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.

The electromagnetic spectrum covers all possible wavelengths and frequencies of radiation. From lowest frequency (longest wavelength) to highest frequency (shortest wavelength) radiation: radio waves → microwaves → infrared waves → visible light → ultraviolet light → X-rays → gamma rays.

A person's genotype is their genetic makeup and includes both dominant and recessive alleles. Phenotype is how the genes express themselves in physical characteristics.

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.