The Periodic Table of the Elements categorizes elements primarily by the number of protons in their nucleus (atomic number) and secondarily by the characteristics they exhibit.

Blood transfer is limited by the type and Rh factor of the blood. Someone who has Rh-factor negative blood cannot receive blood with a positive type but a person with Rh-factor positive type blood can receive Rh-negative blood. Type O negative blood is the universal donor because it can be given to a person with any blood type. Type AB positive is the universal recipient meaning someone with this blood type can receive any other type of blood.

Unlike curved mirrors that operate on the principle of reflection, lenses utilize refraction. A convex lens is thicker in the middle than on the edges and converges light while a concave lens is thicker on the edges than in the middle and diffuses light. A common use for curved lenses is in eye glasses where a convex lens is used to correct farsightedness and a concave lens is used to correct nearsightedness.

A substance undergoes a phase transition when it moves from one state of matter to another, for example, when water freezes or boils.

The two largest veins in the body, the venae cavae, pass blood to the right ventricle which pumps the blood to the lungs through the pulmonary artery. Blood picks up oxygen in the lungs and returns it to the left atrium via the pulmonary vein.