APPENDICITIS -".'I 



appendicitis in some form. Until almost tin- 

 end of the nineteenth century thousands of 

 people died ev 

 year from "in- 

 flammation of 

 the bowels" and 

 various other dis- 

 eases which are 

 now recognized 

 as forms of ap- 

 pendicitis. 



The appendix 

 is a small, tube- 

 like organ which 

 projects from the 

 caecum (blind 

 pouch or sack) of 

 the large intes- 

 tine. The vermi- 

 form, or worm- 

 like, appearance 

 of the appendix 

 :ven it the 

 qualifying part of 

 its name. It is 

 usually three to 



APPERCEPTION 



LOCATION OF VERMI- 

 FORM APPENDIX 



Arrow at a points to ap- 

 pendix. It is at the right of 

 the exit from the small 



r intestine and at the base of 



lour inches long, large ascending colon (see 

 and from one- INTESTINES). 



quarter to one-half an inch thick. It is nor- 

 mally located on the right side of the abdomen, 

 midway between the crest of the ileum and the 

 navel, but as the closed end is free its position 

 frequently varies. The organ seems useless in 

 man, though in some of the lower animals it is 

 more highly developed and apparently aids the 

 process of digestion. 



It was once thought that grape seeds, cherry 

 stones and other foreign substances lodged in 

 the appendix were the chief causes of inflam- 

 mation. Such cases are now believed to be 

 rare, but wounds, strains, bruises and the ac- 

 cumulation and hardening of undigested food 

 are common causes. It is probable that in a 

 majority of cases the prime factors are bac- 

 teria acting upon an injured or weakened 

 mucous membrane, and a condition of lowered 

 vitality of the organism. 



Among the symptoms of appendicitis are 

 sharp, colic-like pains, varied by dull aches, 

 which gradually localize themselves in the re- 

 gion of the appendix. Fever usually follows, 

 and is sometimes accompanied by nausea and 

 vomiting. Neither fever nor vomiting, how- 

 ever, are sure indications, but tenderness and 

 stiffness in the region of the appendix are 

 almost certain indications. The diagnosis of 



appendicitis is so complicated that a physician 

 should always be called whenever this disease 

 seems to make its appearance. 



A large proportion of all cases recover, but 

 in severe cases the tissue of the appendix 

 ulcerates and becomes perforated, causing 

 peritonitis, or inflammation of the whole ab- 

 dominal cavity. In cases of perforation death 

 is almost certain to follow unless prompt sur- 

 gical measures are taken. In fact, the surgical 

 operation has come to be considered the only 

 certain cure for the disease, and so well known 

 are the method of operation and the subse- 

 quent treatment of the wound that the opera- 

 tion is not now regarded as difficult or danger- 

 ous. W.A.E. 



APPERCEPTION, ap ersep' shun. When 

 we see a new object, when we hear a new fact, 

 when we read a new idea in fact, when we 

 meet with any new kind of experience the 

 mind refers it to the store of knowledge already 

 possessed. It compares this new experience 

 with the old, tries to explain it and to assimilate 

 it by interpreting it in the light of previous 

 experiences. This mental process is known in 

 the science of psychology as apperception. If 

 an idea is closely related to something already 

 well understood, the effort of apperception is 

 so slight that we scarcely recognize it, or we 

 may be entirely unconscious of it; but if the 

 experience is new and important all ideas which 

 relate to it are brought into consciousness and 

 applied to the new object or phenomenon. 



Before a new experience can be apperceived, 

 we must obtain data concerning it. If it is a 

 new sort of fruit, we bring to bear upon it all 

 the senses, such as sight, touch, taste, smell. We 

 then attempt to learn of its manner of growth, 

 whether the plant is annual, biennial or per- 

 ennial; whether it is an herb, shrub or tree, 

 and whether it thrives in a warm or temperate 

 climate. When these items of information are 

 obtained, we are prepared to classify properly 

 the new specimen and add it to our idea of 

 fruit. 



Its Value in Education. The proper un- 

 derstanding of the processes of apperception 

 is very important in the formulation and appli- 

 cation of sound methods of teaching. For in 

 this connection it is well to remember the 

 following important facts: 



(a) The mind in mastering any new idea does 

 it by going from what is known to the nearest 

 related unknown. If a new kind of fruit is pre- 

 sented to the child, his first act is to discover 

 its known qualities. It follows therefore that 

 in teaching new subjects one has to take into 



