Finger

From Free net encyclopedia

For the network protocol, see finger protocol. For the hand gesture, see the finger. For the fairy tale, see Tim Burton's Corpse Bride

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The finger is any of the digits of the hand in humans and other species such as the great apes. The grace of the fingers is not sacrificed to their dexterity due to the placement of their muscles in the forearm, with motion communicated via long tendons which may be observed on the back of the hand. A notable exception is the thumb, with its flexor and rotators comprised in the hand itself.

The bones of the fingers are called phalanges (singular phalanx); the thumb has two phalanges, and the other fingers have three. The fingers' names in English are shown below, from the most radial to the most ulnar:

1. thumb
2. index finger, pointer finger, or forefinger
3. middle finger or long finger
4. ring finger
5. little finger or pinky finger

Anatomy of the finger

In anatomy, the thumb is the first finger and the little finger is the fifth finger. Thus the third finger means the middle finger in anatomy, not the ring finger as in daily English.

There are three bones in each finger called the proximal phalanx, the middle phalanx and the distal phalanx. Each finger has three joints. The first joint is where the finger joins the hand. This joint is where the bones that form the palm of the hand, the metacarpals, join with the first bone of the finger, called the proximal phalanx. The bone protruding from this joint when the fist is clenched is commonly referred to as the knuckle. The second joint is the proximal interphalangeal joint, sometimes called the PIP joint for short. The last joint of the finger is called the distal interphalangeal joint, or DIP. Each of these joints is covered with articular cartilage. Articular cartilage is the smooth spongy material that covers the end of bones that make up a joint. The cartilage allows the bones to slide easily against one another as the joint moves through its range of motion.

Relative to much of the skin of the human body, the fingertips have a high concentration of nerve endings, equipping them as centers of tactile sensation; touching something or someone is often done with the hands and in particular the fingers. An important application of this capacity is in the ability to read Braille. Additionally, prehension is enhanced by the presence of the ridges and whorls known as fingerprints. Each finger is protected at its dorsal terminus by a fingernail (Latin unguis, unguiculus).

In infants, the fingertip is one of the few tissues in the human body capable of full regeneration, although this ability disappears after about age six. [1]

See also:

• Bill Finger
• Digit ratio (relative finger lengths)
• Finger protocol
• Home row (of keyboards)
• List of literary characters with nine fingers
• List of polydactyl people
• Polydactyly
• The finger (gesture)
• Toe

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