What's the difference between description and explanation?

Description


Definition:

  • (n.) The act of describing; a delineation by marks or signs.
  • (n.) A sketch or account of anything in words; a portraiture or representation in language; an enumeration of the essential qualities of a thing or species.
  • (n.) A class to which a certain representation is applicable; kind; sort.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) Descriptive features of the syndrome in children, adults and adolescents are given based on the respective work of Pine, Masterson and Kernberg.
  • (2) A comparison of chest pain description was performed between MI and non-MI subjects.
  • (3) Madonna has defended her description of the leak of 13 unfinished demos from her forthcoming album as “a form of terrorism” and “artistic rape”.
  • (4) As novel antibody therapeutics are developed for different malignancies and require evaluation with cells previously uncharacterized as antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) targets, efficient description of key parameters of the assay system expedites the preclinical assessment.
  • (5) This paper provides a description of the cerebellar-vestibular-determined (CV) neurological and electronystagmographic (ENG) parameters characterizing 4,000 patients with learning disabilities.
  • (6) This report represents the first comprehensive description of instantaneous and continous phasic blood velocity at the mitral valve during atrial arrhythmias in man.
  • (7) Studies of diarrhoeal disease have been limited mainly to descriptive epidemiological investigations.
  • (8) In our laboratory we have contributed to these studies with the description of: a) the regulatory activity of different neuroendocrine substances on interferon-gamma production; b) the characterization of the immune regulation exercised by the muscarinic cholinergic system; c) the in vitro activity of the indoleamines, serotonin and melatonin on the immune response, and the production of these indoleamines by lymphocytes and monocytes, thus establishing a model of paracrine regulation.
  • (9) Five psychrophilic and five mesophilic phage were selected for a description of some of their biological properties.
  • (10) The molar refractivity has been shown to be a superior parameter for the description of the activity of sulphonamides than the sum of electronegativities of atoms making up a heterocyclic substituent in the sulphonamide molecule and molecular weight of the substituent.
  • (11) However, it was concluded that the biochemical models fail to give a complete description of photosynthesis in plants using the C4-dicarboxylic acid cycle.
  • (12) This review of androgenetic alopecia (AA) in women provides a summary of hair physiology and biochemistry, a general discussion of AA, and a brief description of other types of hair loss in women.
  • (13) The calculation, based on analytical expression derived by Cowley, has been shown previously to give an almost quantitative description of kinematical diffraction from linear chain systems.
  • (14) This short paper includes extracts from the original translations of Leeuwenhoek's descriptions of the histology of teeth, investigates his findings and demonstrates that in addition to describing dentinal tubules, he may have identified the presence of calcospherites within that tissue.
  • (15) We report a descriptive study of 56 cases of HIV infection in a primary care center to evaluate its impact on the population on care, the practices at risk, the associated infections and the difficulties for control.
  • (16) In addition to descriptions of variants of the root appearance for hairs removed from follicles in the three classical growth phases, several other commonly occurring root configurations are described and illustrated with photomicrographs.
  • (17) A brief description of suggested treatment and management regimens for the various forms of AIDS-related psychopathology then follows.
  • (18) Lazarus' phenomenological theory of stress and coping provided the basis for this descriptive study of perceived threats after myocardial infarction (MI).
  • (19) A descriptive case study approach was used to analyze findings.
  • (20) This is the first description of a restriction enzyme from a mycoplasma.

Explanation


Definition:

  • (n.) The act of explaining, expounding, or interpreting; the act of clearing from obscurity and making intelligible; as, the explanation of a passage in Scripture, or of a contract or treaty.
  • (n.) That which explains or makes clear; as, a satisfactory explanation.
  • (n.) The meaning attributed to anything by one who explains it; definition; interpretation; sense.
  • (n.) A mutual exposition of terms, meaning, or motives, with a view to adjust a misunderstanding, and reconcile differences; reconciliation; agreement; as, to come to an explanation.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) Mannose receptor mediated uptake by the reticuloendothelial system has been suggested as an explanation for the rapid removal of ricin A chain antibody conjugates from the circulation after their administration.
  • (2) Thus the failure to raise anti-Id with internal image characteristics may provide an explanation for the lack of anti-gp120 activity reported in anti-Id antisera raised to multiple anti-CD4 antibodies.
  • (3) "Gut closure" is an unlikely explanation for these findings.
  • (4) The following possible explanations were discussed: a) the tested psychotropic drugs block prostaglandin receptors in the stomach; b) the test substances react with prostaglandin in the nutritive solution; c) the substances stimulate metabolic processes in the stomach wall that break down prostaglandin.
  • (5) It is possible that the formation of a mycetoma grain may limit a patient's exposure to antigens which confer specificity, an explanation which may also account for the variability in antibody responses seen.
  • (6) This paper provides an overview of the theory, indicating its contributions--such as a basis for individual psychotherapy of severe disorders and a more effective understanding of countertransference--and its shortcomings--such as lack of an explanation for the effects of physical and cognitive factors on object relatedness.
  • (7) Possible explanations of the clinical gains include 1) psychological encouragement, 2) improvements of mechanical efficiency, 3) restoration of cardiovascular fitness, thus breaking a vicous circle of dyspnoea, inactivity and worsening dyspnoea, 4) strengthening of the body musculature, thus reducing the proportion of anaerobic work, 5) biochemical adaptations reducing glycolysis in the active tissues, and 6) indirect responses to such factors as group support, with advice on smoking habits, breathing patterns and bronchial hygiene.
  • (8) Injections of l-amphetamine were not effective, ruling out non-specific effects of pH, osmolarity and the like and also ruling out noradrenergic actions as explanations of the behavioral effects.
  • (9) The interactions of nitrous oxide with cytochrome c oxidase isolated from bovine heart muscle have been investigated in search of an explanation for the inhibition of mitochondrial respiration by the inhalation anesthetic.
  • (10) Its potential association with midline facial defects as well as an alternative embryological explanation is discussed.
  • (11) A model for the binuclear iron center of ribonucleotide reductase is presented in which the hydroxide ligand sites provide an explanation for the half-of-sites reactivity of the enzyme.
  • (12) It was not certain whether the association was real or what the explanation might be.
  • (13) Such an explanation not only remains vague and speculative but deserves criticism also for being incomplete.
  • (14) The only explanation he can come up with is that Cameron is worried about his legacy.
  • (15) Transfer of nonprofessional tasks out of nursing and reduction of tension arising from reduced responsibility of nurses for coordinating activities with ancillary departments are possible explanations for the positive relation between the presence of SUM and professional nurses' satisfaction.
  • (16) The explanation in other cases may be behavioral: women who use birth control may be less risk taking in their sexual behavior.
  • (17) Possible explanations for the increased ability to better tolerate exercise and activities of daily living (ADL) after training include: 1) psychological encouragement, 2) improvements in mechanical efficiency, 3) improved cardiovascular conditioning, 4) improved muscle function, 5) biochemical adaptations responsible for reducing glucose utilization, 6) desensitization to dyspnea, and 7) contributions from better self-care.
  • (18) Patients with a high titre p24 antibody response progress to AIDS more slowly, and these data provide an explanation why p24 antigenaemia is not universally detected in patients with AIDS.
  • (19) An explanation of this in terms of terrestrial snail (intermediate host) populations and a suggestion for the possible use of these data in developing a predictive model for forecasting lungworm levels for use in in bighorn sheep management are given.
  • (20) We propose a structural explanation of these facts based on the known crystal structure of concanavalin A.