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hippocampus

n. (pl. hippocampi) a seahorse-shaped part of the forebrain, in the basal medial region of the temporal lobe, that is important for declarative memory and learning. Because of its resemblance to a ram’s horn, 19th-century neuroanatomists named it Ammon’s horn (cornu ammonis; CA) for the horn of the ram that represented the Egyptian deity Ammon. Parts of the hippocampus were then labeled CA1, CA2, CA3, and CA4; these designations are still used for the different regions of the hippocampus. See hippocampal formation; Papez circuit. —hippocampal adj.

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Psychology term of the day

April 16th 2024

great chain of being

great chain of being

a construction, attributed to Greek philosopher Plato (c. 429–347 bce) and elaborated by many later philosophers, that sees creation as a continuous linked hierarchy descending from God at the top, through heavenly beings, humans, animals, and plants to nonliving matter. The classic work on the history of this idea is the 1936 study by U.S. philosopher Arthur O. Lovejoy (1873–1963).