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presenting

n. animal behavior in which a female turns its back toward a male and raises its posterior, which allows the male to mate. Lordosis is a specific form of presenting seen in many rodents during mating. The posture also occurs outside of a mating context, as when both male and female subordinate animals present to dominant animals.

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Psychology term of the day

February 16th 2025

cause

cause

n.

1. an event or state that brings about another (its effect).

2. in Aristotelian and rationalist philosophy, an entity or event that is a requirement for another entity or event’s coming to be. Aristotle proposed that there were four types of cause—material, formal, efficient, and final. In the case of a sculpture, for example, the material cause is the stone or metal from which it is made, the formal cause is the form or structure that it takes, the efficient cause is the sculptor, and the final cause is the sculptor’s aim or purpose in making it. —causal adj.