of cases of a given disease in a specified population at a designated time. (DM)

PREVENTION: See CURE.

PREVENTIVE DEPLOYMENT: The field deployment of peacekeeping troops for containment, deterrence and to maintain peace and order in an area of probable emerging conflict. For example, Macedonia was protected by a UN Preventive Deployment Force during the 1992 Yugoslav conflict. Distinction should be made between preventive deployment requested by the relevant government, pleaded for by affected people, and that which may be unwelcome. (See PREVENTIVE DIPLOMACY, PRE-EMPTION, PEACE ENFORCEMENT, PREVENTIVE WAR, PEACE KEEPING) (MP)

PREVENTIVE DIPLOMACY: Peace maintenance strategies and action to prevent disputes from escalating into armed conflict and to prevent the spread of conflicts, for example the United Nations in association with regional governments and organizations. Peaceful means for preventive diplomacy include mediation, negotiation, enquiry, arbitration and judicial settlement. Early prevention is the provision of a dispute resolution service well before armed conflict becomes imminent. Further information can be found in the UN Secretariat’s 1991 ‘Handbook on the Peaceful Settlement of Disputes between States’. (See PREVENTIVE DEPLOYMENT, PEACE BUILDING, PEACE MAKING, FACILITATION, MEDIATION, NEGOTIATION, CONFLICT RESOLUTION) (MP)

PREVENTIVE MEDICINE: The branch of medicine concerned with the prevention of disease and the promotion and preservation of health. (DM)

PREVENTIVE WAR: Euphemistic term for offensive military action based on temporary strategic advantage and the presumption of putative in