dia-, di-

Translation: "Devil's advocate."

This term is generally used to describe someone who takes the unpopular or opposite side in an argument either out of contentiousness or out of a zeal for the truth.

Direct visual inspection of blood vessels of the extremities, a light being held behind the part.

1. The obliteration of blood vessels with diathermy.
2. The therapeutic generation of local heat in body tissues by high-frequency electromagnetic currents.

Indifference to one’s own disease.

A cutaneous ulcer associated with diabetes mellitus.

A dread of having diabetes: Carl started to have diabetophobia after his doctor examined him and commented on his body not producing enough of the hormone needed to turn sugar into the energy he needed for doing everyday activities.

1. Pertaining to, or possessing the properties of, a species of caustic curves formed by refraction.
2. A curved formed by the consecutive intersections of rays of light refracted through a lens.
3. That which burns by refraction, as a double convex lens, or the sun's rays concentrated by such a lens, sometimes used as a cautery.

1. In medicine, relating to something systematically observed over time in the same subjects throughout as opposed to synchronic or cross-sectional: In his studies, John was involved in diachronic research regarding patients only where there was strict stability of all elements.
2. Pertaining to a linguistic study concerned with the historical development of a language: Since Jane was interested in languages, she decided to learn more about the diachronic features of German throughout time.
3. In archaeology, denoting actions or things which occur over time: In Sam's diachronic research, he classified the artifacts he had found in his region as they developed or changed throughout sequential periods of time.

1. The existence of a geological feature that transgresses palaeontological zones: An example of diachronism is a great divergence between the lithological and chronological classifications.
2. The existence within a single geologic formation of regions of rock that were laid down at different times: Diachronism can be exemplified by a sea that gradually covered a landmass.

Describing a lithological unit whose age varies from place to place, or a lithological unit (rock formation) which cuts across various times or biostratigraphic zones; time-transgressive: A diachronous sedimentation can be seen in a geological deposit in which a sedimentary rock formation apparently consists of similar material, but varies in age from place to place.

For example, as a shoreline advances or retreats, a succession of continuous deposits representing different environments, such as a beach, shallow water, and deeper water, may be left behind as their ages vary depending on the positions of the shorelines through the various time sequences.

Regarding the science of refracted sounds; diaphonic: Carson was an expert in diacoustic music in churches and and was researching the qualities of surfaces that refracted or diverted sounds in different directions.

1. Serving to distinguish or able to distinguish; said of a mark or symbol to show pronunciation.
2. Indicating a change or modification in something; especially, in the way a printed letter is to be pronounced or stressed.
3. Capable of distinguishing, discerning, or showing a capacity for discerning.